The password will be stored in EEPROM in newer laptops. Removing the battery will not clear the password and could make things even worse since you won’t be able to change any settings that get reset.
The best thing would be to return it and find a different one that’s not locked.
KiCAD for PCB design.
PulseView for USB logic analyzers.
DSRemote for remote control of Rigol oscilloscopes.
FreeCAD for 3D CAD.
SDR++ and SDRangel for SDR.
Fldigi, wsjtx & QSSTV for ham radio digital modes.
It connects my laptop to the internet when I’m away from home.
A phone can’t replace a computer unless you put Linux on it and connect a monitor and keyboard. Even then, it will perform like a 15 year old computer.
You can get small project enclosures to put them in. Some PVC pipe and end caps could also work.
I would probably just use some good quality, adhesive heat shrink if they are out of the way though.
I’ve had good results discharging a 450V 1kJ capacitor bank through several turns of 10 AWG wire. If you don’t have a capacitor bank laying around, one of those magnetizers will work just as well.
You could also use a crystal for the ATtiny and get the same accuracy as the RTC. It should be accurate to about 20-30 seconds per month with a good crystal.
The internal oscillator only has an accuracy of around 1% after you calibrate it. It would be off by over 7 hours after a month. It’s also quite sensitive to voltage and temperature changes.
I got a used 8 port card from ebay for about $20 a few years ago. I had to flash different firmware to it using a DOS boot disk to disable raid though. It’s an obsolete card, but it’s been working fine in my NAS.
The temperature is set too low. The solder should melt almost instantly when applied to the tip if the iron is set to 350°C.
Those fine point conical tips that typically come with soldering irons are terrible. Get a 2-3mm chisel tip, that will be suitable for most soldering jobs.
Since the remote control signals are short and low duty cycle, you could use a capacitor to provide the peak current for the LED without going over the maximum current of the power supply.
I would just use a MOSFET and resistor to drive the LED if you are only using it in short bursts.
If you want to drive the MOSFET directly from the microcontroller pin, it will need a series resistor to limit the current since the gate has quite a bit of capacitance. If your microcontroller pins can handle 15-20mA, it will be able to switch an AO3400A fast enough without needing a gate driver.