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Ok, here is the thing, I just baught an nVidia 680i motherboard. As I was hooking EVERYTHING in, I was surprized to find that it has an 8-pin 12v connector, I looked through my power supplies different connections, and it only has a 4-pin. Ok not too hard to solve, I baught a 4-pin to 8-pin 12v adapter, everything fit in nice and snug. The problem is that, when I hit the power switch I get nothing. The only thing that turns on is the Motherboards blue LED light. Other than that, nothing, no fans turn, nothing at all, anyone know why?Quote

The problem is that, when I hit the power switch I get nothing.

used to be four, then six, and now you really need an eight pin twelve volt for most newer motherboards, but trying to use an older power supply unit shows that there will not be enough power from the 12volt rails to supply new boards, you can get adapters for a standard molex to either a six pin or eight pin connector, i had to make my own and one day after that, I found one in a Computer Store.
the best thing would be a new power supply unit with the rails and connectors fitted to work with the more extreme boards and graphics cards. otherwise you could have a very unstable system.

i work with a company that uses profit master system for everything. The wanted me to set up a new printer on the network. The problem is i get a rs232c pry error, the printer conects to a main printer hub up in the office. Then you have to put the printer online with the server so profit master will recognize it. (profit master runs as a program on windows, every computer here has windows xp ACCEPT the server which has the profit master sever OS on it) everything goes smoothly until y0ou TRY to print with profit master when i try to print i get a rs232c pry error. BUT if i press the online/offline button it prints FINE. there is an adaptor we use so you can plug a network cable in a serial port on the printer. BTW the printer is also CONECTED to a computer via usb but this is only good for the windows environment, any help would be muchly appreciated. thanksTry a new cable

visit this site for more,what is formating...http://computermanual.blogspot.com/

Format actually means to prepare a storage medium, usually a disk, for READING and writing. When you format a disk, the operating system erases all bookkeeping INFORMATION on the disk, TESTS the disk to make sure all sectors are reliable, MARKS bad sectors (that is, those that are scratched or otherwise DAMAGED), and creates internal address tables that it later uses to locate information. You must format a disk (floppy or hard disk) before you can use it.

visit this site for more,what is formating...http://computermanual.blogspot.com/ummm advertisment?No, he just copies information from http://www.webopedia.com, posts it in his blog, and tries to make it look like his own work.

Last week I shipped my Compaq Presario SR1439UK desktop PC from the UK to the US, and on arrival have found that it will not BOOT up past the "We apologize for the inconvenience but Windows did not start successfully. A RECENT hardware or software change might have caused this" screen. If I hit any of the options offered (safe mode, last known good configuration, etc), the machine simply boots back to this screen again. Likewise, if I hit the F10 button for system recovery.........

Before shipping, I backed up my entire hard drive and reset the pc to factory settings as I was going to sell it, but changed my mind, so I know that the problem does not relate to anything installed....... I did check it in its natural state before packing everything away and can definitely say that the PC worked perfectly the day before it was shipped......

The tower was bubble wrapped and MADE secure before shipping but even so I have no doubt that somewhere along the line something has become jostled..... I have opened up the case to see if I can see any loose connections / components but on the face of it, nothing seems to be amiss...... I have given the drives and connections gentle tweaks and nudges (and don't worry, all those who are SHRIEKING in horror about static charges, I have a grounding strap which I have been wearing!!!), but nothing feels loose or out of place and looking at everything, it all seems ok, but I can feel it in my water that this is where the problem lies.......

..... and this is where I need help!

Although I installed a DVD drive in my PC many many moons ago, I don't know too much about how everything connects together and I am terribly nervous about poking around inside the case in case I damage anything and cause problems that didn't exist before I went diving in!! Can anyone tell me how I can go about checking for loose bits or which components I should be definitely checking on. Are there certain components which would cause this error more than others, or wires which could come loose and not be too noticeable?

This is probably a silly question and I apologise in advance for it but attached to one of my dvd drives is a connection with a 4-pin end which is just hanging there .... is it possible this was connected to something originally?

....... and what about the CMOS battery ..... I don't know if this is something I should whip out and pop back again to see if that works..... If it had anything to do with this error, would I need to know any of the BIOS settings and manually input them, or would slotting the battery back in place automaticall cover that? Sorry, if this sounds like a blonde question and it's way off track ...... lots of techie people are probably shaking their heads in disgust and tutting under their breaths right now, but I need to know!!!

Any help or advice on all or any of the above will be gratefully & warmly received.

I appreciate your help

Michelle Quote

Last week I shipped my Compaq Presario SR1439UK desktop PC from the UK to the US

Are there certain components which would cause this error more than others, or wires which could come loose and not be too noticeable?

This is probably a silly question and I apologise in advance for it but attached to one of my dvd drives is a connection with a 4-pin end which is just hanging there .... is it possible this was connected to something originally?

and what about the CMOS battery ..... I don't know if this is something I should whip out and pop back again to see if that works

lots of techie people are probably shaking their heads in disgust and tutting under their breaths right now,

I'm not sure how that all works, but if a metal detector uses magnetism......it may have wiped some of your HD.

Quote from: Astoria on December 15, 2007, 01:11:48 AM

I'm not sure how that all works, but if a metal detector uses magnetism......it may have wiped some of your HD.

why would they use a metal detector on a metal computer? of course it has metal in it.

Airport scanners will not harm a HDD...if they did there would have been thousands of lawsuits by laptop owners everywhere.
Follow Homer's advice on reseating all components and removeing/replacing the CMOS battery...

I recently purchased a name BRAND PC to replace one I built myself a couple years ago. I UPGRADED the video card and PSU, but was comfortable with everything else.

Problem is that when playing graphically intensive games the machine will LOCK up which I ATTRIBUTE the video card over heating since the only has one fan. My old case has 7. Does anyone foresee any problems with stripping the old tower and replacing the parts with the ones from my new machine?placing your components in a different case will not cause any problems, barring that you do not damage the components in the process and that you do not hook everything up incorrectly of course.

i would suggest labelling all your connections before disconnecting them, to make it easy to put it all back together. Keep in mind this will Void your Warranty...Why not move a fan or two out of your old case into the new one? Seems to me some time spent on improving the cooling in your new system may be the best solution.Quote from: patio on December 29, 2007, 10:24:44 AM

Keep in mind this will Void your Warranty...

Why not move a fan or two out of your old case into the new one? Seems to me some time spent on improving the cooling in your new system may be the best solution.

Not sure where I would attach more fans.

I have a three-year-old laptop with a LCD display. I'm running XP Pro SP2 and have a GeForceFX 5200 graphics card. Recently, I've been having problems with the display. After a few hours of using the computer, the PROBLEM starts. Random pink and red pixels will appear around normal displaying black pixels. This is most notable when viewing text but occurs in other instances as well. The problem seems to come in waves, coming and going at random.

When I scroll down a page, the rogue pixels move up and down the screen accordingly. However, dragging the window around the screen rapidly causes more rogue pixels to appear around the text. Covering the the rogue pixels with the pointer removes the rogue pixel from view, but it REMAINS when the pointer is removed.

I don't have any idea what could be causing this and sincerely appreciate any help offered. Many thanks in advance....laptop model?Sorry I forgot all the other relevant INFO. Finals have deprived me of some much needed sleep.

Inspiron 5150
Pentium 4, 3.06 GHz
1.25 GB RAM

Sophos AntiVirus, SpySweeper, and HijackThis! say my system is clean.here's a part of a screen cap of what it looks like:

[saving space - attachment deleted by admin]Try uninstalling and installing newly downloaded and up-to-date video drivers from nVidia.Thanks for the advice. I uninstalled the driver and the problem went away. But when I installed the LATEST driver, the problem returned with a vengeance. Now there are rogue pixels as soon as I see the boot screen. Plus the problem gets worse with every restart.

Does this mean my video card is fried?What video card do you have?Do you have a monitor you could try displaying on? I'd like to see if you get the same results on an external monitor.

-=EDIT=-

I've done a bit of looking around. Seems it could be a problem with the LCD or heat damage to the VPU. Since the bad pixels actually move when you scroll, only effect spots here and there and not lines, and have no problem without the driver, I'm going to guess it's the VPU.

When there's no driver, the hardware features of the video card aren't utilized, which is why you're PROBABLY not having problems without the driver. Problems with pixels on an LCD usually won't move when you scroll, and they most likely wouldn't go away without the driver. As to what can be done about it, there isn't much. The VPU is built into the laptop's motherboard in most cases.

Looks like the days of gaming are over for your laptop. You can uninstall the driver and continue to use the laptop in that way, but without the hardware driver installed, games won't be able to use the 3D hardware.Well, that's a bummer, but I feel better now that I know what the problem is. Thanks again for all your help.You could contact Dell and see if they can fix it, but given its age, they probably won't.

seeming you seem to be the only person answering techno idiots(like me!)what computer/spec would suggest for around£500 that depends...

do you plan on buying a pre-built PC? (EX. dell, ACER, Emachine, etc.)

or do you plan on buying all the components seperatly and BUILDING it yourself?well, i have always liked Dell, below is a good system for your budget...

Inspiron 530ST (D015S08) £499

if you already have a MONITOR, you can subtract that off of the price (£120 off) and upgrade something ELSE. i recommend upgrading the CPU to an E6850 for £120.

Hi all,
My past motherboard DIED so I replaced it. I previously had a raid 5 array and now have that HOOKED up to the new motherboard. At startup, the computer RECOGNIZES the array and labels it as healthy. Yet when the computer tries to load up Windows, the Windows startup screen flashes for less than a SECOND, and the computer restarts. Someone said that the problem may be that Windows does not have the drivers of this motherboard installed. Does it sound like that is the problem? And if so, does anyone know how I can install those drivers even though Windows can't load up?When you do a major hardware change like installing a new motherboard you should always reinstall Windows. Windows doesn't like hardware changes and as you've now found out it can become unstable or unable to load properly.
Furthermore newer versions like XP utilizes copy protection based on hardware IDs.

So my advice to you would be to get out you windows install disc.Everyone needs a Windows CD sooner or later.Windows is tring to find your old mother board cause that is how it was SETUP you have to format it and install windows with that motherboard. When its loading it sees if there are any changes. It also means that you need to activate windows again.So if I were to reinstall windows, would it know to stripe the data between all 3 harddrives? Or would I end up making a new raid array and losing my data?

I have an almost 5 YEAR old Emachine that has just 128 Ram in it and I REALLY NEED to upgrade the memory but I am not sure what would be compatible and how much actual RAM I can ADD without causing issues.

Can anybody help me?? Outside of my RAM issues the computer has held up remarkably well.

EMachine T1100
OS- XP (pre installed)
PROCESSOR: 1.0 Ghz Intel Celeron
Ram: 128
HD- 20GBWe will need to know which motherboard is in there.

DLoad and install Everest Home (Free) and run a REPORT.
Save the report to a text file.
Then copy and paste the Computer Summary section of the report and Post it here.You can find your answers at http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.aspx?model=T1100I've had problems with their scanner and eMachines MBoards.
But it's worth a shot...

This one has got me stumped,

Was playing a GAME other day and my PC shuts down, thought overheated and let cool down half hour, again same thing, except this time the power switch wouldn't work, tried a couple more times on power switch and it finally came on, for a whole 3 seconds and shut down again. I have talked to Tech ppl i know and tried things they say but did not work


What I have Done:

Took out RAM, still turned on and off by-self,
took out vid card, same thing.
diff power supply, same thing.
put old power supply back in, worked, stayed on for about 4 hrs.
then 3 to 4 hrs later it powered up on it's own.
next day, same thing cannot get to stay on,
the one time i got it to come on i thought there may have been a virus so i reformatted the drive, XP home, after OS reloaded error message saying my drive was not fully formated, restarted, diff error saying OS not fully loaded?


I am at a loss, I was going to try and bypass power switch and see if that has any issue on the self powering issue. But unfortunately I do not know how to bypass switch.


Any help would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks in advance!!! never mind on bypassing switch, i got it, it is on and runnignno issues YET,

also this is a,
Compaq Presario
2600+ amd athlon
nvidia gforce 4 mx 440
mother board no clue
512 ddr 333 ram


again thnks in advance. will let you know if the bypassing of switch keeps it going.
still any advice i would greatly appreciate.


restarted on it's own again, after i reinstalled windows xp home, came up with an error message, "system not fully installed, please reinstall. Bah i am done with it tonite. starting to think my hdd is crapping out.it could be your mobo. a bad power switch will not cause windows to install incorrectly and i do not believe it is your harddrive, because a failing harddrive will not cause the computer to turn on by itself as it does not have any control over it. check to make sure there are no bare/loose wires by your mobos front panel connector pins.Aye, I have come to the conclusion it is my mobo also. Now just finding one around my town at a decent price. Glad my wifes is still running lol. any ways i appreciate the info.anytime , please post back if the PROBLEM persists.

I have LOST my d drive ICON how can i restore this.If so what is its file name
for its recovery.what is your d: drive? an OPTICAL drive, hardrive, HARDDRIVE partition, ETC...?

get it before its gone! 169 units left, and the sale ends on the 31st of december.

http://www.ncix.com/products/index.php?sku=19337&promoid=1087Just bought 4 1gb sticks of the beauty's... i highly recommend them . FANTASTIC value for money , and they over-clock superbly .

UK based site : http://www.dabs.com/productview.aspx?QuickLinx=4KZDDoes look like an awesome deal. I just *hate* mail in rebates.Quote from: Computer HOPE ADMIN on December 28, 2007, 02:59:46 PM

Does look like an awesome deal. I just *hate* mail in rebates.

Hey all,

My name is Ryan, I am trying to build a compy for my brother, for x-mass... But i joined the army 6 months AGO, and until 2 days ago haven't TOUCHED a computer due to training, so it would be awesome if someone could help me out in building a computer

- I don't need a screen, keyboard, mouse or SPEAKERS, just the INTERNALS.
- It NEEDS to be able to run CoD4
* min of; AMD® 64™ 2800+
NVIDIA Geforce 6600
and 1g of Ramyou forgot to include your budget, as i could set you up with a $5000 water-cooled computer that could run CoD4 quite well lol.

Hey guys -

I recently installed the Freezer 7 CPU cooler that I recieved for the holidays, reviews on this product were fantastic, saying it decreased Core temps by 20+ degrees. Though, after installing mine, I can only SEE a different of 5 degrees lower. My core temps are now sitting only at 55C rather than 60C. I was wondering if there is anything other I could of done wrong rather than installing it. I made sure it was installed correctly and enough thermal paste was applied.

I can answer any questions if needed.

Thanks
-MikeHow is the COOLING and AIR flow in your case? A CPU cooler can't cool efficiently if it's drawing in warm ambient air from the case.My ambient Temp is reading as 46C. Should it be cooler?Hard to say, I don't know where that ambient temp is being read. The temperature isn't necessarily the same EVERYWHERE in case. What's important is that you got an airflow that blows cool air (from outside the case) towards the CPU cooler and at the same time draw warm air away from it.
There are plenty of airflow guides available online with different suggestion on how to achieve this. But the basic idea is to have an intake fan near the bottom of the case and one or more outtake fans further up in the case.
Here's one example:
http://forums.techpowerup.com/showthread.php?p=565355

I don't know what thermal paste you used but a good quality paste can reduce the temperatur quite a bit as well. I ALWAYS recommend Arctic Silver.

This is my first time replacing HARDWARE, and it may be a simple fix, as in flipping the ribbon connector, etc...I took my old pentium IV computer, and was setting it up for just gaming. When I tried running my windows 98' second edition disc I discovered that I had a bad disk drive. I purchased a new one and installed it, but now my Monitor won't stay on, and displays for a couple seconds before shutting itself off again that it can't find a cable connection. I was very careful changing out the bad drive, but may have jiggled something else loose by the video card. Any direction WOULD be helpful. I have very little experience with the MECHANICS part of a computer.

12/18/07
I tested the monitor on my other 2 computers, it's fine, also pulled the video card, and re seated it. stioll the same thing even tried a different monitor. still the same issue,,, is there a way to test the video card before replacing to see if that is REALLY the issue. Jeffi have had the same prob ever since i installed my new video card 5 months ago it just takes several reboots' to get it to stay onyou may wish to test the monitor on a working computer before you assume that it was the result of jiggling something loose, as it could be purely coincidental that the monitor died right after you were in the case. Check to make sure your video card is seated properly in it's slot on the motherboard.

Alan <><

All right, I'm buying a new stick of RAM and a new hard-drive to SLAVE to my pre-existing one. I've got a few questions, first of all for RAM all I need to concern myself with is getting the proper type, right?

Second question is, I've never slaved a hard-drive to a pre-existing one, what should I be concerned about/look for when buying the second hard-drive?1. YES, it would be good to buy RAM that your motherboard supports. you may wish to buy the EXACT same RAM that you have in your comp to avoid compatibility issues.

2. for harddrives, you really just need to be concerned about 4 things: the capacity of the drive, the speed of the drive, the cache of the drive, and the interface of the drive (SATA or IDE). the capacity is totally up to you and the speed is for whatever your budget is, the higher the speed, the more expensive the harddrive...way more expensive. below is an example...

320gb Seagate Barracude SATA @7200RPM - $93.83
300gb Seagate CheetahSATA @ 15000RPM - $686.86

7200RPM is the most common harddrive speed as of now and we can see why, as many are still not willing to SPEND almost $700 on a 300gb harddrive.

as for the harddrive cache, the more the merrier. the rule usually is, the larger the HD, the larger the cache should be.

for the harddrives interface, it depends on what the interface is of your master harddrive. if your master harddrive is an IDE drive, you should buy an IDE harddrive, and visa versa regarding SATA.Quote

what should I be concerned about/look for when buying the second hard-drive?

I have an intel PIII 933 MHZ 256MB ram unit. The motherboard is a CA810E.
There is one floppy, one cd and. one hard drive (installed).
When the unit is turned on and starts to boot, i get a boot DISK error, a:insert boot disk.
Then When i do a CONTROL,alternate,delete(warm boot) the unit will actually boot and load windows and i can use the unit with little or no problem. But it seems i have actually loaded the operating system(windows 98) twice, because when i try to shut the system down, i have to go through the sequence twice, sometime the unit will shut down and sometimes it will hang and not shut down, usually just freezes and i then reboot , the unit GOES through scandisk and most of the time will reboot. but i still have to shut the unit down twice.

any help would be appreciated???It could sound like a hard drive going bad.
I recommend you test it with the test utility provided by the hard drive manufacturer.
If you provide me with the brand name of the hard drive I can point you to the right tool.Does it give you any other errors? If it is the hardrive google shearh the MAKER and it should take you to the manufacturer.

I have an e-machine that has died.I have a GATEWAY I would like to put the hdrive into. I want to keep everything on the e-machine drive and make it the primary drive so the gateway is running off of it,and use the gateway drive as the secondary drive. Everything on the e-machine has been my primary computer and I want to maintain all this information when I put it into the gateway.I have been told that microsoft has quirks that prevent plug and play so I am asking what can I do to add this drive and make everything work? any help would be helpful..."...microsoft has quirks that prevent plug and play..." That is true. You cannot just take a drive with an OS (95, 98 & ME are the exception in Windows) and just plug it in a different computer. The best you can do is use the emachine drive as the secondary and pull your information from it onto the Gateway drive.

Alan <>< e-machine and gateway don't make drives. So I assume you mean the drives that came inside you could put your original main drive into the second computer, but if you try to boot from it, you'll encounter way to many problems to try to fix. For example, the original Hard drive probably had windows configured with drivers for the system board, VIDEO card, hardware controllers, and all sorts of other stuff inside the original computer. So the best you could do is use it for data. And you cannot use most applications that are installed on the original drive, even if you find the exe and execute it, since all the registry settings for the app are on the other hard drive which you can't boot from PROPERLY for reasons previously described. The best course of action in this case would be to simply grab the data you want off the original drive and reformat to use as a Data drive.

I realize it's old, but AROUND a year ago I bought a Radeon 7000. Before you make comments about THAT, how about what it replaced? A ATI 3d Rage Pro Turbo 8MB!

I originally had a giant story here, but nobody would care about that so I'll try to make it short. First the card refused to run for more than 30 minutes with the native XP driver on the CD. replacing the faulting DLL with the same file from the W2k folder on the CD fixed this.

In any case, the Card worked fine in this config. OpenGL and Direct3d worked AWESOME (compared especially to the Turbo AGP I had, which could hardly manage 640x480 3d modes). But from the get go certain DirectDraw games refused to work properly. AOE2 crashed quickly, into a yellow garbled SCREEN. Not having any cash at this point, I SIMPLY don't run those particular apps. The problem slowly spreads however, to all Direct3d and All OpenGL, leaving only the GDI to entertain me (It is probably obvious that it would no longer play DVD's at this point). So I eventually get some disposable income, and finally REPLACE the video card, and all my problems dissapear.

The question is, is the Radeon 7000 defective? The replacement was a PCI bus card. Could my Mobo's AGP be the problem? I had tried various drivers. All of the ones I tried gave me BSOD's when I tried to start a Direct3d game.

Any ideas?(It would be nice if I could fix it, but don't be too soft on any explanation. Remember, it is simply a part of my old Video card collection)
Did the 7000 ever work properly?
And do you have another AGP card you could try, to rule out the possibility of a bad AGP port?
However, I do suspect that the card is simply failing.Well I cannot actually be sure it worked properly. I suspect that it could be the fact that I had to replace the XP drivers with the w2k version, but then again, that was ati2dvag.dll not ati3duag.dll (which BSOD's with the XP drivers). Also, my original ATI rage Pro Turbo was AGP, and worked fine at it's 2x speed, which is what the Radeon 7000 works at too.

I have a All-In-Wonder 9000 that works in the AGP port, but once again I get a BSOD starting any 3d app. I had the same problem with a NVidia 5600 FX. I'd say that was AGP related, but if I install the stock drivers from the XP CD for my current Radeon 9250, I still get that BSOD.

Also, I recall the incident where the Radeon 7000 REALLY started going downhill. The Control panel property page has the oneto TURN on/off the different outputs (VGA 1,VGA-2,TV-OUT), and I was fiddling and for some reason or another pushed the TV-out. it depressed (Expectedly), so I pressed it again to rectify my mistake and the computer simply rebooted. Strange thing is that the picture was shifted to the left and MAJORLY skinny. So much so I couldn't use my current crappy(but reliable, I have definitely ruled out the monitor as the problem) monitors analog controls to get the picture set right. Thankfully then machine booted fine, and I fixed it by using the adjustment features in control panel. But this was when the 3d games and so forth started going wonky.

Hello, I am about to buy the first vid card in a long TIME and the last time I bought cards was before DDR ^_^;;

Anyways before I buy it I want to make sure if I have to be carefull about what kind of memory a card has. Do I have to match it like I would my Ram?

I have

motherboard: A7V400-MX
CPU: Athlon XP 2500
Ram: 2g DDR 400mhz

I am also buying a 500W powersupply

I have XP pro and 2000 pro

Thanks ahead for your input!Does no replys mean I asked a rather dumb question or a hard one? ^_^;; I'm about to buy it if I see no response. Either that or one that says DRR in the DESCRIPTION instead of DRR2what type of vid card are you going for?doh nvm lolSome time it takes a while for responses and there is no such thing as a dumb question. However, to answer the question it should not matter what type of video memory the video card as it is INDEPENDENT from the system memory. You will not need to match it type or quantity.that graphics card will WORK, just be sure to buy the AGP version. as the admin has said, the type of memory on the video card is independant from the computer system and therefore does not need to match your system memory.

an added note, quite honestly, a 500W PSU is overkill for that system. you could get away with a 300-350W.

another note, you should expect to wait at LEAST 24hrs for a response in a FORUM. you must remember that this is not a live chat room.

I am having a bit of a problem. I am trying to install a new copy of windows on an HP pavilion xt963. I have reconfigured the BIOS to boot from CD. However, it will not boot from CD and it boots to the old operating system already installed on the hard drive. Usually it will say “press any key to boot from CD.” However it does not say that. The BIOS says that the CD drive is there and windows can see the CD drive but when I try to use the drive to play a CD it I get an error saying the disk structure is corrupted and unreadable. I have tried the cdrw in my computer and it works. Also, I have put the drive from my computer into the one I am working on and I get the same thing. I have tried many CD drives that I know work and many CD’s. I have checked the jumpers, replaced cables, changed hard drives, and changed all kinds of settings in the BIOS. EVERYTHING. Please Help!!!!!!


Also, I am getting error 0251 bad cmos
Try a lens cleaner. If that doesn't work, the CD drive might be dying.

You said you put a CD-RW in and it worked, do you mean writing to it or just reading it?The thing is even a brand new dvd cd-rw will not boot from BIOS usually you are SUPPOSED to get press any key to boot from CD I am not getting this message at all QUOTE from: quaxo on December 15, 2007, 08:05:00 AM

Try a lens cleaner. If that doesn't work, the CD drive might be dying.

You said you put a CD-RW in and it worked, do you mean writing to it or just reading it?

hi all

my 21 inch monitor stoped working YESTERDAY thought it was the VIDIO CABLE so i went and bought a new one hooked up and still not working!when it tries to come on it says computer is working then says input 1: no signal then check signal cable then check input selector then on the right side there 4 letters i have used to diffrent other MONITORS and they and the computer works fine any help would be greatly appreciated



steveTry your non-working monitor on another working computer. thanks ive done that with two diffrent monitors and they both work fine IRS juast mine that doesnt? One more time:
Quote

Try your non-working monitor on another working computer.

unplugged power supply to VACCUUM out tower - now the secondary drive 1 is not found when I power back up. is that the disk drive and is there anyway to go around it? in the BIOS maybe?
Re-check all the ribbon cables to the drives...you didn't state how many and what type of drives you have so this is guesswork.

On a side note you should NEVER use a vacuum inside a computer case...they generate huge amounts of static electricity and you risk frying expensive components...

Post back with more details.Thanks for the FYI on the vacuuming - even if it's too late this time.
I have the C drive, a disk drive (A) and two CD drives (D&AMP;E). I only unplugged the ribbong cables to the C & A drives, and have tried unplugging & replugging them in - no LUCK. The power supply was chugging in the first place & I've had tons of remodeling going on so that's why I vacuumed in the 1st place.
I tried changing the boot order to start w/ C in case it was just the A drive - again no luck. now it can't find the primary or secondary drives. Guess I need to call the geek squad.
Buy a new IDE ribbon cable...
For now disconnect the CDRoms til we get the hard drive detected.
On bootup hit Delete, F2, or whatever command gets you into setup.
In the second or third screen in setup there will be an autodetect option for your drives...run it and see if this recognises your HDD. If so hit F10 to save changes and Exit.
The machine will automatically re-boot and you should have your drive back now...

I'm starting to wonder whether I have a memory leak or not as my computer has been on the fritz lately. A new folder just opened up on my desktop and errors happen alot lately. The new folder that APPEARED on my desktop is
%USERPROFILE% it contains>local settings>Application Data>Microsoft>Feeds Cache>nothing more

Windows xp pro service pack 2 Intel(R) Pentium(R) 4 CPU 1.70GHz 512 MB of RAM
NVIDIA Geforce 7600 GS video cardWindows XP is not prone to memory leaks.
Post all errors, you're getting.the main one that occurs is ->

windows exploror has encountered a problem and needs to close. We are sorry for the inconvenience. If you were in the middle of something, the information you were working on might be lost Please tell Microsoft about this problem. We have created an error report that you can send us to help improve windows exploror. we will treat this report as confidential and anonymous.

this error happens anytime i close out control pannel or open the misc. files folder i put on my desktop also i can't figure out why I recieved that weird folder on my desktopQuote

A new folder just opened up on my desktop

Hiya,

I'm having a problem with my system lately and I'm wondering if anyone can give me some insight seeings as how I'm stumped.

It started the other DAY when I woke up and powered on my machine. Nothing displayed on the screen except for "Check video cable, no video connection". I checked the video card and the cables and it's all fine.

I decided to take my computer apart and clean out the CASE since I haven't done it in a while. I pulled it apart, cleaned it all off and let it sit out overnight. The next day I reassemble the basics, motherboard, one stick of RAM and video card and it all starts up fine (this is with the motherboard sitting on a WORKBENCH, properly grounded, not in the case). I figure it was just dust or the video card not being seated properly and begin putting it all back together in the case.

After I reassemble it I start the PC and the power comes on for half a second, then shuts off. At this point I wonder if there's something in the case seated wrong that's causing a short or something, so I pull the motherboard back out and try it again outside the case with just a stick of RAM and the video card, but encounter the same power problem. I again disassembled it all and left it out apart overnight. This morning I tried the motherboard, one stick of RAM and video card outside of the case and it worked. I tried reassembling it again and the same half a second then off problem.

I'm stumped as to what it could be. I thought it might be something causing a short in the case at first, but then when I pull the MOBO out of the case to try it I encounter the same problem. I have a little money to buy replacement parts, but I'd like to be able to pinpoint the issue first. Could anyone give me some insight on to whether this sounds like a power supply or motherboard problem? I figure it's one of the two. Any help is greatly appreciated!

Cheers!I have recently had the same problem and narrowed mine down to the Mobo, have you tried another PSU? I fyou have one sitting around or can get your hands on one i would try that first. My opinion anyways.you say "with just a stick of RAM", can we assume you have more? if so, try placing a different stick of RAM in the comp, then pop out the BIOS battery, wait 30 seconds, then pop it back in and see if the problem persists.Quote from: homer on December 16, 2007, 07:48:23 PM

you say "with just a stick of RAM", can we assume you have more? if so, try placing a different stick of RAM in the comp, then pop out the BIOS battery, wait 30 seconds, then pop it back in and see if the problem persists.

I am having difficulty with a program loading after I replaced my RAM. I have an EMachines T5224 that came with 1 GIG of RAM running Vista. I decided to increase the amount of RAM by purchasing 2- 1 gig PC5300 DDR2 DT sticks. I replaced the existing 512MB sticks. After replacing the RAM, some programs would not load. When attempting to open them, they would display the initial loading screen then hang with a never ending hourglass. I was able to get most of them to work by REINSTALLING the application. However, there is one program I cannot get to run that ran perfectly before the memory upgrade. When I attempt to open it up, I get a brief hourglass and then nothing. I LOOK in Task Manager and the program does not appear in either the applications or process list. I have tried repairing, uninstalling/reinstalling, rebooting, and the like and cannot get this program to load. The program is Zeus by Cyber-Robotics. Any help would be greatly appreciated.Quote

After replacing the RAM, some programs would not load. When attempting to open them, they would display the initial loading screen then hang with a never ending hourglass. I was able to get most of them to work by reinstalling the application.

I think the AMD K6 line rocks the house. Call be old-fashoined if you like

PS: I'm sure my opinion will change when I get something faster LOL

BTW it's so much fun to get into arguments with mac lovers since they can't even find a good reason to like them!

apple user:I like macs because umm, because...

PC user:they have one mouse button?

-they have fewer programs?
-they are prohibitively expensive for their target market?
-they remind you of play-doh?
-they treat you like a three year old?

Mac user: NO! I like them because the mouse has only one button. that second one on those PC things confuses my simple mind.


just kidding, Seriously, Macs are fair, but I seriously think that Apples pricing is a joke. What the F are they thinking. they charge a price so high you can get two PC's that are better for the same price as One mac.

And then Mac lovers LOVE bringing up the fact that they never BSOD. they are forgetting the BSOD is kind of there to help you trace the problem. I don't know, but for me, seeing the IRQL_NOT_LESS_THAN_EQUAL BSOD is a heck of a lot more descriptive then a macs "A System error has occured" Really! Thanks computer! Now what?

I got my gaming computer up and running, and right now the only thing that doesnt work are my USB hubs
i cant sync my ipod, i cant use my USB mouse, i cant use my flash drives. so im stuck.
in device manager all of the latest drivers are installed all of them are enabled, there is power going too them (cause my LITTLE usb powered christmas TREE lights up . ) but i cant sync my ipod or anything. can anyone help?Remove the Christmas tree...Quote from: joshthor on December 11, 2007, 12:45:01 PM

I got my gaming computer up and running

One thing you can try:
From Control Panel/System/Hardware/Device Manager...right click every instance of USB roots and hubs and select remove/uninstall.
Then on re-boot Windows will automatically re-install them.
See if this improves things...

Quote from: desofossy on December 24, 2007, 11:30:27 PM

If you are building it for gameing look on AMDs site for AMD Spider combination of chip and grafix card SH*t hot.

Also guess i will throw this sound card on it

Here

Here's what I'm buying in a few days:

I used to have the exact same problem with a USB PC gamepad, a Logitech Dual-Action. I originally got it working and had some fun in ZSNES and suddenly i heard the disconnect and connect sound a few SECONDS from each other, gbut the controller stopped working. Turns out that the problem was that my motherboard had USB 1.1. I eventually got the type of PCI card you speak of(29.99), installed it, and plugged it in there (once I managed to find an XP cd,(read buy. they are STILL not cheap at all) I didn't have one and the installer prompted for it (GRRR)), and it has worked perfect from that day on. So essentially, are you sure you have USB 2.0 ports? Like I say, I had the exact problem before I got the card. In fact, I have the exact same problem with any HID device other then KEYBOARD or mouse that I plug into my motherboard's USB ports.


the short of it: If it turns out the mobo really DOES only have USB 1.1, then a PCI card will likely be a sure-cure. Have you tried a gamepad designed for the PC?


Yes,I have 7 ports that are USB 2.0.We've ruled out your ports and WINDOWS being the issue...the unit is defective.man i have two of the universal gamemon pc\ps2\xbox and im having the same problem. i have a pretty good computer:
amd 3800 x2
asus a8n-sli premium
ddr-400 Gskill Rev.2 2gbs
Biostar 7900gs
1- Seagate Sata 300gb HDD
1- Lite on Dvd/rw/dl w/lichtscribe
Artic Cooling Freezer 64 Pro
Regular Mid TOWER Case
regular 450w Power Supply

having the converters is fun cuz one player computer games turn in to 3 to 4 players. i wish someone WOULD know what it is maybe those japanese peices of crap just wont last. i have trying everything you guys have suggested. seem to me playing with the keyboard is what compboy and i are going to do.

Hello everyone, i recently purchased a new LCD monitor (a LG L1960TR) and i tried using it with my dvi cable, anyways the monitor is set on Analog (Device manager->Monitors-> LG L1960TR (Analog) ive been trying to change it manually for the past 2 hours and i cant do anything to change it, reading all SORTS of useless metirial, basicly ive a GForce GTS 8800 graphic card, 6600 quad core proceccor and you already know my monitor type...(BTW its currently connected through both VGA and DVI plugins since i cant see anything without the VGA installed) ive been trying to reinstall my graphic card and monitor DRIVERS, nothing works =[ can anyone please tell me once and for all how do i change it from analog to digital?sorry if you concider this messege spamming but no one replyed me =[ please help When you connect DVI port on your video card to DVI on your monitor, it should automatically read digital signal.
Did you install monitor drivers, which came on companion CD?finaly a reply! thanks so much for your time! =]
umm i did install my monitors drivers and it still cant read monitor when its connected through its dvi, my monitor is brand new, as well as my computer and dvi cable i HONESTLY dont know whats the problem here it should have been working by now =[
ive tried connecting my monitor through both dvi and vga (which is connected from the monitor to my motherboard), its like my graphic card cant tell my monitor is connected to it. Try updating your video card driversi already tried doing that =[ it says i have the latest driver updateNo, it doesn't matter what Device Manager says. GO to nVidia web site, and look for your drivers there.thats what i ment, i went there, typed my video cards DETAILS (GeForce FX GTS 8800) and downloaded the driver it gave me, didnt help it still cant read my monitor as i said before i can only use my monitor through the motherboard... i tried looking for additional updates but it kept saying i own the latest ones...
Edit:
maybe this will help clear things out:

Since it's brand new monitor, I'd call monitor maker to sort it out. Maybe DVI port is busted, or never worked.

MOTHERBOARD

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=11830BD0443 = $131.54

PROCESSOR

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=12200BD3212 = $267.99

GRAPHIC CARD

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=24630BD6770 = $249.99

RAM

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=15380BD0292 = $94.99

PSU

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=11130AC9786 = $51.84

FAN+HEATSINK

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=15210AC4527 = $51.79

HARD DRIVE

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=15080DR0838 = $75.99

DVD BURNER

http://www.directcanada.com/products/?sku=12600DR1695 = $34.54

TOTAL BEFORE TAXES = $958.67
TOTAL AFTER TAXES+SHIPPING = $1,016.19


Do you think I am good to go?
Am I missing something or should I change something?
Should I add a shipping insurance for additional $15 or is it not necessary?

Thanks in advance!i strongly suggest the Thermalright Ultra 120 eXtreme CPU heatsink with a Scythe S-Flex 120mm fan or a Scythe Slip Stream Kaze Jyuni 120mm fan. both these fans come in different models that vary in fan speed, the higher the fan speed, the more air gets moved, however, the louder the fan. you can decide which one is best for you.Well the heatsink I am ordering is fully copper whereas I'm told that the Thermalright ULTRA-120 is aluminum, so isn't copper a better way to go?

Also the fan is included with the Zalman heatsink and it has more rmps and is less noiser than the Scythe S-FLEX SFF21F or the Scythe Slip Stream Kaze.

What do you think?regardless that the zalman HS is full copper, the ultra 120 is right now the best air cooled CPU HS on the market right now. i have been unsuccessful at finding the CFM of the zalman fan, but i will say that because it is a fan customized for that heatsink, replacing it once it dies is not going to be easy, you may even have to buy a whole new HS. in addition, the zalman HS has one 92mm fan, whereas the thermalright can be equipped with up to two 120mm fans of your choice.

*EDIT*

do you really NEED an aftermarket HS? do you plan on overclocking your CPU?I will probably OC my machine in future to juice out it's max performance thus I WANT to purchase the HS+Fan in advance. I have talked to other people who have suggested that I stick to Thermalright Ultra 120 eXtreme CPU heatsink with a Scythe S-Flex 120mm fan, so I'm going to do just that.

Thanks for your input, any other pointers?Quote from: vxdesigns on December 16, 2007, 06:22:41 PM

Thanks for your input, any other pointers?

I strongly recommend an SLI capable board.
Although that board is nice, I have used one myself, an SLI capable board provides better future upgrade potential.
Also, if you're planning on overclocking, why not save some cash and buy a video card that's cheaper, and not pre-overclocked?

And like the mighty Atheist, you slay the aphoticness of faith, as a beam of light amidst the fatuous murk.

I can always count on you, Calum.

Thanks guys but I'm going to stick with the non-sli board and one GT for now because I don't have more budget. Thanks for your input.

Quote from: Jess607 on December 17, 2007, 11:24:08 AM

And like the mighty Atheist, you slay the aphoticness of faith, as a beam of light amidst the fatuous murk.

I can always count on you, Calum.

please make relevent posts regarding the thread.

Hello, I got TWO 1gig RAM sticks for Christmas to replace my old 512's witch i had two of. I installed the new RAM onto my computer and started it up. It booted up fine but when I log into windows with them one of three things happen. A)My computer crashes to blue screen. B) My computer completly freezes(mouse and everything) and im forced to reboot with the power button. Or C) My computer just restarts without warning. Now all this happens usely between 1-10min after logging in to windows. I went ahead and put in my old RAM to see if that would fix the problem and it did. So my guess is it has something to do with the new RAM and my computer. Did I get the wrong TYPE? I cant really tell because before i removes the two 1 gig's I was able to get into the dxdiag and it came up showing that i have 2 gigs on my comp. If it isnt compatible wouldent it not show the 2 gigs? If anyone can help me on this I will be much appreciated.

RAM specs:

One:
Brand: KByte
Details:
1GB PC 3200 DDR DT
3200/2700 PC400/333
184 Pin Dimm

Two:
I lost the specs on the other one but i do remember a few things

Brand:PNY
Details:
1 GB DDR
3200/2700 PC400/333

Comp Specs:
Time of this REPORT: 12/27/2007, 18:23:08
Machine name: MATTHEW
Operating System: Windows XP Home Edition (5.1, Build 2600) Service Pack 2 (2600.xpsp_sp2_gdr.070227-2254)
Language: English (Regional Setting: English)
System Manufacturer: HP Pavilion 061
System Model: ED891AA-ABA a1203w
BIOS: Phoenix - Award BIOS v6.00PG
Processor: AMD Sempron(tm) Processor 3000+, MMX, 3DNow, ~1.8GHz
Memory: 896MB RAM
Page File: 298MB used, 780MB available
Windows Dir: C:\WINDOWS
DirectX Version: DirectX 9.0c (4.09.0000.0904)
DX Setup Parameters: Not found
DxDiag Version: 5.03.2600.2180 32bit Unicode
DxDiag Previously: Crashed in system information (stage 4)

It sounds like one of them is bad try one at a time if possible. Use the 512 to find which one it is in CASE of a problem. We don't even know if thay MBoard will support 2G of RAM since you didn't supply that info...however i can say that mixing two brand/types of RAM will almost always cause issues...No but use logical thinking he had said he replaced two 512 with two 1 gb. However there both the same type so how would that cause a problem I don't know.i agreed with patio, travel to www.crucial.com from there you can select you mobo and then see the max ram per slot you can add.Thank you all for your help on this. Ill try out that website nowQuote from: squall_01 on December 27, 2007, 08:04:43 PM

No but use logical thinking he had said he replaced two 512 with two 1 gb. However there both the same type so how would that cause a problem I don't know.

I just got a new computer but DECIDED to keep my old hard disks and DISK drives since they were good enough and I wanted to keep all my stuff. I have 2 hard disks- the old one with everything on it and a new one I bought several months ago that is empty. When I try booting up it tries to load Windows but a screen pops up that says:

We apologize for the INCONVENIENCE, but Windows did not start successfully. A recent hardware or software change might have caused this.

It goes on to describe what I should do in inapplicable situations different from this one, and gives 5 options to try to load windows with- Safe Mode, Safe Mode with Networking, Safe Mode with Command Prompt, Last Known Good Configuration (your most recent settings that worked), Start Windows Normally.
When I try the last 2 it does the same thing, failing to load then rebooting with the same situation. The Safe Mode options load a bunch of lines of system32 stuff then reboot and do the same thing.

I have Windows XP Home Edition on my old hard disk. It is configured to the old computer hardware's stuff, and I assume that is why its not working, but I don't know what to do to fix it. I have a Motherboard SUPPORT CD for the new motherboard, and a CD for Windows XP Professional version (don't know if this would work since I have Home).

I appreciate any help anyone can give.Yep you will need to reinstall Windows.
The XP Pro should work fine. But it will install XP professional instead of Home of course.
If you have anything you need to save on the hard drive partition where XP Home is currently installed I recommend you back this up before installing XP Pro.Do I need to install Windows on a different computer to do this? I can do this with the empty hard disk (making it master) right, and add the disk with all the stuff on it as a SLAVE?Quote from: jpq21 on December 28, 2007, 06:45:37 PM

I can do this with the empty hard disk (making it master) right, and add the disk with all the stuff on it as a slave?

Alright so i got a new motherboard, video card, and CPU. I used a previous owned PSU and hard drive. When i plugged everything in and turned it on, it just made the usual computer noise but nothing showed up on the monitor. THe monitor was ACTUALLY still in sleep mode. These are the parts i am using:
Windows home edition
Geforcce 8800 GTS ALPHA DOG edition video card
nforce 680iLTsli motherboard
Hyper 540W PSU
2.2 QUAD core intel processor

please suggest anything!Checkand make sure all the jumpers are in the right place if it has any then come back. If there not set right it won't boot at all.You replaced all that hardware and tried to boot to the original HDD ? ?

Travel Here

I recommend making backups if you can, reading thru it thoroughly and printing out a copy for reference.

Quote from: homer on December 15, 2007, 03:26:49 PM

Quote from: Jess607 on December 15, 2007, 03:14:25 PM

You idiot. He's talking about the new 8800 GTS 512.

name calling is unnecessary. please be more specific as to who is talking about the 8800 GTS 512mb.

full review of the 8800GTX and 8800GTS 512mb here, i believe you are familiar with the forum there jess.

Can I trust that you won't try to build any more PCs

You guys were a MAJOR help.

can i trust that you wont recommend a motherboard that of which you, yourself, are returning?

Based upon my own decision and the decision made by other people as well, this is best+cheapest build of the submitted entries. Here's what I came up from the winning entry:

www.directcanada.com

MOTHERBOARD: Gigabyte GA-P35-DS3R Atx LGA775 Conroe P35 DDR2 1PCI-E16 3PCI-E1 Sata Raid Sound Gblan = $131.54

PROCESSOR: Intel Core 2 Quad Q6600 Quad Core Processor LGA775 Kentsfield 2.40GHZ 1066FSB 8MB = $267.99

VIDEO CARD: Galaxy Geforce 8800GT Overclocked 600MHZ 512MB 2.0GHZ DDR3 PCI-E DVI-I Hdcp Hdtv Out Oem = $249.99

RAM: Corsair XMS2 TWIN2X2048-6400 2GB 2X1GB PC2-6400 DDR2-800 CL 5-5-5-18 240PIN DIMM Dual Channel = $75.60

HARD DISK: Western Digital SE16 320GB SATA2 7200RPM 16MB 8.9MS Hard Drive Oem = $75.99

TOTAL COST BEFORE TAXES/SHIPPING = $802
TOTAL COST AFTER TAXES/SHIPPING = $850

Although I will not order the exact setup but it will be 85% similar to this entry.

The winner is "Kilauea" who posted this build in the following thread:

http://www.computerforum.com/105451-build-gaming-rig-win-2.html#post840530

I would like to thank everyone who has submitted an entry or has tried to help me with my build. You guys were a MAJOR help.

Quote from: homer on December 15, 2007, 10:49:51 PM

can i trust that you wont recommend a motherboard that of which you, yourself, are returning?

I am returning it because it's NOT the board that I reccomend.

Why the heck would I reccomend a board that isn't good? Another pathetic attempt to feel superior, huh?

No Christian will ever be superior to me.

I am returning it because it's NOT the board that I reccomend.

1) Motherboard - eVGA 680i A1/T1 - 250$

Alright, so I decided to buy my eVGA 680i T1 board on Monday...

...And I can't excuse this anyway. I got a half-680i, half-680i LT board, and I'm sending it back.

An SLi board is the best option. You want performance? Buying a single GT is stupid.

What's the point of giving advice, when you don't take it?

Quote from: Jess607 on December 17, 2007, 11:16:15 AM

I am returning it because it's NOT the board that I reccomend.

thats weird... i thought you were returning it because it was a half 680i and a half 680i LT board. in addition, you did, in fact recommend it earlier in this thread...

Quote from: Jess607 on December 14, 2007, 07:42:40 AM

1) Motherboard - eVGA 680i A1/T1 - 250$

and you do, in fact, plan to send it back...

Quote

Alright, so I decided to buy my eVGA 680i T1 board on Monday...

Quote

...And I can't excuse this anyway. I got a half-680i, half-680i LT board, and I'm sending it back.

. why is it always a "superiority" issue with you? there is no shame in being corrected.

Quote from: Jess607 on December 17, 2007, 11:17:36 AM

An SLi board is the best option. You want performance? Buying a single GT is stupid.

What's the point of giving advice, when you don't take it?

I won't be needing a SLI board because I'm not going to use two GTS.

I appreciate the advice but I have to think about my budget first.

Basically, none of the drives (HDD or CD) are being detected on a computer I'm working on. In the BIOS it just has "not detected" next to all the drives (ie, Primary IDE Master, Primary IDE Slave, etc), and all the settings for the drives are set to "auto". The only thing listed in the boot sequence is "1st Floppy Drive", although there's no floppy drive installed. I also sometimes get a "CMOS battery low. CMOS date and time not set. Press F1 to enter setup" message when the computer boots.

I've tried resetting the BIOS (by both replacing the battery and with the jumper pins) using a different HDD, using different IDE cables, and using a different PSU, but none of it has worked.

Here's the specs:

Motherboard: ECS GS7610 Ultra (SIS 761GX+956L chipset)
BIOS: AmiBIOS v02.59
CPU: AMD Athlon 64 3000
Memory: 2x 512MB PC3200 DDR RAM (M2G9J16A-TT from TwinMOS)
HDD: MAXTOR 6L200P0
PSU: COLORS-it EN60950


Now, since I'm just the guy trying to fix it and not the owner, I don't know the full history of the machine, but this is what I do know:

Machine gets brought in, rapidly SWITCHING on/off when you try to turn it on. One of my colleagues decides to try replacing the mobo and CPU. Problem persists, and I try putting in a new PSU. The problem clears up, but now we're left with the current issue.


PS: The next time I have access to the machine after today is going to be on the 27th, so I won't be able reply on what help did/didn't work till then.Possibilities:

MBoard short...check to see all standoffs are in position.
Bad PSU ( even though you've already swapped it out )
IDE channels blown...

Make sure to test the Drives/cables in a known working machine.All the standoffs are in position, and the PSU I'm using is the only one AVAILABLE that works (all the others are either the wrong form factor, or are currently in use). I tried the cables and the HDD on another PC, and although it was able to detect it, it came up with "A disk read error occurred. Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart"


EDIT: I tried *another* HDD in the faulty computer, and it was able to detect it fine. LOOKS like the drives were the issue. Thanks for your help.Try the Drive in another PC.Quote from: RX on December 28, 2007, 11:48:24 AM

Try the Drive in another PC.

i have a new dvd-ram dual layer drive and it will play DVDS and CDS but will not RECORD, any IDEAS anyone.

daveWhat OS do you have?
Are you trying to record DVD's or CD's or both?
How are you trying to do this?
What program are you using?
Do you receive any error messages?

I am trying to overclock my HP Pavilion dv5000 laptop. I press F10 at the startup to enter the "Phoenix BIOS setup utility", but it doesn't look like the screenshots on this site. The only options I can change are things like time, date, passwords, accesibility and wireless. I can't find anything that lets me do anything more advanced like changing FSB speeds and voltages and other things needed for overclocking. What do I NEED to do to get to more advanced options?

HP Pavilion dv5157eu
AMD Turion 64 Processor
Windows XP Home
Phoenix BIOS

Please help. I've searched everywhere and don't have any 'documentation' to consult (who keeps the manual anyway?).At the bottom of the FIRST page it will list the commands such as page up page down to move to the following pages.......YES I know how to move to other pages... I'm not that much of a n00b. But there are no relevant options on any of the pages.

I THINK I already found the problem anyway. Basically it seems that you can't overclock any recent HP, Compaq or Dell laptops. They build the BIOS without the necessary options because they don't want you making your computer better than they want it to be.The best way to overclock an HP is to gut the case and put what you want in there...
Some of their cases are actually quite nice for this purpose.

Hello, I have two questions. The first is:
Is IDE and ATA the same type of HDD?
And does SATA work with every motherboard?

Help appreciatedQuote

Is IDE and ATA the same type of HDD?

And does SATA work with every motherboard?

I recently relocated from the US to Bulgaria. My laptop is working fine with a voltage converter. I purchased a special step up-step down voltage converter/regulator for my Dell Dimension 4600 desktop. These did not seem to working quite right. so I used the same converter for my desktop that I use to plug in my laptop and I think I fried the Dell. I did not know there was voltage flip switch until after wards. I am ASSUMING my power SUPPLY is fried at this point as there was a huge spark when I attempted to plug it in. Will this affect the rest of the components in the computer or only the power supply? I am assuming that if the rest of the components are OK then I could just replace the power supply with correct plug/voltage here. I am afraid to do any more damage and did not want to risk trying again with voltage FLIPPED. Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks, NicI think you over LOADED it. You said there was a spark usually that means you kill the computer not the power supply. YOu can take it to have it looked at but its probably going to cost less if you got a new computer. Quote

You said there was a spark usually that means you kill the computer not the power supply.

Hi, I have a computer and have always used an LCD monitor with it, I have had to replace the monitor, and found a no-name ONE, which seemed to do the trick - it says it supports the display I normally use (1280 x 1024) via a VGA CABLE, which is the same set-up I have always used, anyway, got the monitor, set it up - got the message 'NO SIGNAL', BROUGHT a new VGA cable and got the same message. Went into Start Up and was able to boot the computer using 'ENABLE VGA', which has worked, however I can't set the resolution above 640 x 480 - I thought it must be the monitor, so went and brought a different brand, which had it's own VGA cable - exactly the same problem.

If I try to increase the resolution or the refresh RATE at all, I just get a 'NO SIGNAL' message.

Can anyone help?

Thanks millions!Sometimes, in the Enable VGA mode, 640x480 is the only resolution you can usually set.

What kind of video card do you have? Have you tried reinstalling the driver?

Really, you shouldn't need to REINSTALL video drivers for changing monitors, but I had a similar issue both when I switched from CRT to LCD, and when I replaced my LCD with a new one. Reinstalling the driver fixed it for some reason.

I have all my MUSIC on an external 80 GIG HD..now when i plug it in, my computer doesn't seem to recognise it at all.

Anyone?READ THIS first

so i bult my own pc about a year and a bit ago.. as follows:
6600 intel duo core
Asus P5B motherboard
Nvidia Gforce 7900 GT(X?) not sure which
1 gig of ddr2 ram
using win xp

It worked fine (to my suprise) and has had no problems whatsoever. until now.
A few weeks ago i had a look at the temp. of the cpu. It was 70degrees C. Ive had a look for the specs for the 6600 and it says that 60 is the optimal temp. i thought thats ok theyre designed to work a bit hotter and as it had been working fine for over a year, thought no more of it.
I moved my computer into another room today, and when i booted up, there were 3 or 4 beeps and an error on startup WARNING about the temp of the cpu. So i quickly powered off and had a look inside.
it seems that the cpu fan/ heat sink had come loose and wasnt in contact with the cpu. So i took it off completely and reapplied THERMAL paste and put it back on.
So i started up the pc again and everything worked...i got to windows and it was fine. checked the temperature of the cpu and it says 90 degrees...uh oh! so im about to turn off the power and a sound in between a click and a bang was heard. Dreading what i would see i looked inside and found a smell of smoke but no noticable damage to the cpu or motherboard. That was 10 minutes ago and havnt dared turn anything on again. Im a bit worried that its actually the psu (its only a 450W) but it hasnt been a problem before. What is the likely problem? Have a applied the thermal paste wrongly or could the overheating of the cpu somehow cause damage to the psu?
Ill try rebooting the pc now and GIVE you an update....
so ive put it all back together and.... nothing.
Had a look inside the case and when i turn power on there are no standby lights on the graphics card like there usually is. If it was the cpu which had burnt out wouldnt the fans still start up? this makes me think its the psu which has gone?
I dont want to have to get a new psu when i dont know why the processor is overheating so much...im reading through other posts and it seems like most people have cpu temps of 30 to 50.
Any help would be very appreciated.no lights on startup + no fans on startup = PSU failure (assuming that the power supply is turned on via the back disconnect.)

your CPU temps might be high for two reasons, or a combo of both.

1. your CPU fan died
2. the dying PSU was over volting the CPU

i would recommend a new PSU, hopefully it didnt take any other hardware with it.yep so i guess a new psu - i think im doing something wrong with the pcu though....i think its always been overheating a little. What are the probable causes? when i took off the cpu fan the first time it seemed that the thermal paste had been applied perfectly with a thin covering across the whole surface. Could the cpu fan not be up to the job even though it was the one intel supplied with the cpu? im thinking that i will take this down to a repair shop and let them sort it out. ive usually sorted problems out myself so ive no idea how much it would cost me - any ideas?
thanks for the quick reply already.the overheating could be caused by IMPROPER installation of the CPU heatsink, as the CPU heatsink would not have fallen off if properly installed. review the instructions on mounting the heatsink.

P.S. i have always tested my heatsinks by gently tugging on all four corners individually after installing them. if it is properly installed, the corners will not pop up once tugged on.Thermal Paste Instructions

Too much is just as bad as not enough.

Don't buy a cheap PSU...or you will be replacing that CPU.

I am using a HP surestore T20, and all I am trying to do is get the backup cleaner to start. I can insert the cleaning cartridge into the drive, but the heads never engage, it just SITS there idle. Not SURE if I am missing a command, or what may be the problem. Trying my best to LEARN! : ) thanks for any help/point in the right direction!
Richard

In vista you will be ASKED for a driver for this databar stick, do not look, there is not any vista drivers.!! To cure the problem get a hold of a WORKING flash stick and copy the contents ONTO the freecom stick and WALLA it will work. REMEMBER it has to be the same size of stick and thats it.

Read the subject, read it again. . .back? ok good. I have changed it to various different settigns in an attempt to fix it, I've swichted it throughout the 3 settings, (600,400, etc. . ) and the other 4 setings, all over the place
(16bit color, etc. .) I can only use :true color" in the OVERSIZED, gigantic screen. whic is like 400,

I also don't have sound, but I already posted that. .(I THINK. .) I have tried reinstalling drivers, and stuff, and changing them around, but nuthin seems to wok on this thing! (besides DOS, NOTEPAD, and MSPAINT)Is there a reason you ADDRESS us as Third Graders when seeking assistance ? ?

Read This

Now Read This Again...lol meant as a joke, oh well. . .anyway I just got a new moniter, it's fixed, go it last night for being a delivery dude for my mom's grooming biz

I have media center. The screen is blank when I switch to live tv. I checked the cables and looked to make sure everything was connected correctly on the inside. I have had it hooked up before and it worked fine. any SUGGESTIONS?So what has changed since it worked and now?TIME. it was hooked up TWO years ago. I unhooked it for some reason. then never wanted to hook it up again until now.In that CASE how was it stored for the last 2 years?there is a cable going to the back of the computer. I just unhooked. now that I have put a family room in the basement(computer desk being the focal point) I would like to be able to have cable and such for the kids. so I re hooked it up. when I opened media center and went to live tv it is now a blank screen. Do you think the tv tuner is broken?

also I uninstalled it and reinstalled. still not working.If it was stored in a hot and COLD enviroment it is posssible that it has gone bad. If you are sure you have it correctly installed that could be the possibilty. You could try the freezer trick* on it, but that would only confirm it's death. Also check the makers website for none issues.


*Freezer Trick = Put the card in a ziploc bag and then into the freezer for about 20 minutes and then put it strait into your computrer and check to see if works now. If some circuits no longer work then they would expand as they freeze and rework, temporily.