Technical corner........

8 Oct 2009

Quote by Crashnnix
ok, so after saving my laptop once, dagging it from the jaws of the skip with dextrous manipulation of 'f'-keys and 'safe-modes'... resetting to 'factory' and even having the wireless come back from the dead as a result....
.... my un-dead zombie lappy was only pacing listlessly through the park in search of flesh awaiting it's inevitable demise at the hands of a baseball bat wielding starlett, or simply falling to it's knees in it's own filth for lack of sustanance...
It's dead!
or is it?
I try to revive it. Lightening rods and van derGraff Generators abound, though now the twice dead lappy will do no more than show a power light... with the occasional (and I mean 'occassional') flash from the disc activity light thiningie.
the screen is as dark as my soul... I hear it breathing, but that appears to be just an automatic responce.
Is there hope?
lp

Well sounds bad - obviously its still doing something - have you tried putting the manufacturers CD in to start it from there?
Alternatively - check the hard drive cable is correctly seated - I have known some to come loose.
To see if the drive is stuffed I would recommend a boot stick with a basic linux OS on to run it - see the UBUNTU website. If you cant even see a BIOS boot screen then it may be really bad.
Either way if you do end up discarding it take the hard drive out (should remove from the lappy underside) before and you may be able to recover the data by getting a drive caddy with USB connectivity for the 2.5" HDD
Anyone else???blimey :shock:
I know wha you have said in there makes a lot of sence... but only to someone else Im afraid.
However, thank you very much for your help... I shall be saving the info ofr future referance.
:thumbup:
lp

8 Oct 2009

Quote by __random_orbit__
ok, so after saving my laptop once, dagging it from the jaws of the skip with dextrous manipulation of 'f'-keys and 'safe-modes'... resetting to 'factory' and even having the wireless come back from the dead as a result....
.... my un-dead zombie lappy was only pacing listlessly through the park in search of flesh awaiting it's inevitable demise at the hands of a baseball bat wielding starlett, or simply falling to it's knees in it's own filth for lack of sustanance...
It's dead!
or is it?
I try to revive it. Lightening rods and van derGraff Generators abound, though now the twice dead lappy will do no more than show a power light... with the occasional (and I mean 'occassional') flash from the disc activity light thiningie.
the screen is as dark as my soul... I hear it breathing, but that appears to be just an automatic responce.
Is there hope?
lp

Well sounds bad - obviously its still doing something - have you tried putting the manufacturers CD in to start it from there?
You might have got a copy of windows with your pc, or a disc that does clever magic and fixes stuff for you. you need to do a bodge to get it to boot from this so best trott off and see if you have one first, then we can tell you how to do the bodge
Alternatively - check the hard drive cable is correctly seated - I have known some to come loose.
turn your lappy upside down, see if there are some covers you can unscrew. if you find a silver box thingy under one of em, see if the cable doodah is shoved in proper
To see if the drive is stuffed I would recommend a boot stick with a basic linux OS on to run it - see the UBUNTU website. If you cant even see a BIOS boot screen then it may be really bad.
Bios= Basic input/output system, sort of like the computers natuaral instincts which gives all the electronic widgets a prod to wake em up
Ubuntu is like a little version of windows but with less useless shite. you but it onto one of those little USB memory stick things you normally keep dirty pics on but once again you need to bodge things to boot from this...so sort out if you have everything first
Either way if you do end up discarding it take the hard drive out (should remove from the lappy underside) before and you may be able to recover the data by getting a drive caddy with USB connectivity for the 2.5" HDD
Take the silver box of memory out, stick it in a special thingywotsit and plug it into a different computer, see if you can get all your shit of it or see if its proper fucked innit
Anyone else???blimey :shock:
I know wha you have said in there makes a lot of sence... but only to someone else Im afraid.
However, thank you very much for your help... I shall be saving the info ofr future referance.
:thumbup:
lp wink

I've done a pillocks guide for your Rolp innocent

8 Oct 2009

:laughabove: :laughabove: :laughabove: :laughabove: :laughabove:

8 Oct 2009

Quote by meat2pleaseu
I've done a pillocks guide for your Rolp

Who helped you with it then pillock? rolleyes

8 Oct 2009

Quote by Dlep
I've done a pillocks guide for your Rolp

Who helped you with it then pillock? rolleyes

You're just jealous, Ninja Boy flipa

8 Oct 2009

this Pillock did make some system restore discs when machine was but a wee babby.
will they do?
I tried to spark the pootah with those in the Disc drawer... didn't play games tho..... (before recieving the delights of your wisdom I hasten to add)
what now?
I haven't screwed it in the back yet though... do you think I should?
lp

8 Oct 2009

Boot it up and look for the bit about entering setup (will probably be delete, F1 or F2)
go to the section for boot sequence and set it to boot from the CD Rom first.
Save it all and reboot with the first of your restore discs in there and hopefully it should be uncle bob time wink

8 Oct 2009

Quote by meat2pleaseu

I've done a pillocks guide for your Rolp

Should I be worried that your version kinda made sense to me?! :shock:

8 Oct 2009

Quote by meat2pleaseu
Boot it up and look for the bit about entering setup (will probably be delete, F1 or F2)
go to the section for boot sequence and set it to boot from the CD Rom first.
Save it all and reboot with the first of your restore discs in there and hopefully it should be uncle bob time

the screen is blank...
lp

8 Oct 2009

Quote by __random_orbit__
the screen is blank...
lp

does it make any noise at all when you switch it on?
first thing to try is plugging another monitor into it, see if it's the screen thats buggered

8 Oct 2009

Quote by meat2pleaseu
the screen is blank...
lp

does it make any noise at all when you switch it on?
first thing to try is plugging another monitor into it, see if it's the screen thats buggered
!"whiiiirrrrrzzzz>cli(un)ck< bizzzeuuuu put"!
.....pause....
"Clank - zzzzt - bmmmp"
pause/repeat
lp

8 Oct 2009

Quote by __random_orbit__
the screen is blank...
lp

does it make any noise at all when you switch it on?
first thing to try is plugging another monitor into it, see if it's the screen thats buggered
!"whiiiirrrrrzzzz>cli(un)ck< bizzzeuuuu put"!
.....pause....
"Clank - zzzzt - bmmmp"
pause/repeat
lp
that doesn't sound right, it should be 'bmmmp- zzzzt' :shock:

8 Oct 2009

so it's the sound card now is it?
lp

8 Oct 2009

perhaps if I just turned down the volume?
lp

9 Oct 2009

Can i suggest the manufacturers website. There will be a help and support bit. There is normally (with the better manufacturers!) a bit where you can enter your model number or serial number. That should then give you all you need to know re the recovery discs. Although usually the pc should just boot from them.
Gary smile

9 Oct 2009

Quote by meat2pleaseu
the screen is blank...
lp

does it make any noise at all when you switch it on?
first thing to try is plugging another monitor into it, see if it's the screen thats buggered
!"whiiiirrrrrzzzz>cli(un)ck< bizzzeuuuu put"!
.....pause....
"Clank - zzzzt - bmmmp"
pause/repeat
lp
that doesn't sound right, it should be 'bmmmp- zzzzt' :shock:
Sounds like the hard drive bearing or a head crash to platen - your HDD may be well n truly fooked.
Translation please? bolt

9 Oct 2009

HDD failure wouldn't result in a blank screen as the BIOS is resident on an Eprom chip, so its independant of the hard drive.
A blank screen is more of an indication of a power fault or a fault with the screen/ graphics card wink

9 Oct 2009

well... I've had the back off and stired the insides around with a screwdriver a little... to no avail.
The disc drawer did pop out the fist system restore disc after about an hour, so I put the 2nd in. still whirring now, three hours later.
And no screen, even though I turned down the volume and gave the whole thing a sesible thump.
lp

9 Oct 2009

have you tried plugging in an external monitor to the monitor out connector? (its the D shaped thingy on the back or side with 15 lil holes in it)

10 Oct 2009

Quote by meat2pleaseu
HDD failure wouldn't result in a blank screen as the BIOS is resident on an Eprom chip, so its independant of the hard drive.
A blank screen is more of an indication of a power fault or a fault with the screen/ graphics card

mmm good point but if the graphics processor is conkered then an external monitor wont work either....

10 Oct 2009

... I dont have the facilitieeees!!!
lp

10 Oct 2009

I would deffo try plugging in an external monitor to see if the graphics really are dead, remember this is a lppy we are talking about here not a desktop machine with AGP slots, PCIe or even PCI. It could be a dead screen or (as I found on a lappy someone asked me to repair last week), just a loose wire between the mainbord and screen. Most laptops have a D-sub for external graphics and it is the quickest way to find out whether it is worth checking the screen, wires etc.
There is a utube demonstration on how to check your paptop screen connection, I'll see if I can find it.

10 Oct 2009

Good point - i just fixed mine with a hammer lol

10 Oct 2009

Quote by Crashnnix
Good point - i just fixed mine with a hammer

I've tried that and the noises were different
lp

10 Oct 2009

The last 3 laptops i have had for repair have all been dead motherboards.....such a waste.....as no one wants to buy a new motherboard for a laptop at 150 quid.....still i normally get to keep all the bits as spares once i have salvaged all their data for them smile

Gary xx
Got a ps3 as well at the moment and that seems to be dead motherboard to......oh well

10 Oct 2009

I get a lot of laptops in for repair that other shops have give up on , it seems some pc shops dont know how to repair something as simple as a voltage regulating IC but hey more business for me smile

having said that i feel sorry for those that do spend Â£150 on a new motherboard as when graphics chips die ( usually because of poor maintainence on the cooling system)there isnt much else can be done.

11 Oct 2009

I'm the same - why bugger round with it - if its an older lappy and dead just strip for spares and get a new one - fgs they're sooo cheap now. lol

11 Oct 2009

"NTLDR is missing" goddammit banghead

Piece of shit recovery discs...
*Him*

11 Oct 2009

that old lappy I've been banging on about....
Just this minute, it turned itself on... fans whiring like heli-blades, I swear it nearly took off!
An alarm noise... brrrr br br..... brrrr br br!
Loudas you like... all the lights flashing.
I had to crash it.
And took the battery out.
It's posessed!!!
and still no screen
lp

12 Oct 2009

Take it to a professional smile

......or a priest!
Gary.