Can material on computer be accessed by linking it to another computer

I was told that removing the battery erases the data on the machine. Is that an urban myth?

We hadn't ever really LOOKED at the charger unfortunately - just plugged it in.

Everything had been fine - then when I went to plug it in - it only goes in halfway now.

The little thing in the middle (on the machine where the charger connects)is now bent slightly and I think has a tip thing stuck in it, but I'm not sure.

I'm not sure which part (adapter or machine) is broken or if it's both.

Is there supposed to be a needle looking thingie sticking out of one of them (like on a tv cable)?

Which part is supposed to fit inside the other?

We're living on an Indian Reservation - not many computers here(to borrow a power cord adapter).

I thought they were specific for each machine or at least Mac vs PC.

Will a power adapter for a Dell Laptop work?

Also, I was told there's a part inside the computer that I'm supposed to know NOT TO TOUCH (while repairing) or it will electrocute me - even though it's unplugged.

If this is true, what part do I NOT TOUCH?

This is my first repair ever - so I don't know squat about anything.

I'm very grateful for your help as I don't have the money to buy another machine or take it somewhere to be repaired and my daughter's straight A's will vanish without her machine, because homework is done online.

(Also, I did read the formatting help to separate this into paragraphs, so it'd be easier to read, but when I used the equals signs they just showed up in the text as equal signs.)

Hi Robin, sorry to hear about your misfortune. Right off I like to say that I am not a Mac expert like mayer is, but I do have my fair share of PC experience. Ultimately I do NOT believe that removing the battery will remove your daughters assignment. That data should be stored on a hard drive that will retain the data despite the battery or even AC power. As for a part that could electrocute you, again I do not think so. You should never really touch all the parts in there because of static electricity coming off you might destroy parts in your computer. As for your power supply, it looks to me like you have a separate board inside your computer that might be needing to be changed. i attached some pictures and let us know if that looks like something on your iBook. Hope the real Mac Gurus can help you out faster than I can.

Your data is safe. Nothing will electrocute you. Don't plug it in while its open and you have already removed the battery to take it apart. There is no large stored charge to harm you. Keep your fingers off the logic board as you have no reason to touch it. When you get ready to work on it, find a quite place with good light, clean hands a wall electrical outlet and a computer capable of connecting to this site. Reach over and touch the center screw of the wall plate to discharge any static electricity your body may have. Go through the installation instructions a couple of times to familiarize yourself with what your going to do. The pictures oldturkey uploaded show what the parts should look like. Look at the bottom one and the tip of the plug in. Does yours look like it? Is it broken? If it's broken the old tip is probably inside the receptacle. Have the correct tools listed at the start of the guide. Now look all the way through the guide a couple of times so you know what your going to do.

I have no idea what kind of adapter the Dell using so I can't answer that question.

\Look at the picture of the DC-IN point. See the brackets on the back of the part. Gently pull the center out a quarter of an inch and look inside it. You will probably see the broken tip in there. Use a pair of small tweezers and remove it. You have now salvaged that part and only need a replacement AC adapter.

First tell me about the tip.