Since we first blogged about it, our older Apple MacBook Pro battery continued to expand even more than the photo at the right, popping open eventually.

What did not continue was Apple's "battery exchange program"—it closed a year ago. And Apple's battery update notice, recommending a software update and offering a free replacement battery to MacBook and MacBook Pro owners whose batteries had "visibly deformed," also closed in May, 2009.

If you have this problem, other than buying a new battery for more than $100, your only recourse is to try to get Apple to grant you an out-of-warranty replacement. We suggest speaking with a customer satisfaction representative, and refer to our original blog posting, Apple's bloating batteries, to emphasize that you are not the only victim of this design flaw. —Dean Gallea