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My parent's computer keeps saying that their computer battery is low. Does that mean it needs to be replaced or that someone like a technician needs to flash the BIOS? I TRIED to HELP them the best I can but I don't know as much about hardware as I do with SOFTWARE so I hope someone can help me out here, thanks!what battery?, it's laptop battery or desktop motherboard battery? if it's motherboard battery, just replace it.
i BELIEVE you can get it in any shop near byYou do NOT need to flash the BIOS. A replacement is about $5 at a computer STORE, Radio Shack, etc. It takes less than a minute and not even removing a screw is involved.

2,650,817 hits on google in less than 1.3 seconds...The OP may require the link as well. Guys, a little harsh, and you didn't answer their other questions.
I understand that many people don't use Google first, but perhaps a gentle nudge would be better?
Anyway, back to the OP's post.
FIREWIRE to USB adapters do exist.
I've never used one so I don't know how good they are though, my laptop has both Firewire and USB.
It may have been a good idea to check on whether your laptop has a Firewire port and whether it was possible to get an adapter before you got a Firewire camcorder, but never mind.
You don't need a new laptop, anyway.
As for your other question . . . PCMCIA slots aren't that widely used nowadays.
They are also being superseded by Expresscard/54, which offers higher bandwidth and lower power consumption, amongst other benefits.
So look for either, but they're not that important to most people.
The main use used to be for wireless cards and USB ports, but many laptops nowadays have wireless built in and enough USB ports. It's also cheaper to buy a USB hub or USB wireless adapter than a PCMCIA one.
I use my PCMCIA slot, for a sound card.
I'll also get an Expresscard TV tuner, when I have the money and when the standard has matured a bit more.
Does this go some way towards answering your questions?
Edit: I was actually typing this as you were typing your reply, farnham1976.
I'm sure GX1 and patio didn't mean to be rude, it's just that we often get a lot of people wasting our time without searching or even trying themselves. I apologize for any offence they may have accidentally caused to you, and I'm sure they do too.Ah yes, I see you did find a solution now.
That would work too, but you may want to weight up the costs of a full hub against an adapter.
Remember though that a hub will give you more USB ports etc, but it'll be more expensive than just an adapter.
Your laptop seems like a pretty good offer . . . I GUESS you mean 1Gb rather than 1Mb of RAM though.
Quote

The whole point of forums like this should be for people like me to get good solid advice before we part with our money when technical support SERVICES and shop keepers fail in giving us the right advice (often in the process leading us to unnecessarily part with our money).

Thank you for the advice.

Take a look here: http://www.tigerdirect.ca/sectors/help/faq1.asp#or6. You can pay be check or money order. I have an SLI mobo with a Realtek AC'97. I have had absolutely no problems with it. I installed drivers right away so maybe thats it...Does Newegg SHIP to canada? Do they accept check orders? I bought my NEW PC from them and it arrived in perfect condition and UNDER what time they SAID it would ship. (The operational-out-of-the-box is new thing to me)newegg.com only ships to the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

OK so I've posted before about my SOUNDCARD. So after all the crap I've tried, I can't find my soundcard anymore. I know what it is, but when I look for it its not there. Its a Realtek AC'97 I don't know what version it is, so if it matters I don't know how to find out. I know I should just go buy a new one, but I haven't got the money and I won't for quite a while so If there is a way to fix it by some manual installation or something PLEASE help me.WDM_ A398.exe------>HereWhy don't you run Everest HOME, make a report and post it here for perusal? It may take several posts to get it all.

http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4181.html

My computer has had issues for a while, but it is only after a year or so that I finally discovered the (APPARENT) source of the troubles. It would seem that my crashes are due to faulty ram, or at least faulty ram matching. I reached this conclusion after investigating the errors I was receiving from a number of applications. These errors caused said PROGRAMS to crash, and upon occasion send me to the blue screen of death.

his application has encountered a critical error:

FATAL ERROR!

Exception: 0xC0000005 (ACCESS_VIOLATION) at 001B:6F095B15

The instruction at '0x6F095B15' REFERENCED memory at '0x00000008'.
The memory could not be 'read'.

From what I have seen, only bad memory or a bad motherboard would give me these error messages. Sadly, my computer is no longer under warranty, so I will have to put in the time (and money) myself to fix it.

I suppose my question is two fold.
1. How to test that it is indeed the RAM which is to blame
2. How to go about FINDING the correct RAM that will work with my system.

From what I have read, basically you need to test different (and working )of RAM in your system. I don't have any excess RAM on hand, though I can obtain some if strictly necessary. After doing said swap, what tests should be run to see if the RAM is functioning correctly?

My Specs:
Motherboard Model: NF-CK804
Motherboard Chipset: nVidia nForce4
Motherboard Slots: 5xPCI
BIOS Manufacturer: Phoenix- Award WorkstationBIOS
BIOS: Up to date

All of my drivers are up to date.

Thanks a ton for your help.

-JaeganFree RAM checker at www.memtest86.com

Run each STICK for about 30 minutes, then all together.

Mobo: MSI
CPU: AMD64 3000+
Memory: 2x512 Off Brand - Dual Channel

I have 4 memory slots and was THINKING of adding another gig of ram.
I dont know to much about running ram in dual channel other then "it runs faster" so basicly what my question is...

If I was to add another 2x512 sticks of lets say kingston would it still be running it in dual channel with the other generic ram I have in there now? Or how does it work? Would all 4 sticks need to be exactly the same?Here's over a million explanations:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=how+does+dual+channel+RAM+workWhats Unbuffered and NON-ECC?can you post your motherboard model please so that we can help you...Thanks!Unbuffered:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=unbuffered+ram


non-ECC:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=non-ECC+RAM

Sorry, only about a million hits on each.

You might enjoy this one as well:

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/computer-memory.htmQuote

can you post your motherboard model please so that we can help you...Thanks!

Can I install a Preloaded hard drive with windows xp and some apps into a computer running VISTA? The SYSTEM is a gateway 3ghz pentium with 2 gig of ram . What do I have to do?That XP has to be not used on another computer and is best if you load it on the HARDWARE it is expected to RUN on there, rather than trying to retrofit it. There is also the issue of a boot loader. Traditionally the OLDEST version of Windows should be installed first.

So there are several problems with that picture.

My TOSHIBA Satellite R10 suddenly STOPPED working. It's just past its warranty period, so no help from Tech-Support.

I can get no response from the battery (which was working fine earlier). I plugged it in to a NEW DC adapter and was not able to power it up. When I plug in the AC adapter the single AC LED light is green. When I TRY to turn on the computer the led changes to a flashing amber (yellow-orange) pattern. It gives four short blinks, one long blink, three short blinks. I understand that this may be a binary code (00001000) which may be converted to some hex code (h8).

I can do the work myself, but I cannot find out ANYWHERE what this code means. Please help!!!What HAPPENED before this started?
Can you get any info on the code form the Toshiba site?And which R10 is it?
There are about 5 listed on the Toshiba site.*sigh*
This could TAKE a while . . .

When i play music or whatever i can only barely hear the music when i turn the volume all the way up. I tried to plug in new speakers but the same problem HAPPENED. Please help. thanks.You might want to check for other volume control's being set too low. It's easy to have several different sets of ADJUSTMENTS. As in speakers themselves, keyboard volume buttons, control panel/sounds&audio devices, sound card's program, or the player itself(WMP, WinAmp, Jukebox, etc)Has it always been this way? If not, what has changed and when? Are you sure you are plugged into the correct port? Have you checked the settings in COntrol Panel for Sounds and MULTIMEDIA? In System does your sound card show up correctly and without exclamation marks?

More information could be helpful. Please see below.I did check all the volume controls on the keyboard and the speakers and the computer itself and the media player i use to play the music. all of these are set to be playing much louder than they are at the moment. I have a dell dimension 3000, windows XP, and the only thing i can think of that i changed is i downloaded itunes because i just got an ipod. I got the ipod for christmas though and my computer has worked very well until recently on maybe thursday.hockey5, have you checked that both the wave and cd volume sliders in your system control panel are turned up?

Sounds obvious, but it had me stumped for 2 days!!! :-/the strangest thing happened, i fell forward out of my bed and KNOCKED my computer screen forward along with my speakers and now they work again. i guess it must have just been a loose connection but i THOUGHT i checked it but thanks for the help.Were you dancing in bed?Quote

the strangest thing happened, i fell forward out of my bed and knocked my computer screen forward along with my speakers and now they work again. i guess it must have just been a loose connection but i thought i checked it but thanks for the help.

I just bought a new cyber acoustics Mic and it doesn't seem to work. I plugged it in correctly, I have the right sound card but I tried all these tests in my CONTROL panel and it doesn't pick up sound. There is no button on my Mic or anything like that.

My friend brought his Mic over here one time and it worked fine.

There is no button? At all? Not even an on/off? What kind of MIKE is this?Quote

There is no button? At all? Not even an on/off? What kind of mike is this?

There is no button? At all? Not even an on/off? What kind of mike is this?

I just bought a new cyber acoustics Mic and it doesn't seem to work. I plugged it in correctly, I have the right sound card but [highlight]I tried all these tests in my control panel[/highlight] and it doesn't pick up sound. There is no button on my Mic or anything like that.

My daughter has a Dell. Yesterday I went and installed a DVD writer on it. It had a DVD rom to begin with. After I installed and booted in the computer it showed only the dvd writer I had just installed..not the cd writer that was already in it. So I opened it up again and checked the jumper. Well on that system. instead of the belts saying master and slave..it says 1 and 2. Assuming 1 is the master and 2 is the slave I put the dvd as 2 and changed the jumper. When I went to boot it back up, it said no drive 4 and no drive 5 was found, press any key to continue. I did that and then got the error message sys32/config/system file is missing or CORRUPT, insert cd..you know...well..dell doesn't give you the install files...they say to use the help files on teh desktop which is pretty dumb if you can't get to the desktop. But anyway..since the computer was still under warranty (for 10 more days), she called them and they told her how to restore. Everything was lost. But when it came all back on...neither one of the drives are showing up. Not even in the BIOS...it says cd rom (not present) and no mention of the dvd writer. Any ideas???

It is still not jumpered correctly.

What model is this? "A Dell" is pretty vague.It's a Dell Dimension. I figured the jumpers were wrong, but I don't know how to figure out what goes where. The DVD-R says on the back which is what. The CDR does not. And as I said the cable is only listed as 1 and 2, which i've never seen before, usually labeled Master and Slave. But I did figure the 1 was the Master. But I don't know which one is which on the CDR. Is it pretty standard? Like C S M?

Her computer totally crashed after I did this. She restored totally, and now it's running real slow and it gets the BSD saying it is shutting down to avoid harm to the computer. I figure it is probably because of the jumper being wrong somewhere. She got the new system disks from Dell today...but WITHOUT a CD drive working she can't install to see if that fixes anything. I guess I'm just not a computer genius...

Thanks for any help you can give me!
Molly :-?What model DVD did you buy? There was no instruction sheet with it showing jumpers?I don't know what DVDr model it is. I took it out of my computer as I replaced mine with a LightScribe DVDr. I know where the jumpers go on it..it is marked. I'm not sure on the CD, it's blank but the jumper is on the far left side which on the DVD is marked as C. Are they pretty much standard? And am I correct in assuming that the cable marked "1" is the master and "2" is the slave?

Thanks,
MollyWell, that's all fixed now. I had to go into Bios and turn them on. They were jumpered right, just Bios was not set to recognize those drives at all. Only problem now...Internet Explorer keeps becoming non responsive. Isn't there a repair for IE somewhere?

THanks again,
MollyIt's called FireFox...

Seriously though what type of connection do you have and what ver. of IE are you trying to fix ? ?She has IE 6 and has cable connection.

Me..because my luck is pretty bad...I live 3 miles out too far for fast connection, and I have dial up as only option...not relevant..just thought I'd vent because I'm tired of slow connection.

I've been told about Firefox before...so it's worth the hours it will take me to download???

MollyQuote

I've been told about Firefox before...so it's worth the hours it will take me to download???

Molly

She has IE 6 and has cable connection.

Me..because my luck is pretty bad...I live 3 miles out too far for fast connection, and I have dial up as only option...not relevant..just thought I'd vent because I'm tired of slow connection.

I've been told about Firefox before...so it's worth the hours it will take me to download???

Molly

Excellent !
Then there's all the cool extensions (add-ons) for Firefox.
You might want to have a look at some of those.
---
Search on "Favorite Firefox Extensions" for lots more good stuff.

- - - Thanks so much for nudging me in the right direction with this browser!

For my upgrade I have saelected the Asus Crosshair which has an AM2 socket. It supports a wide selection of AMD processors allowing me to start with around 4500+ and upgrading later. I don't do much multi-tasking but I play a lot of flight sim and CASINO games. My question is do I opt for a dual core now or single core. Also, your comment on selecting AM2 socket or 939 on a different board.It SOUNDS like you have already selected an AM2 socket board. Nothing really further to discuss is there?Wrong. I have not finalized on anything and that's why I am asking these questions. But thanks for your input.Quote

[highlight]For my upgrade I have saelected the Asus Crosshair which has an AM2 socket[/highlight]. It supports a wide selection of AMD processors allowing me to start with around 4500+ and upgrading later. I don't do much multi-tasking but I play a lot of flight sim and casino games. My question is do I opt for a dual core now or single core. Also, your comment on selecting AM2 socket or 939 on a different board.

Thats funny GX1!

My DAUGHTER went to turn the pc on and it would start to crank and then shut off. I confirmed this with a COUPLE tries and it would just start as usual but only for ten to fifteen seconds then shut off completely. I opened the case and major dust, of course. It smelled a little hot but not extremely so, and I have a good sniffer. I let it set for a while and tried again but the results were the same. I unplugged tried various forms of unplugging different componants and nothing had any affect. I tried another power supply with no change.

I even unplugged the wires that go to the indicator lights and didn't pay enough attention because now the "On" light which is on the "on" button stays on no matter what. this at least tells me that there is power going through the machine. There is a chance that I popped a jumper switch off of the same area where the led's plug into but I'm not sure. Yeah laugh all you WANT I'm a hack and I know it. The machine is an E-machine. I am not with it right know to know all the rest of the parameters.

Now nothing happens at any time. Just the led indicator that SAYS it's "on" is well, on. The power button does nothing.

Any ideas?Well, I would ASSUME that it is is over heating. What kind of processor is in the computer? Are all of the fans working correctly? I would get that dust cleaned off ASAP also.

8-)fffreakdo you see any obvious signs of het damage ie. warping, discoloration, burn marksa quick way to trouble shoot the computer, to see if it is overheating or not, is to remove the case and place a fan at the front of it facing the back of the computer. (make sure it is a decent-sized fan, not one of those tiny 3" fans.) turn the fan on and turn your comp on. removing the case and having the fan blowing in cool air will assist in ventilating the computer. the computer should stay on for a longer period of time if over-heating is the issue. while the case is off and the comp is on, check to make sure all fans are spinning.When I opened it to begin with I blew it out...There is basically no response to the power button now. The little green light is on but no one is home.BTW I see no signs of heat damage.Sounds like the power supply has bit the dust...if you can borrow a known good one and swap it in there temporarily to confirm this.
Don't buy a cheap one...you'll be back in the same predicament shortly.

patio. 8-)

I've just purchased a brand new 100gb SATA external hard drive, I then GOT an enclosure for it. When I connected the USB connection into the computer it picks up that there is a mass storage device but I can not access it. I've checked through Device MANAGER and it SAYS it's working ok. I've tried on two seperat computers running XP and both say the same, I've also tried to download an updated driver for it but it seems I have the latest. I have also downloaded a diagnostic tool from Fujitsu it says there is a power supply problem. There are no red lights on the enclosure only a solid green one and the hard drive is running. Help And have you used the Disk Management tools to partition and format it? That is the next STEP.

I am unable to use two keys on my IBM Thinkpad r40 keyboard (the spacebar and "b" key). The keybard is completely clean and nothing is obstructing the keys. I have tried reseating the keyboard and also cleaning the keys with rubbing alcohol. Neither fixed the problem.

Do you have any suggestions to fix the keys? Would purchasing a new keyboard solve the problem? Or is the problem internal?

Thank you! IF everything is seated correctly and it made no DIFFERENCE after the cleaning a new keyboard is the next STEP. I had an old Dell LATITUDE with the same problem and I was sorry I WAITED too long to do the obvious. It works great now.

Today I turned my computer on and I got a MESSAGE before Windows started booting that said:
SMART Failure Predicted on Hard DISK 0: WDC WD400EB-11CPFO-(PM)

WARNING: Immediately back-up your data and replace your hard disk drive. A failure may be immenent

Press F1 to Continue

When I pressed F1 the computer booted up much slower than usual, maybe 3 minutes, but now everything seems fine. All my important data is fine because I re-installed Windows a few weeks ago.Quote

Immediately back-up your data and [highlight]replace your hard disk drive.[/highlight] A failure may be immenent.

All my important data is fine because I re-installed Windows a few weeks ago.

Anything!

Recently replace ONE of my DEFECTED 1GB PC2-3200 with a 1GB PC2-4200 in DIMM2.


This is how my BIOS look like.

Memory size: 2.50 GB
Memory speed: 400 MHz
Memory channel mode: Dual Interleaved
Memory type: DDR2 SDRAM

DIMM1: 1 GB
DIMM3: 256 MB
DIMM2: 512 MB
DIMM4: 256 MB

BIOS only detect 512MB of ram in DIMM2, but my total ram showed is 2.5GB.
How is that possible?MaxRider..... PLEASE post the make and model of your MOBO.


dl65

I have an HP Pavilian a1129n
I just added 512 MB RAM, bringing me up to 1 Gig.
200 GB serial ATA Hard Drive
AMD athion 64 Processor
Running Windows XP

I've also TRIED to change my vid-card and herein lay the problem.

I installed a MSI NX6200TC card (I'm not a gamer)
plus software, which installed fine.
But when I REBOOTED I got a black (L) and Green (R) screen with the following WARNING message:

PC Video resolution setting is out of range.
Change setting to recommended resolution:
[emailprotected]
with the color bar Red/Green/Blue underneath.

My question is, how do I change that setting?
Or, perhaps, where do I change it?

Technologically-embarassed-Jim
Right-click on the Desktop. Click Properties. Click Settings tab. ADJUST as desired.Quote

Right-click on the Desktop. Click Properties. Click Settings tab. Adjust as desired.

I'm a newby on this board, so please bear with me......... I recently ran the defragment tool on my PC and after I shut it down to restart, the *censored* thing would only light up, check the A/drive, check the D/drive, and go no further. I get nothing on the screen. When I press the on/off switch, it turns right off immediately. I have tried a couple different boot disks to no avail. OS is Windows 98se. I don't have an install disk, but I have a win98se upgrade disk. The PC is an HP "Brio", built in 2000 with an Intel Celeron installed(don't know details). HDD is a Western Digital 40GB. I don't really know much more about it as I bought it from a friend a few months back. Any and all help with this will be greatly appreciated. Thanks.......eGo into the BIOS and look to see if the system see's the Hard Drive... If no HD found, then it might be a bad HD.

DaveThanks for coming to my aid, Dave. How do I go about going into BIOS. I get nothing on the monitor. I mean absolutely nothing. Is there another way of checking? Thanks again....... eProbably the F2 key for that comp.
Hold the F2 key down and START the computer. When you get "tone" release. Then press it down some more. Don't hold it down with tone.

Some SAY to "TAP" the majic key and others will say to hit (or start tapping) the key as soon as you see the mfr's splash screen.

It's hard to describe, I use the first method. I think it's more sure-fire esp. if you're not sure which key.

You may have screwed up your bootloader . Go to Bootdisk.com and try one of their bootdisks. The ME version is a favorite.
That may get you far enough along to get the CD drive running.
If you suspect a corrupt bootloader, post back and someone will help you.

It would be interesting to know how full that hard drive was before the defrag. If they are over 75% full a defragger can choke.

There are some hard drive diagnostic utilities here in the forum.
You could slave the drive to another comp and run a diagnostic from there.


Thanks jflan...... I replaced the CMOS battery. No change. BUT.....and it's a BIG BUT........I just noticed that a new video card had been installed and I have never plugged into it. Since I got this thing, I have always plugged into the old monitor recepticle. I plugged into the new one and the monitor CAME on. The HP screen now comes up and allows me to get into BIOS by pressing f2. If I bypass BIOS, I just get a black screen with a prompt. I feel a little better that there is some progress being made here. Any ideas where I can go from here???So, just a prompt, not "Operating System not found" ?
I'm thinking that you need to run a diagnostic on the drive.

Is the drive recognized in BIOS ?
Yes, just a prompt. And yes, it does recognize the drive (Primary Master).OK, you've got embedded video (on-board) and a conventional video card.
Some motherboards will automatically recognize the separate card and disable on-board video, some need help in BIOS.

Look around in BIOS for something that says :
On-Board Graphics (Video) [Enable / Disable]
If you find this control set it accordingly.

You still need to verify that your hard drive is OK.
I found this diagnostic that loads onto a floppy. I've used CD versions but not floppy. In your case a bootable floppy might be just the ticket.
The download for Drive Fitness Test for diskette (DFT-Windows):
http://pcsupport.about.com/gi/dynamic/offsite.htm?zi=1/XJ&sdn=pcsupport&cdn=compute&tm=48&f=20&su=p284.5.420.ip_&tt=3&bt=1&bts=1&zu=http%3A//www.hitachigst.com/hdd/support/download.htm%23Drive%2520fitness

I have a dual core Athlon 64 X2 2400ghz that is showing in my system as a 988mhz cpu. I have also been having a few virtual memory warnings, I don't know if it's related though. How do I fix my cpu SPEED? Thanks for any advice!

Athlon 64 X2 2400ghz cpu
ASUS A8N-SLI Deluxe
1.2 gic PC2100 DDR RAM
Windows XP ProWhat are you using to check the speed of it?
Is it always shown as 988MHz?
Try running an intensive program and then check the speed.
Has it always been like this?
And do you mean it's an Athlon X2 4200+?
What do you mean by virtual memory warnings?
Please post the content of one of these warnings here.Are you sure it's 2400GHz?nah, I was still waking up :-/

its a 4800/2.4ghz

I check the system in the control panel and the reported cpu speed varies between 988mhz-2.41ghzThat's fine.
It's called AMD PowerNow! technology.
When your CPU is not in use, it slows down to conserve power and reduce heat.
You used to be able to change the behaviour of this with the PowerNow drivers, but they no longer have this built in.
To change how it works, change the power setting in control panel.
Always on sets the CPU to full speed all the time.
Max battery sets it to variable speed on AC power and lowest speed on battery.
Minimal power saving sets it to dynamically adjust the speed as needed, and it's probably on that now.
I suggest leaving it there as it won't cause any problems, it'll just use a bit less power and produce a little less heat.
It can be alarming to see your new multi-GHz CPU running at a matter of MHz but it's nothing to worry about.
Does that clear things up for you?Perfectly clears it up...thanks! [smiley=beer.gif]I had no idea CPUs could do that. Thanks for the info, Calum. Sounds cool. It was originally used for mobile CPUs, but was brought over to the desktop side when heat became a problem.
Intel's version of PowerNow is called SpeedStep, but I don't think they use it on desktop CPUs.
The P4 did have thermal throttling though, so when it got too hot it slowed way down and eventually SHUT off, because they had very serious heat issues.
Anyway, getting back to the point, yes it's a very good idea and is great for reducing power consumption and heat.
I have my laptop, with an AMD Turion CPU, set to max battery, so on AC power it fluctuates between 800MHz and 2GHz, and on battery it stays at 800MHz.
Way to save power, the battery life's pretty good.
And the heat is quite low too, if it gets too hot when I'm using it NORMALLY I just pull the lug and let it run on battery - it cools down fast and gives the battery some exercise too.
Also, it's not as slow as it sounds, 800MHz for a Turion is, while not EXACTLY record-breaking, still a pretty decent speed.
That's enough RAMBLING from me anyway.
Here's a bit from AMD about PowerNow technology.
Glad I was able to help you out, and it's nice to see I helped someone else too.

Hi,

I'm not very computer savvy so I might not be able to explain what is happening in technical terms so i'll try my best to be clear and concise.

Recently i have noticed problems with my usb ports. it use to be just that when i put my usb flashdrive in it wouldn't recongnize it so i would use my extension cord that came with it to plug it in and it would usually work. The other day i tried this and it still would not recognize it. I tried the other front port and nothing happened. i noticed that neither my removable disk e or f were appearing in my "my computer" folder. I tried to print and that also didn't work as my printer connect via a usb. I tried taking out my WIRELESS connector (usb plug in also) and when i tired to connect it back in it would not work. It came up on my computer saying "unknown device" (the same as it did with my usb and my printer when i tired to unplug/replugin them).

I checked the device manager and it has about 6 "unknown devices" listed under usb root hub controller.

I have no idea what has caused this all of a sudden, so if anyone has any ideas that would be very much appreciated.

Thanks in ADVANCE,

ls What OS is this?
What make and model of computer?
If it's a custom-made PC, what are the hardware specs?
Do you know what happened before this started?
What malware PROTECTION do you have?1) Windows XP Home with Service Packs 1and 2

Intel Pentium 4
CPU 3.0 GHZ
3.01 GHZ 512 Ram

In not sure where i would find out the info for anything else sorry.

I didn't notice anything that happened that would of caused this. It use to work fine all the time then it started having problems with my usb flashdrive when i conected it to my removable disk e and f and now when i stick my usb devices in they don't work. i tested them all with my mouse usb and it works but my flashdrive, printer and wireless device don't.

I use avg anti-virus protection, spybot search and destroy and adaware. that's all.Can you open Device Manager, expand Universal Serial Bus controllers, make a screen print, and post it here? If not, tell us exactly what you see there. Do you have an item where the title includes the words, Enhanced Host Controller?Control Panel / System/Hardware/Device Manager...right click on all instances of USB hub and root listings and select "Remove"

You will see a warning message...ignore it.

Re-boot and Windows will automatically re-install the USB ports.I don't have a "remove" option, just Disable or Uninstall.


This is what I see when I go into the device Manager -

Universal Serial Bus Controllers

- SiS 7001 PCI to USB Open Host Controller
- SiS 7001 PCI to USB Open Host Controller
- SiS 7001 PCI to USB Open Host Controller
- SiS PCI to USB Enhanced Host Controller
-Unkown Device
-Unkown Device
-USB Root Hub
-USB Root Hub
-USB Root Hub
-USB Root HubUninstall.No, nothing changed. I still can't connect to the net or use my printer.So you uninstalled everything under Universal Serial Bus Controllers?
And then rebooted?Yep, everything. Then i turned my comp off, then turned it back on.The flash drive might have been damaged. Try using a brand-new flash drive to see if you get the same RESULT.

Quote

Quote

If it is not seen correctlty by the BIOS, other things are irrelevant.

Of course.
Read that question as, "If he can .... AND if it is then seen correctly by the BIOS.... " then.
It was an assumption on my part. Sorry I wasn't clear.

I have 5 computers networked and the oldest computer is slow, despite having virtually nothing on it, nothing in start, and cleaned REGULARLY with System Mechanic 6 Pro.

The modem in this machine is a 56k IBM data fax modem, with a driver date of 7/1/2001.

Would the speed increase (page load faster) if I changed to a more modern network card?

SandySo, the other computers all have onboard or add-on network cards? And, you're got the old one networked via the 56K modem? Hmmm, exactly how does that WORK? Are you using a ROUTER for the network? If so, how do you connect a 56K modem to it?

I gather you really want a faster Internet connection with the older computer. So, yes, a NIC such as D-Link DFE-530TX+ 10/20/100/200Mbps PCI Network Adapter 1 x RJ45 - Retail would serve this purpose.Quote

The modem in this machine is a 56k IBM data fax modem, with a driver date of 7/1/2001.
Would the speed increase ([highlight]page load faster[/highlight]) if I changed to a more modern network card?

Hello everyone...



I am looking for a little assistance in identifying a persistent problem I have been having...I believe it is my video card that is the issue. It began with some flickering and gargling on my screen and has gotten progressively worse. It is to the point that everytime I try and boot my computer I get to the Windows XP loading screen and there are a few vertical lines present. Once past the XP loading screen...its as if my moitor resets and loses the signal, searching back and forth between digital and analog. As a result, I am unable to startup in normal mode...



I thought at first it may be an issue with my monitor but the problem remains even when I switch monitors. I am able to boot up in safe mode, but the display shows vertical pink lines. I am led to believe that this is a signal that there is a problem with my video card, the Geforce4 Ti 4600. I have had it for aprrox. 5 years...the monitor I am using is a Samsung SyncMaster 910T. Is it time for a new video card? The only thing I have done so far to attempt to RESOLVE the problem was an update of the driver which did not help. Can someone help me pinpoint the problem? I would be very grateful for any help.
Even if you've already got the LATEST drivers, try this.

1. Download the new drivers, but do not install yet.

2. Uninstall the old display drivers via Add/Remove Programs in the Control Panel.

3. Restart.

4. Install the new drivers.

5. Restart.

Make sure you remove all traces of the old drivers.
See how it is then.
Also, check that the card is seated correctly and firmly in its slot.
And check that the airflow in the case is GOOD, and that the card is not overheating.Also, make sure that the video card fan is spinning up properly.
(as well as all the others)
If a cooling problem is suspected, an old trick is to open the side of the case and point a desk fan at the innards.
Start up and see if the problem DISAPPEARS. If it does, you know that you have a cooling (air circulation) issue.

If none of the above works, you could try underclocking the card a bit.
I think the free utility Riva Tuner will let you do this.
Cool bits is another one.
Most all the video card utilities are here:
http://downloads.guru3d.com/download.php?id=13

Hi All,

My parents computer won't boot up. It seems to post (if I understand the term correctly). The first screen on bootup SHOWS the standard stuff, that the HDD, CD-ROM and memory are all detected. But then the computer hangs on the next screen (see attachment) that shows the CHART of PCI devices, IRQ's, etc. I don't get anything like a BOOT DISK FAILURE that I've seen before on this screen at the bottom when Windows or the disk is corrupt, we just a hard hang.

One thing that does really concern me and I'm lost is that when I power it on, it doesn't start up right away (like the power supply is chugging away same when starting your car engine). What I hear is a very high pitch noise coming directly from the power supply, then after 5-10 SECONDS, the power fully kicks in. I listened to the HDD and it seems to be spinning fine and the CD-ROM works since if I put in the Windows installation disk, it want's to go into the installer.

I can't even get into the BIOS of the system from hitting DEL on the first screen because all the lights come lit up and say lit up on the keyboard when it powers on (caps lock, num lock and scroll lock) and won't accept any input I guess. Something is definetely wrong there. When the power is first turned on and I hear the high pitch sound, the lights turn on the keyboard as mentioned above, but very dim like MINIMAL power is getting there. After the 5-10 seconds, they light up fully when the fans start spinning, etc and the power seems to be full in the system. Also, just thought that I'd mention, the power light directly on the motherboard is always on so I know some power is getting there.

Ever seen anything like this before, or suggestions on what it could be? I still want to take the HDD out and TRY it in a another machine as a slave when I get a chance so I can rule out that it's not defective.

Thanks for your help!!!My main suspect here is the PSU...borrow a known working one of the same wattage or greater and swap it in there to confirm this.
When you replace it don't buy a cheapie...Hey patio,

Thanks for your feedback. I have just noticed that the fan on the PSU is not turning either, so possibly another indication that it may be shot. Unfortunately I dont have a PSU to swap out with with the right connectors for power to this motherboard (I don't think) so can't really test that.

Just wondering though why do you think (or anyone else) that the failing PSU would halt the loadup of Windows OS, but will boot to the installation if I use the Windows XP setup CD from the CD-ROM boot?It probably gets so far along then it overheats.
Like trying to drive a car without a radiator, you only get so far.

I would get that power supply outa there right away.
A dying power supply will often take other components with it!

As stated, beware of cheap, junk power supplies. There are lots of these on the market waiting for the bargain hunter.
Do your research and get a good one.Quote

Hey patio,



Just wondering though why do you think (or anyone else) that the failing PSU would halt the loadup of Windows OS, but will boot to the installation if I use the Windows XP setup CD from the CD-ROM boot?

My friends computer died so he went out and bought another one. he wants me to help him transfer the files from the old hard drive to the new computer. i thought it would be as simple as hooking up the old hard drive into the new computer as a slave but when i tried this and then tried to view the information in the drive windows said that the drive was not formated and wanted to know if i wanted to format it. i declined out of fear of erasing the hard drive. is there a simple no cost solution to this or will i be forced to buy some software or maybe one of those external usb hard drive cases? i did try different master, slave and cable select combinations as well as different ide locations with no success. I am also trying a freeware program called pc inspector by convar but it is taking a very long time and you can only recover one file TYPE at a time. This seems like a problem that people might encounter every day but i have not located an answer in the fact section or by browsing other posted questions.My guess is the hard drive either had a mechanical failure or the file system is damaged or a boot sector virus has infected it. Another possible cause might be that the file system is not compatible with Windows (if it was a hard drive used on a Mac, for example).

A USB harddrive enclosure will not make a difference, as you are likely to get the same error message. You might try the fixmbr command from the CMD window:

http://support.microsoft.com/KB/314503

I'd suggest you CONNECT the hard drive to the motherboard of the PC from which it came and use the Microsoft Windows XP CD as indicated in the knowledge base article.

After using the fixmbr command, you should use the chkdisk command to scan the hard drive for errors and automatically fix any it finds:

http://www.microsoft.com/resources/documentation/windows/xp/all/proddocs/en-us/chkdsk.mspx?mfr=true

Make sure to use the /r and /f switches with the chkdisk command.unfortunatly the old computer will not boot up or we might have been able to aviod this problem. it was installed on a windows based computer. I did try the chkdsk command and i get the error "the type of file system is RAW checkdsk is not available for raw drives." the pc inspector program is accessing the drive it is just very slow it has taken several hours to get to 11% and this is just for one file type (jpeg) some file types are not even recognized by this program. i was hoping to simply see a file tree in windows so i could select the files that he needs and extract them. Maybe i will just have to spend a little more time trouble shooting the old computer and see if i can get it running but it does not do anything including responding to the power button. a new power supply was installed and did nothing, no lights, no fans, no display.Quote

unfortunatly the old computer will not boot up or we might have been able to aviod this problem. it was installed on a windows based computer. I did try the chkdsk command and i get the error "[highlight]the type of file system is RAW checkdsk is not available for raw drives[/highlight]." the pc inspector program is accessing the drive it is just very slow it has taken several hours to get to 11% and this is just for one file type (jpeg) some file types are not even recognized by this program. i was hoping to simply see a file tree in windows so i could select the files that he needs and extract them. Maybe i will just have to spend a little more time trouble shooting the old computer and see if i can get it running but it does not do anything including responding to the power button. a new power supply was installed and did nothing, no lights, no fans, no display.

Hi, this seemed like a good site to get help plus it was first result on google. anyways, i've spent around $200 trying to FIX this computer ISSUE i've been having, it's getting ridiculous. Basically my computers been running extremely slow lately. I started noticing hitching in games, it would randomly drop from 85 fps to 40 fps(ut2004, with everthing on lowest settings, a game that i should easily be able to run at highest settings with no frame loss) So i figured it must be a video card problem, so i bought a new video card. nope, still runs the same, $100 wasted, awesome. So after doing some research I thought it might be heating issue, so i check temps in bios and notice cpu running at ABNORMALLY high temps (~75c). So i buy a new heatsync, it significantly brought down temp but I still get hitching in games. ok this is gonna take too long, so ill summon it up. i've narrowed it down. i've either replaced(bought or tried spare) video card, cpu, hard drive, psu, and ram. It's not an overheating issue, not a software issue(formatted several times), so what could it possibly be? Its not just games though, everything runs slow. cpu usage jumps like crazy if i do anything, even dragging window. And when i boot up computer after it's been shutdown for awhile it runs EXTREMELY slow, cpu usage will be 50%+ for no reason, and theres nothing in processes eating resources, so *censored*? makes no sense at all. So I guess i could assume its mobo now, but assuming just hasnt been working out for me. This is extremely frustrating, any help will be appreciated. thanksWhen writing a long post paragraphs can go a long way to readability.

What are your entire specs your computer has now? You can use the following tool to find out in detail, and it might spot some problems:
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download4181.html

Low RAM can cause random suttering, although it shouldn't be this dramatic. You said you replaced your RAM but this does not necessarily you increased its amount.

You SAY the frame-rate drops to 40fps. Are you sure this value is accurate? Games that are on 30fps run smooth.

On the task manager processes, you can sort the list in terms of CPU usage. When you get this spike try to spot which process is USING it.

Make sure your drivers, graphics card and motherboard, are up to date. And that your computer is free of viruses etc.Update: not gonna believe this, but it turned out to be the integrated network card. As soon as i disabled it, cpu usage went from 50% to 0% instantly. so i installed new network card and everythings running fast and smoothGlad you are all fixed up and thanks for posting back.

recently i assembled a 3.2 ghz mainboard is INTEL D100 it is working properly but
some TIME i doing something HARD with pc at the time graphic moving like a wave then
difficult to see the monitor also what?s wrong with this what should i have to do nowDo you know what graphics card you have?
COULD be a heat problem.
TRY updating your drivers first.
And try another monitor on that PC, let's see where the problem is.

Since I fixed the LAST issue with this pc (the memory sticks got jogged out of place) I've had no problems. At all.

Now I come back from a weekend away from the pc (not in use at all) As soon as I get past the win login stage it shuts down, wont turn off, and I get a no signal message displayed on my screen. This happens TWICE. It's not as if it had time to heat up...
I try again and it is fine until about 6 minutes in use and it restarts. I was only using the internet.
Last night I left the pc on for a few hours while I was doing something else, and it was stuck like I described before. Only this time, it wont turn off or on again.

Today it works again, but keeps on restarting. (more often after I've just turned it on, than the times after)

If it was overheating, it would restart a while after I've been using it surely? My pc temps are 42 cpu and 40 sys and 30 aux

Im on XP pack 2

Mobile pentium 4, CPU 1 80ghz
1 GB of ram

radeon 9800 pro graphic card.

Thanks a lot!

StefTry replacing the power supply.

Alan <>< It may be a hardware corruption problem; take the PRINTER USB port, modem port, or any extension ports out.

Other than that, thoroughly retrieve the dust particles within the computer via opening the shell.Thanks! I have an air spray to clean the computer with, and I'll take out my scanner and tablet. (though I haven't updated software or added any new hardware recently)

Replacing the power supply, you mean the power cable, or something else? Sorry, I don't know much about these things.Due to you speculate it's an over-heating problem, then I will state more on cleaning the insides of a computer:

IF you are tempted to clean the insides, do be careful and only do this if you are experienced working inside your (turned off !) comp box.

Remember to make sure you are earthed before touching anything, and be careful not to disturb cards in their sockets. It may be best to simply BLOW the dust away if you can.

P.s. Keep in mind, that you have to keep your comp in a reasonably dust-free environment . . .I cleaned it out, but there's not much dust. I've had problems overheating before, but only in summer, while I was playing games (oblivion etc) And it only restarted, didn't freeze.

I caught a bluescreen (I'll have to set it not to restart itself) and I didn't catch a lot of it, but something about bios settings, and if there was ENOUGH disk space. Does that help any?

All my hardware has been in for years with no problems.

Quote

Quote

Wow, nice.
You don't NEED my ADDY THOUGH, because I'm going to win!

Highly Doubtful...

Hi there,

after buying a cooler for my VGA card I realise a PCI slot blocks it from being PUT in
so I was wondering if removing the PCI slot would be of any serious harm and how I
should go about getting it off.

Danger Will Robinson...Danger! Are you actually thinking of pulling off the PCI connector?

I HOPE you're willing to replace the motherboard

Alan &LT;>< yeah I aint thinking of changing gfx cards

.. but if its going to damage the motherboard then better not You'd better assume it would ruin the motherboard. aye

Are there 160gb IDE or PATA notebook Hard DRIVES?

What is ultra ATA? is that the same thing as IDE?

is this drive below IDE?

http://www.cdw.com/shop/products/default.aspx?EDC=1005608

ThanksQuote

Are there 160gb IDE or PATA notebook Hard drives?

What is ultra ATA? is that the same thing as IDE?

is this drive below IDE?

My new mobo has an external as well as INTERNAL SATA connectors. In the guide, the external only LISTED as SATA while the internal listed as SATA 3.0G/s. What's the DIFFERENCE, that is, I have a Raptor SATA 36G 10K RPM, can I use this in either port?Yes. SATA 3.0 is backward compatible.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serial_ATA

I just installed a LITEON internal dvd rewriter in my desktop.. It will play DVDs but there is no audio.. I can insert a CD and I have audio.. What needs to be changed?? Thanks...

What program are you using to play the DVD's ? ?
CHECK the volume LEVEL on the bottom taskbar.

It was sugested I start a new thread concerning adding a second HD to a PC, and it is proper to do so.

patio
Hacker
*
Online

Maud' Dib

Posts: 4877

Re: Where should second HDD be LOCATED?
Reply #4 - Today at 2:46pm Quote
Quote from mtnbkr01201 on Today at 10:43am:
I too have tried to connect two HD's, and the computer will not recognize the second drive, I had replaced the 40 GIG with a 200, and was told a while back by a friend that I could use the 40 to RUN the main apps, how do I GET my Dell to recognize both WITHOUT any conflics, both are still in the computer, but only the 200 gig is hooked up.

Thank you for your time
William

BTW, mine is a Dell dimentions 2400, nothing BIG, just an average computer


Welcome Aboard.

It's best to start a new thread so it recieves the proper attention....it could be as simple as a jumper setting. We have a resident Dell expert ....he'll be along shortly.

patio. Cool
Back to top


First you have to make sure they are jumpered correctly and they are both seen in the BIOS. Have a read here:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=how+to+jumper+hard+driveHi everyone, I'd just like to take this time to say thank you very much, I was able to add that second HD quite sucsessfully with very little trouble, it all works very well, and quite a bit faster then before.

Peace
WilliamGlad you got it solved William and thanx for posting back...stop by anytime.Glad you are all fixed up and thanks for posting back.

HI guys, im currently in the middle of building a pc, now ive got most of my parts but the time has come for the processor. originally i had already decided to get the Pentium D 945 3.4Ghz Dual Core as i could get this part for around $229.

but my supplier has RUN out of stock and isnt sure when he can get more in, so this has no prompted me to look at the Core 2 Duo.

I was wondering if anyone could comment on the performance of these two chips especially from a gaming aspect as my machine is predominately used for gaming. if i was to go for Core 2 Duo i would be looking at least an E6400 and i can pick one of these up for around $319.

so i guess my question is, is it really worth the extra $90?http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=dual+core+compared+to+core+duo&btnG=Google+Search

Better make a pot of java. It will take some time to read all the opinions on which is the better buy.

thanks, im actually already halfway through the first page on that search, i searched for this before i posted here. whilst im reading these im ALSO after someones opinion who has used these and can give a personal opinon on them.A Core 2 is a far better buy than a Pentium D at the minute, especially for that price.
If you're into overclocking, it's an even better deal.
Get the Core 2 - you won't be disappointed.
It'll certainly help with gaming, although the GPU is more important there, but it will also give your PC a lot of performance, any Core 2 is an insanely fast chip.You also might want to consider shopping Online for a better deal as well...Either one of these are a good pic, I might lean a bit more towards the E6600 for over-clocking (if u do that stuff).
I hope you LIVE in the US to take example of these "fine" buys.....
(read the NUMEROUS) reviews for each*

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819115003

E6600 for 316.00

Or

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.asp?Item=N82E16819116240

Pentium D 950 for 250.00
The introduction of Core2Duo (code name Conroe) made the Pentium D's instantly obsolete.
I wouldn't buy a Pentium D unless it was deeply discounted.

E6600 is a definite price/performance sweet spot.

And the "sleeper" is the little E4300 (code name Allendale)
SEE here:
http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2903thanks guys, unfortunately i live in australia so i cant take advantage of those buys. however ive got a few friends in places that im sure i can get some good prices from. thanks for the help guys.Quote

The introduction of Core2Duo (code name Conroe) made the Pentium D's instantly obsolete.
I wouldn't buy a Pentium D unless it was deeply discounted.

E6600 is a definite price/performance sweet spot.

And the "sleeper" is the little E4300 (code name Allendale)
See here:
http://www.anandtech.com/cpuchipsets/showdoc.aspx?i=2903

an ibm T41 fully FUNCTIONAL. ... problem: after shut down, Computer will not start back up for about 20 minutes. The Computer will RESTART if the restart module is used. The Battery functions properly.

Anybody GOT an IDEA what's up or what it would cost to fix?
think it will die?

I bought a WD 80 Gig HD recently, and accidentally set the jumpers wrong so it only shows up as being a 32 Gig in my BIOS and to XP. Can I set the jumpers to where they are supposed to be and leave it at that, or will it screw up XP? Do I have to wipe the drive, fix the jumpers and then START over?

Thanks,
JonI don't know.. Why not try it and get back with the results :-?gmcfan..... How about some specs on the pc ........
What size was the HD that you replaced ?
What bios are you using ?


dl65 Quote

I bought a WD 80 Gig HD recently, and accidentally set the jumpers wrong so it only shows up as being a 32 Gig in my bios and to XP. Can I set the jumpers to where they are supposed to be and leave it at that, or will it screw up XP? [highlight]Do I have to wipe the drive, fix the jumpers and then start over?[/highlight]

gmcfan..... How about some specs on the pc ........
What size was the HD that you replaced ?
What bios are you using ?


dl65

Can I go into DOS and use the format c:\ command?

I have an EPSON Stylus CX3600 and for a little while now (since Christmas?), every time I try to use black ink only, horizontal BANDING is evident and so the printout is unusable. When I print in colour, things appear fine, but I don't want to print in colour all the time because the majority of my printouts are purely black and white. I have tried using different paper and changing the black ink cartridge, both to no avail. Previous to that, I have run numerous nozzle checks and print head alignments but neither of these have changed the situation. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how to fix this banding problem, as I really NEED the use of my printer quite REGULARLY and it is getting very annoying! I do not use original EPSON ink cartridges, but I don't think this is the problem because I rarely use them and never usually get this problem. :-?Quote

I do not use original EPSON ink cartridges, but I don't think this is the problem because I rarely use them and never usually get this problem

I have a ?......my memory has all of a sudden been half filled. (just your basic machine) I had 30% left one day and the next I was down to 13%. couldn't even defrag. I have deleted all pics and PROGRAMS not in use and reduced restore mem....what next?Are you sure you don't mean hard drive space?
That has more of an affect on defrag capability than memory does.

1. Have you done any large downloads lately?

2. Do other people use this machine ?

lol...ya, I guess I mean hd space....yes, my two kids use this machine but I have deleted their temp files wich were huge and I basicaly just SURF and mailWhat is the size of this drive ?

Is there anything else that you can remove ?
And by remove, I mean also burn to CD, anything, to put some headroom back on that drive.

Or, instead of fighting for space on that drive, why not install a second drive ?
hey....good idea (2nd drive). I have two machines that don't work in the basement, maybe one of those set to slave???.Perhaps we should solve this problem first before we introduce more variables.My main ?is what has SUDDENLY taken up 17% of my hd? I HAVE dwnld quite a few AVG updatesinfo....2g virtual mem, celeron processor, nothing fancy. I was trying to keep disc about 1/3 empty (30% free space) but the other day when I tryed to defrag it was down to 13%free space and I don't know why.I've deleted and copied all jpgs to disc and got rid of some defunct programs and am now at 19% free space. but I still don't know why I filled up 17 % of my hd?What kind of virus/spyware protection? Have you done a search to see where the large files are and what they are? We can't do that part for you. You could also DLoad and run Sequoia View which will tell you what and where the most space is being used by what...As mentionwd BEFORE...I use AVG protection with ad-aware for malware problems. I also used spybot and CW shredder to to scan the SYSTEM but have since deleted those programs.
I am now browsing for sequoiaQuote

[highlight]As mentionwd BEFORE[/highlight]...I use AVG protection with ad-aware for malware problems. I also used spybot and CW shredder to to scan the system but have since deleted those programs.
I am now browsing for sequoia

Yes I know its a stupid question to ask But I havn't got I clue in how to open the NOKIA case :-?. It dosn't have any screws to unskrew. I need help otherwise Iam going to have to resort to violence with a hammer .Never heard of anything like that . . . can you post a link to where it comes from? I'd be interested to see it.
Are you sure there are no screws?
They could be hidden, check carefully.
Often a side panel or front panel will slide off, try sliding gently.
Also, check in the BIOS if there is a BIOS LOCK enabled. It's not common, but it's easily overlooked. If there is a BIOS lock enabled, disable it and wait till you hear it click before turning the PC off again.
Edit: If you have a manual, check that too.The case from ccl computers bradford. There is one screw at the TOP back of the case attached to the lid (which you can unscrew by hand). Its an usual design. Usually there are screws attached to the side panels which you unscrew and then slid the sides off the case across.Is this it?
And buying from CCL, does that mean you're ANOTHER one from the UK?
Quote

There is one screw at the top back of the case attached to the lid (which you can unscrew by hand)

added a cam to my computer it is microsoft LIVE vx3000 to use on msn messenger when speeking i get a bad sound like being in a submarine and bad echoing i have a screen MONITOR lcd gtx003 with fitted speekers my sound volume is low.
when i use a headphones the sound is ok
my computer is window xp service pk 2 thanks
I think this is normal .

8-)fffreakyes, it's normal, vioce chat with MSN Messanger better use headphone, not the spk. or else you'll get alot of echo. Make sure the microphone on your sound settings is muted. This should not stop it from recording, but otherwise it might play back what you put in, causing echos.

[SIZE=12][/size]I have a Dell 2.8 Gig, 512 ram computer operating Windows XP Home, my primary printer is a HP 1012 laser printer. In the past week, I am no LONGER able to print from web pages. Any help would be GREATLY appreciated. Thanks!What happened before this started?
What protection do you have?
Can you print from other applications?
What browser are you printing from?Thanks for your message. Nothing unusual happened before this began, no SOFTWARE or hardware change. I have Spybot Search and DESTROY and McAfee Antivirus. All other applications print fine, but nothing prints when I'm online. My browser if IE 6. Thanks.So nothing prints from IE6 when online?
Can you print from web pages that you view that aren't on the web?
Like a html file on your HDD or something?That's correct, nothing will print when I'm in IE 6, and html pages on my hard drive will not print either. But I can print from programs such as Word, Wordperfect, Excel, etc. Get the latest Windows updates, and update your printer drivers.
Also, does this issue persist with a different browser, such as Firefox?
Why no IE7?

I'm looking to upgrade hard drives very soon (my 80gb IDE drive is growing old). From what I've seen SATA I (1.5Gb/s) is barely faster than ATA133 (1.33Gb/s, right?), whereas SATA II (3.0Gb/s) is more than twice as fast.

Of course I want to go with a SATA II drive seeing as how I plan to use the new drive for quite a while. I looked at my motherboard specs (ECS K8T890-A) on the manufacturer's website, and it says the motherboard SUPPORTS SATA 1.5Gb/s. My motherboard is only several months old, and I'd hate to have to upgrade boards JUST so I can upgrade hard drives. ECS has no bios updates including support for SATA II afaik.

So I have a few questions:
- What would happen if I tried using a SATA II drive on my motherboard?
- Is there such a thing as an adapter card that would allow me to use a SATA II drive on my system?
- If so, would using an adapter like that (if one exists), degrade performance of the drive?

All I'm trying to achieve here is to install a new SATA 3.0Gb/s drive and have it run at it's proper speed, preferably without having to spend another $100 on a new motherboard.

Any help would be appreciated!

Thanks,
AdamThey are backward compatible so would run fine until you upgrade the MB (and there may be no burning reason to do that).Thanks for the reply. I had read on wikipedia that they are backwards compatible... but that's all it REALLY said.

Being backwards compatible only means it has to function the same as its predecessor as a replacement, WORKING just as WELL. It doesn't have to MEAN all the features in the new "version" have to be available.

If I were to hook a SATA II drive up to a SATA I compatible board, since it's backwards compatible it should WORK just fine, but will it be able to achieve the higher SATA II speeds or will it work and be locked to the SATA I speeds? My main concern here is the speed. I don't want to spend the extra money on a 2nd generation SATA drive if I'm unable to get the better speeds I'm paying for. If I have to upgrade motherboards to achieve that, I will.

Thanks againThe function depends on the MB, not the drive.

I have a thinkpad 600e LAPTOP which has 64mb memory 2x32 and I would LIKE to upgrade it with a 128mb memory stick. My QUESTION is will the laptop recognise the memory straight away or do I have to change something in the bios, and if so how do I go about this. hope someone can help me out





If you have compatible memory (and you need to make sure beforehand!) then go into the BIOS and SEE that it is recognized, then reboot the machine. That's all there is to it.

Now go to www.crucial.com and see what you need. Check ALL of the characteristics for your model. Those have 64 meg standard and a maximum of two 128 meg chips.

Hi,

I recently erased a hard drive and reformated it. When I install it back into the computer, it is not recognized as the primary master in the bios. It shows it as a drive I can boot from, and it is shown as a raid driver or "serial driver?", but is not recognized as a primary driver. When I try and install WINDOWS, it does not recognize a hard drive. I can't figure out if there is SOMETHING in the bios I am missing.

If I plug the hard drive into another computer, it is recognized as a primary master and I was able to install windows on it. However, when I put it back into the other computer, it starts to load windows, but then resets the computer. I can't figure out what's WRONG!!bodtchboy......Quote

I recently erased a hard drive and reformated it. [highlight]When I install it back into the computer[/highlight]

Hi, little problem with drive letters that pretend to change when they haven't

I have 1 physical CD drive, and Alcohol 52% creating a second, virtual drive. I'm trying to run an installed program from the virtual drive using the desktop shortcut created during setup but it keeps telling me to insert the CD

I'm guessing this is because the program is hard-wired to look for the CD in the D drive, whereas the virtual drive is on E.

I tried using the Disk management OPTIONS in the Computer Administration window to make the physical drive F, to free up D so I can make the virtual drive D, however, after I changed the physical drive to F, and looked in the options for the virtual drive, D was not an option in the list.

If I then close and re-open the window, the physical drive is back on D as before.

The only clue I'm being given is that when I try to change the drive letter for the physical drive, it tells me that its in use and the library will still be accessible from D, however there is no disk in the drive.

Right now, if I look in my computer the physical drive is listed as F, the virtual drive as E (nothing as D) but D is still not an option to assign to the virtual drive

Alcohol still thinks that the physical drive is D, could this be the problem?

After a reboot, Alcohol recognised the change but the program still asks for the CD, I guess this is a software problem insteadSounds like your problem is specific to your Alcohol 52% program. I suggest you begin looking for an answer to the problem at the software maker's support site:

http://support.alcohol-soft.com/en/

Best regards,
DocGood to seeya again pcdoc...Welcome Back !Their support is great to registered users. They have had so many bootlegged copies floating about, you need to have your registration INFORMATION when calling.Quote

Good to seeya again pcdoc...Welcome Back !

Hey everyone,

I was having ISSUES with my PC sound. I thought it was my speakers so I went out and bought some nice ones, but I still here the crackling sound it was making with my OLD speakers. It happens everytime; game, music, ETC... Do I need a new sound card?? If so which one should I buy???
THANKSanyone? pleaseDo we GET any kind of clue about your computer and current sound card or chip? See below.

I HAVE A DELL OPTIPLEX GX620 SMALL FORM FACTOR - PENT. 4 (3,000GHZ) - 40 GB HDD - 512 MEM (AM UPGRADING TO 4GB OF MEM-FULL CAPCACITY) - WANT TO UPGRADE HDD AS WELL AND HAVE LOOKED INTO 250GB TO 500GB - DELL CLAIMS THAT MY CHASIS WILL NOT SUPPORT A 500 GB HDD - HOWEVER THE ONES I HAVE BEEN LOOKING AT FROM WESTERN DIGITAL (WHICH IS WHAT DELL SELLS) ARE THE SAME SIZE PHYSICALLY - SO IT APPEARS TO ME THAT IT WOULD FIT - ANYONE HAVE ANY INPUT?First, your Caps Lock key appears to be stuck. FIX that first.

I can't think of a reason Dell would lie to you. In the small form factors there is the issue of physical size, adequate COOLING, and BIOS limitations. Perhaps they were referring to something other than just putting it in there?

What are you going to do with 4 gigs of RAM?They claim that my chasis would not support it - It is not a matter of whether or not Dell is lying to me - My chasis is a small form factor and obviously could not support a hard drive meant for a tower application - But when i read the specs. on hard drives i have to consider the size due to the size of my case.