so my 3-year old hp pavillion dv5's video card just died. when i turn the laptop on, the lights come on but the screen stays blank. it would cost $330 to get it repaired by hp, and as a grad student, ...

Reader Fred wants to know if a laptop hard drive can be plugged into a desktop PC. “The pin out appears to be the same,” he notes, “but there is no separate power-supply connector.” Short answer: yes.