Path: utzoo!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!csd4.csd.uwm.edu!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!uwvax!astroatc!nicmad!madnix!jason
From: jason@madnix.UUCP (Jason Blochowiak)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple
Subject: Re: Vanilla HD Construction (Article 2)
Keywords: Cheap access light fix for the 277N & AHive
Message-ID: <819@madnix.UUCP>
Date: 1 Sep 89 12:23:22 GMT
References: <8908281945.AA23448@trout.nosc.mil>
Reply-To: jason@madnix.UUCP (Jason Blochowiak)
Organization: ARP Software, Madison, WI
Lines: 50


	I found that not knowing when my //gs was accessing the hard drive
was annoying, so I found an easy and cheap way to take care of it. It's
been awhile, but here are the basics:
	1) Remove the black cover plate from the 277N with a screwdriver
	2) Remove the little metal thingies from one end of the wires that
lead from the AHive's access LED to where the access LED hookup would be
on a different drive. (Ok, that was incoherent - it's 7:05am, and I'll
be going to bed soon...) Put another way: There is a pair of wires
twisted together (they come with the AHive). On both ends of each of these
wires, there are "female" metal things that slip over the prongs that come
out of the LED (on one end of the wires) and the prongs that I guess are
one other drives. So, we need the thingies on one end of the wires (to hook
up to the green access LED in the AHive), and we need the other end to be
bare wire.
	3) Insert the bare wire ends into the thingies that you bought from
Radio Shack. The thingies required from RS are small plastic deals that have
a place to stick a wire into on one end, and have a small (~1mm) metal hook
that extends from the plastic body when you push. They're used (by normal
folks), I imagine, for "lifting" a signal from a pair of wires.
	4) Look into the front of the 277N where the green LED is - you should
be able to see the wires that are connected to it. Hook the metal part of
the plastic RS thingies onto the wires, one on each side. Make sure that
the metal parts don't touch anything inside the drive except the LED wires.
You should now have a 277N with two wires sticking out the front, with metal
thingies to attach to a LED.
	5) Attach the metal LED attaching thingies to the green access LED
that's part of the front of the AHive.

	Voila! You're done... Of course, I've skipped some stuff like
disassembling the drive, making sure you don't fry it or yourself, making sure
that the polarity is correct for the LED, and re-assembling the drive without
pulling the wires off.
	I know this works, as my drive is set up like this, and the access
light works... No soldering (aside: Anyone care to email me as to why this
word is pronounced "sotter"?) required, and the whole thing is removeable
(just unclip the plastic thingies from the drive). Btw, the LED actually
attached to the 277N still operates.
	If you do this, you are doing it at your own risk. If you proceed
with this, and you're even more of an electronics novice than I am (ha! take
a look at the part descriptions I gave!), you might want to get some help
from someone who knows enough to decipher what I've written. If someone out
in netland knows the specific names for what I'm talking about above (write
to me if you think you know, but aren't sure) and is capable of writing a
decent description, please do re-write this.
-- 
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				jason@madnix.UUCP
	"I am opposed 180 degrees" - George Bush, master mixer of metaphors.
	 	    (Is the IInix mailing group still out there?)