#FAIL #FAIL #FAIL
Tuesday, November 23, 2010 at 3:24PM#TalkNerdyToMeLover's @JenSquard
I made a boo boo. I stuck my SD card right into the cd drive on my new Mac. It's a SuperDrive, so you just pop the disc in. And now it's disappeared into the abyss. I have a desktop Mac, and the SuperDrive is located on the side, like 1/2 an inch from the SD drive.
Honestly, this was bound to happen eventually. I'm a pro photographer so I'm inserting and ejecting (that's what she said) cards all the time. Should have been paying attention, but that isn't always possible in my crazy house.
I have tried a butter knife. I have tried tape. I have tried a credit card. I have tried turning it on it's side and gently shaking. I would like to try sticking a stack of post-its in there...but no gots no post-its. I have tried combinations of all of these things. I don't know what it looks like in there and what I'm supposed to be feeling, and nothing is working. And now I'm screwed on so many levels.
So, nerds, help help help me please. I'll take any suggestions as long as they aren't things like "don't let go before you know it's the right slot next time." Already on it.
Direct your advice to @JenSquard
or www.facebook.com/jenswedhinphotography
UPDATE: My hubby, Brian, is a flippin genius! He turned the entire contraption on it's side, jiggled it around, gave it a bonk, stuck a credit card in, did some more jiggling and flipping, and out it came! YESSSS! Apparently his big ol dinosaur brains are bigger than mine! Someone's getting some nookie nooks!
Reader Comments (2)
OK, step one: breathe. Everything will be alright.
Step two: stop sticking stuff in your slot (giggity). You're more likely to do more damage than you are to get the obstruction out.
If you've already tried gently shaking and nothing's coming loose, then most likely the SD card is trapped behind some mechanism in the slot-loading drive. One thing to try, if you're up for it, is to put the machine on a table on its side, with the optical drive slot un-obscured. Before you do, use a flat piece of plastic (a credit card will do) to gently loosen the dust protector in front of the drive. You don't need to go more than a quarter-inch deep on the insertion (that's NOT what she said). Restart the machine and hold down CMD+Opt+P+R (this does a PRAM reset, which is irrelevant except to make sure the machine restarts and cycles the power to the optical drive). There's a small chance the SD card will fall out at this point.
If it doesn't, then you're looking at disassembly. With your particular model, this isn't something you can do at home. Bring the machine to your local Apple Store (after making an appointment at http://www.apple.com/retail). And explain that you need a non-standard object extracted from your optical drive. Assuming the SD card hasn't damaged the drive (and it's likely that it hasn't at this point), then you should only be out a $75 labor fee.
Thanks Adam! Love our network of geniuses! I'll try those things for sure. Unforunately my closest apple store is 5 hours away, and I can't have Geek Squad send it away until they give me my other computer back. And you are right with the stop sticking stuff in there! I thought I would give it a try, but I don't know what's in there, so I stopped right away - I'm fairly technotarded. The hubbard just walked in, so hopefully he can save the day - watch for the update! And thanks again, I way way way way appreciate your time!