USB kill

i bought this really weird chill pad -- just the guts with no "case" around it. i rather like it, but it's hard to pick the laptop up anymore w/o sticking my fingers into the fans!

they're plastic, so it doesn't hurt, but i'm afraid that i'm going to break it in record time doing this. is there any quick way i can turn on or off the USB port? right now i'm yanking the jack every time, but i don't like the wear and tear i'm putting on it.

i used to be of the "shut down the PC before lifting" school, but since i'm shuffling it from desk to desk several times per HOUR these days, i decided the constant shutdowns/reboots were a bigger problem. so now i carry it "live". hence the moving fans.

thanks!

 

You could set up the laptop power options to put the PC into standby every time you close the lid, thus cutting off the USB ports power. This only takes 5 or 6 seconds each time and should cut the USB power.

 

You might also check out any hotkey software for your machine - seems like I've seen USB control combinations in some HK packages.

 

I tried that, but the port stayed active. That is, the laptop shut down -- including the onboard fan(s) -- but the chill pad kept going strong.