Hi there!  I got your name from a friend that heard you’re a Mac-magician.  I’m not sure whether you can work any magic for my macbook, but I figured I should find out.
  I bought a refurbished 13 inch macbook back in January of 2007.  I had it for a year and a half (and loved every minute with it), when foolishly and regrettably I spilled water on it.  I did all I could to dry it, but it was to no avail- so I carried it over to the apple store at Southpark, bought an external hard drive and sent both off to see if it could be repaired, or at least get my data transferred.
 I was told of course that the damage was not covered under my warranty- that the computer could be fixed, but there was no guarantee my stuff could be saved. But the cost of the repair alone was nearly what I paid for the computer in the first place.  So I passed on the repairs and they sent it back to me.  I figured if I was going to be spending that kind of money to simply repair the computer with none of my stuff still on it, I should just buy a new one.
I haven’t bought one yet, and I’ve been without a personal computer for nearly 6 months, so it’s time.  This email is essentially my last try before I buy another one.  I would certainly appreciate your professional opinion. What do you think?  Is there hope for my macbook, or should I move on?
Thanks!

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Water damage is the worst.  And overall the cost of the repair is quite a bit of money.  The good news is that often times, the water damages the logic board but the hard drive is left undamaged.  So there is a good chance the data is still there.  (if you didn't back up).  Depending on the severity of the damage, it would be more benificial in the long run to simply put that money toward a new computer.  

Please let me know if you have any additional questions.