The MLP Arena
Pony Talk => Pony Corral => Topic started by: Cadence on June 20, 2012, 10:54:25 AM
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I just placed a G3 pony on top of my laptop (below the keyboard, to the right of the finger mouse pad & on top of the fingerprint sensor) WITHOUT thinking. :stressed: Then I ran to another room for 30 seconds before coming back & realizing that I put the pony's magnetic hoof ontop of my computer.
Are the G3 pony magnets strong enough to cause laptop damage? (Or is 30 seconds too short to cause any significant damage?)
Has anyone put a pony (or magnet) near their laptop before and had (no) issues?
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Now that I think about it, I've done that too to take a picture of my orange ponies all grouped together. I don't think it affects it that much; nothing happened to my laptop. Actually, this happened like a month ago and I never remembered the magnets until you mentioned it! XD
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Now that I think about it, I've done that too to take a picture of my orange ponies all grouped together. I don't think it affects it that much; nothing happened to my laptop. Actually, this happened like a month ago and I never remembered the magnets until you mentioned it! XD
:tellme: Hahaha well then, it's a good thing I posted this to remind you! :P
Thanks, I feel relieved now. ^^; The magnets gave me such a scare though, they're pretty strong compared to the ones on my fridge!
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Well, the only damage you have to watch out for is hard drive data damage. Provided that the pony isn't placed directly over the hard drive, it's fine. And even if you did do so, the damage isn't permanent and can be fixed with a check disk scan, or at worst case (in case windows starts complaining about missing files and such), a windows reinstall (though any data on the disk not backed up is gone permanently :/ ). If you have one of those uber-exspensive uber-fancy solid state disk hard drives tho, then even magnetic fields won't damage your data.
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Computer geek hubby flips if DD puts a G3 anywhere near a laptop. Maybe overcaution, who knows with him. ;)
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Personally it is not worth the risk. Whether the magnet is powerful enough to have an actual effect I am not certain - but I have heard too many stories and seen too many distorted monitors and screens to ever risk it myself.
I would urge caution but on the sensible [i.e. no G3 magnet ponies dancing along the top of your laptop] and not extreme [i.e dont decide never to use a laptop near a G3 ever again] side of caution. :P
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My computer desk is also my customs workspace, so I have G3's within probably six inches of my laptop; no problems yet, but I never place them on my computer - just to be safe.
Though DH did put a G3 on top of my closed computer once. No damage, but I did kinda freak out XD
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Well, the only damage you have to watch out for is hard drive data damage. Provided that the pony isn't placed directly over the hard drive, it's fine. And even if you did do so, the damage isn't permanent and can be fixed with a check disk scan, or at worst case (in case windows starts complaining about missing files and such), a windows reinstall (though any data on the disk not backed up is gone permanently :/ ). If you have one of those uber-exspensive uber-fancy solid state disk hard drives tho, then even magnetic fields won't damage your data.
Whew, much thanks for the technical advice RAMChYLD! Good to know. :)
Personally it is not worth the risk. Whether the magnet is powerful enough to have an actual effect I am not certain - but I have heard too many stories and seen too many distorted monitors and screens to ever risk it myself.
I would urge caution but on the sensible [i.e. no G3 magnet ponies dancing along the top of your laptop] and not extreme [i.e dont decide never to use a laptop near a G3 ever again] side of caution. :P
I agree with you Hathorcat! ^.^ (Though lil' paranoid me will probably be taking "extreme" precaution from now on :P)
Rybett, Kalavista, it's good to have tech (well, magnet) savvy husbands. XD (I would've freaked out too! :P)
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I have heard too many stories and seen too many distorted monitors and screens to ever risk it myself.
Well, that only applies to the old-school CRT displays tho. LCD and LED displays are generally immune to magnetic gauss. Not sure about plasma displays, but I reckon they should be immune too.
Whew, much thanks for the technical advice RAMChYLD! Good to know. :)
YW :) Still, reinstalling Windows can ruin a whole day for one tho, so best to take precautions :) If you know where the hard drive is on your laptop, just avoid putting ponies there :P
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They are super strong magnets, I would not put them near any electronics you value. I know members have put them on top of TVs before and had the screen go all wonky.
IIRC, there was actually a news story about a little kid accidentally messing up an older relatives pacemaker with a G3 pony. :/ *hunts around* Yep, here it is: http://hallbuzz.com/news/breitbart.htm
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - A small magnet in a toy may have disabled the computerized regulator in a woman's pacemaker; causing her death.
Kathy M. Williamson watched as her three year old daughter played with a toy on her grandmother's chest; within a minute Williamson’s 81 year old mother, Eleanor Roberts, went into cardiac arrest. Cardiologist Russell Hughes suspects that the close proximity of a magnet in a foot of a "My Little Pony" to the pacemaker in Roberts’ chest caused the computer in the pacemaker to malfunction and produce an impossible heart rate, resulting in heart failure and death. Hughes stated that magnets have been known to disrupt some pacemakers but are only dangerous if they are within four inches of the regulator. “A small magnet would have to be in direct contact with the chest directly over a pacemaker to cause failure.” Hughes stated.
Paramedics arrived within five minutes, but were unable to revive Roberts. Williamson reportedly was so distraught over the ordeal that she burned a collection of over 100 of the small plastic toys.
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It's generally a good idea to keep magnets away from electronics in general. They can also mess up CRT screens and monitors, too. A hard drive can be replaced, but data can't!
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Paramedics arrived within five minutes, but were unable to revive Roberts. Williamson reportedly was so distraught over the ordeal that she burned a collection of over 100 of the small plastic toys.
Ow.
Hmm... News dated 2008? Maybe it explains why Hasbro hastily reboot the franchise to G3.5?
It's generally a good idea to keep magnets away from electronics in general. They can also mess up CRT screens and monitors, too. A hard drive can be replaced, but data can't!
Agreed. Although, it should be noted that Speakers and headphones contain magnets too. So yeah.
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I made a video demonstrating the strength of hard drive magnets.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEG-s9XC0II
These are in EVERY HARD DRIVE. Unless it's a SSD. They are wicked strong and they are inside your hard drive. A G3 pony on a notebook won't do diddly.
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These are in EVERY HARD DRIVE. Unless it's a SSD. They are wicked strong and they are inside your hard drive. A G3 pony on a notebook won't do diddly.
I should add that most modern laptops that are sensibly designed have shielding over the hard drive compartment to prevent magnetic data damage too. Still good idea to play safe tho.
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IIRC, there was actually a news story about a little kid accidentally messing up an older relatives pacemaker with a G3 pony. :/
:(
There really should have been more obvious "do not put pony near..." warnings on the packages... I'm glad they stopped putting magnets in hooves!
I made a video demonstrating the strength of hard drive magnets.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEG-s9XC0II
These are in EVERY HARD DRIVE. Unless it's a SSD. They are wicked strong and they are inside your hard drive. A G3 pony on a notebook won't do diddly.
The video is set to private so we can't see it... :P But whew, what a relief!
Thanks for the tech advice everyone! :)
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Paramedics arrived within five minutes, but were unable to revive Roberts. Williamson reportedly was so distraught over the ordeal that she burned a collection of over 100 of the small plastic toys.
Aw. It is sad that happened; poor kid must have been traumatized - I would have been. :(
In general, I just keep my g3s far away from all of my electronics. Seems the safest solution.
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Gosh thats a scary story!!! Poor child and family must have been traumatised.
Mind you if you had to put warning labels of everything something could damage to the list sure could get long - cant be as silly as the label once seen on a travel blanket which read "Not to be used as protection against a hurricane"...huh?
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Mind you if you had to put warning labels of everything something could damage to the list sure could get long
Well, they don't have to necessarily put down a long list- just something along the lines as "not to be placed near magnetic storage media(*1), CRT displays and health support devices"
Then again, it gets very silly when you think about it- the main purpose of the magnets in the hooves was to serve as triggers for the electronic playsets' sensors!
(*1) AKA Hard drives, floppy disks (remember them?), VHS Cassettes and Audio Cassettes.
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...if you had to put warning labels of everything something could damage to the list sure could get long - cant be as silly as the label once seen on a travel blanket which read "Not to be used as protection against a hurricane"...huh?
"Not to be used as protection against a hurricane"... hah! It's true though, there are some things that seem like common sense, but it's not common to everyone. ^^;
Since RAMChYLD mentionned VHS tapes (yes, we still remember them! :biggrin:), I remembered that they packaged VHS videos RIGHT BESIDE magnetic G3 ponies - ie Starcatcher. :P
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IIRC, there was actually a news story about a little kid accidentally messing up an older relatives pacemaker with a G3 pony. :/
:(
There really should have been more obvious "do not put pony near..." warnings on the packages... I'm glad they stopped putting magnets in hooves!
I made a video demonstrating the strength of hard drive magnets.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEG-s9XC0II
These are in EVERY HARD DRIVE. Unless it's a SSD. They are wicked strong and they are inside your hard drive. A G3 pony on a notebook won't do diddly.
The video is set to private so we can't see it... :P But whew, what a relief!
Thanks for the tech advice everyone! :)
argh! It is no longer private, my mistake!
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IIRC, there was actually a news story about a little kid accidentally messing up an older relatives pacemaker with a G3 pony. :/
:(
There really should have been more obvious "do not put pony near..." warnings on the packages... I'm glad they stopped putting magnets in hooves!
I made a video demonstrating the strength of hard drive magnets.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEG-s9XC0II
These are in EVERY HARD DRIVE. Unless it's a SSD. They are wicked strong and they are inside your hard drive. A G3 pony on a notebook won't do diddly.
The video is set to private so we can't see it... :P But whew, what a relief!
Thanks for the tech advice everyone! :)
argh! It is no longer private, my mistake!
"Me? Pretty strong guy. I play hockey!" :rofl:
Your video was quite enthusiastic and very informing & effective at the same time! Thanks a bunch for demonstrating the strength of hard drive magnets!! :thumb:
Love the dedicated pony area by the mirror by the way. :)
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Since RAMChYLD mentionned VHS tapes (yes, we still remember them! :biggrin:), I remembered that they packaged VHS videos RIGHT BESIDE magnetic G3 ponies - ie Starcatcher. :P
And the tape was still playable?! :P
If the magnet can't damage a VHS tape, it's a weak magnet and it can't do anything to a hard drive at all.
argh! It is no longer private, my mistake!
Well, you have those in the hard drive, then there's shielding around the hard drive, so I'd say it's pretty safe.
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Not very weak at all, IMO--I can hang G3s upside down on metal surfaces! ;) I often have some climbing up my fridge . . .
It's true Starcatcher was packaged with a VHS tape, but IIRC, Starcatcher's magnet was in her back hoof rather than her front hoof like most G3s. So the magnet was actually a good distance away from the tape.
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With "A Very Charming Birthday" VHS, the tape was sort of strapped to the back of the packaging with tape, outside of it, so again no direct contact with the magnet.
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I remember as a kid in the 80s if you put a magnet on top of the TV the screen would go green, so I don't put magnets anywhere near electricals now :lol:
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Not very weak at all, IMO--I can hang G3s upside down on metal surfaces! ;) I often have some climbing up my fridge . . .
It's true Starcatcher was packaged with a VHS tape, but IIRC, Starcatcher's magnet was in her back hoof rather than her front hoof like most G3s. So the magnet was actually a good distance away from the tape.
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With "A Very Charming Birthday" VHS, the tape was sort of strapped to the back of the packaging with tape, outside of it, so again no direct contact with the magnet.
*nostalgia moment when ponies were packaged with VHS tapes and not mini DVDs*...sigh :P
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Not very weak at all, IMO--I can hang G3s upside down on metal surfaces! ;) I often have some climbing up my fridge . . .
It's true Starcatcher was packaged with a VHS tape, but IIRC, Starcatcher's magnet was in her back hoof rather than her front hoof like most G3s. So the magnet was actually a good distance away from the tape.
With "A Very Charming Birthday" VHS, the tape was sort of strapped to the back of the packaging with tape, outside of it, so again no direct contact with the magnet.
*nostalgia moment when ponies were packaged with VHS tapes and not mini DVDs*...sigh :P
Very true, LadyMoondancer. The tapes were playable even if they were only a few inches away from the back hoof. By the way, I would probably love your fridge!
And yes hathorcat, I'm reminiscing with you. :P
I remember as a kid in the 80s if you put a magnet on top of the TV the screen would go green, so I don't put magnets anywhere near electricals now :lol:
Wow, hope your TV was okay after removing the magnet! (If I had known that as a kid, I probably would've found that fun. XD)
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I don't risk it at all... not since Mr G set a small. magnetic aerial on one side of his laptop temporarily and killed his harddrive
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Wow, hope your TV was okay after removing the magnet! (If I had known that as a kid, I probably would've found that fun. XD)
Most newer CRT TVs and monitors made before CRT was discontinued have a degauss circuit inside. Just turn the TV or monitor off, wait a few minutes, And turn it back on. When it comes out of standby, you'll hear an extra click, and the picture will be fixed :)
I don't risk it at all... not since Mr G set a small. magnetic aerial on one side of his laptop temporarily and killed his harddrive
Hmmm, I'd think that was a coincidence. Either that or the laptop was poorly designed and lacked shielding over the drive bay, and was coupled with a poorly made hard drive (*cough*hitachideskstar*cough*).
And I think I've seen one of such antenna- the magnet on that one is extremely strong (I actually found it very tough to remove from the metal display shelf : P ), very much stronger than one in the hoof of a G3. It is also way bigger.
Another thing tho- the magnets DoctorMowinckel demonstrated are for desktop (3.5 inch) hard drives. Laptop (2.5 inch) hard drives are smaller and thinner, and thus may be more sensitive to magnetic fields. But on the other hand, laptop hard drives must be built to withstand strong magnetic forces or the owner would have trouble every time he/she passes through a metal detector or baggage scanner! Both which generates extreme amounts of magnetic forces while in operation, and some are even known to destroy camcorder recordings back when camcorders used tapes!
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I don't risk it at all... not since Mr G set a small. magnetic aerial on one side of his laptop temporarily and killed his harddrive
Hmmm, I'd think that was a coincidence. Either that or the laptop was poorly designed and lacked shielding over the drive bay, and was coupled with a poorly made hard drive (*cough*hitachideskstar*cough*).
And I think I've seen one of such antenna- the magnet on that one is extremely strong (I actually found it very tough to remove from the metal display shelf : P ), very much stronger than one in the hoof of a G3. It is also way bigger.
Quite possibly.... it was a good number of years ago now (at least 5, possibly as many as 7 or 8), and the laptop wasn't exactly new at the time. Fairly sure it wasn't a coincidence, but I never tested the strength of the magnet myself, so it may well have been quite strong. From memory it had a bigger surface area, but was quite thin. I still prefer not to risk it, just in case ;)
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I have no idea but I'm not about to take chances because I put tape over my G3 Star Swirl pony's magnetic hoof.