[ale] laptop battery life [maybe OT]

[joh6nn]

>
> If the laptop is a few years old and you've not replaced the battery
> then simply buy a new battery...
>

heh.  the laptop is "mission critical" 'cause i'm a college student 
(reads: "broke") finishing out a year abroad.  considering what a new battery 
runs at the local equivalent to BestBuy, at the moment, it's almost, but not 
quite, entirely out of the question.