Computer Troubles - Help Appreciated!

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS

05/25/2007 11:56:32 PM · #1

Once more, I don't know where else to turn, so I'm asking you guys.

I just got a brand new Dell Dimension E521 desktop, running Windows Vista Home Basic. Every time I start it up fresh, and sometimes when I do a system restart, I get the initial Dell screen, with the status bar for the BIOS loading. It gets to halfway, and hangs...forever. When I turn it off and turn it back on, it then loads the BIOS perfectly and runs fine.

I've searched on the web and can't find anything else to try. I upgraded the BIOS from 1.1.6 to 1.1.8, the latest update from Dell. I thought at one point the nVidia graphics card could be doing it, and I got the driver from Dell and installed it. Nothing seems to help.

I've emailed Dell Tech Support, and they told me to install the save BIOS update in SafeMode. I downloaded it, started in SafeMode, and it wouldn't let me run the program, said it was canceled because "a problem caused the program to end," or something to that immediate effect. I thought maybe I needed to download it and run it all in SafeMode, so restarted with Networking enabled, but while I had a wireless signal, I couldn't actually go to any web pages, so couldn't download it like that.

Now I'm waiting for Dell to get back to me, and am getting worried. I've spent the last week getting everything moved onto this new system and getting it running, and I'd really like to fix this. Any help anyone can provide would be great!

And please, try not to bash me too much for having Vista :-) Personally, I was going to wait a while before getting it, but things worked out so my choice was either get an upgrade now, or in three years when I could afford one on my own.

awpollard

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

05/26/2007 12:03:11 AM · #2

Won't bash you for Vista (I'm running 4 Vista machines in the house) it rocks, but home basic...mmmmm....

I'll do some snooping for ya...

Rooster

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

Sigma 28-105mm f/2.8-4.0 Aspherical for Canon

05/26/2007 12:10:21 AM · #3

you can go to dell support & do a live chat to trouble shoot or you can call them. I would forego the emailing. It's the slowest way to trouble shoot. Live chat (if you have another 'puter) is the best way or to call them directly. They are 24/7

Dirt_Diver

Nikon D3s

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED

05/26/2007 12:23:12 AM · #4

Originally posted by OdysseyF22:

I would have to be at the machine to play with it but it sounds like it might be hanging on a windows file. It happens. My dad bought a dell and he had to send it back to have them reload it because it was corrupt from the get go. When I was working for Blue Cross and we ordered out machine for refresh we were ordering 3 and 400 at a time. We would get about 10 or so every time that were just bad. Bad hard drives, memory, processors, just anything could be wrong. That is the perk from buying from a company...

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS

05/26/2007 12:32:00 AM · #5

Lowcivicman99, that's exactly what I was afraid of... My Dad thought it might be a registry issue, but I don't know anything about how to work with it at that level.

Rooster, I fear you're right about the email. I'd rather gouge my eyes out than call tech support and deal with all the hassles that go with it. But when I get in tomorrow night, I may try the LiveChat. I can bring my parent's laptop up and run them both at once.

And

awpollard, it's nice to know that I'm in good company. And I only went with Basic because I don't care about the flashy elements and features of the higher versions. This is really going to be a photo machine...if I can get it working right.

awpollard

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

05/26/2007 12:42:16 AM · #6

Ah... lots of issues with USB (BIOS) on that mobo... but the new bios is supposed to fix that.

did u say it successfully installed the new BIOS? After the BIO upgrade I would go into BIOS and set it to factory defaults and boot it once and then go back into bios and tweak however you need.

Canon EF 100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS

05/26/2007 12:54:20 AM · #7

Originally posted by awpollard:

I did install the newsest BIOS. As for going into it and setting defaults...you lost me a bit there. That's done with the F12 key immediatly on startup, I think? Will setting it to the defaults make huge changes to anything I have loaded?

I guess at a base level, I'm not entirely sure what the BIOS even does, except for a vague idea that it manages things. I wouldn't even know what tweaks to make, after.

awpollard

Canon EOS-5D Mark II

05/26/2007 01:11:59 AM · #8

I think it is F2 immediately when you turn it on...

BIOS = Basic IN/OUT System - it is where we tell the hardware how to behave at the low level. Nowaday's pretty straight forward as mobos are plug and play and recognize all the fun things plugged into it.

BIOS can be scary and you could goof something up if you have never been in there before. It where us Overclocker's go in and change our voltages and mem speed and other things that could render a machine useless.

But it does get gummed up sometimes.

Let me see if I can find some screen shots that we can walk you thru it, should be easy...but I got lot's of Dells at work and if I remember right they have a funky navigation in BIOS.

Message edited by author 2007-05-26 01:12:40.

Dirt_Diver

Nikon D3s

Nikon AF-S NIKKOR 24-70mm f/2.8G ED

05/27/2007 11:43:24 PM · #9

Originally posted by OdysseyF22:

Lowcivicman99, that's exactly what I was afraid of... My Dad thought it might be a registry issue, but I don't know anything about how to work with it at that level.

Rooster, I fear you're right about the email. I'd rather gouge my eyes out than call tech support and deal with all the hassles that go with it. But when I get in tomorrow night, I may try the LiveChat. I can bring my parent's laptop up and run them both at once.

And awpollard, it's nice to know that I'm in good company. And I only went with Basic because I don't care about the flashy elements and features of the higher versions. This is really going to be a photo machine...if I can get it working right.

It could be a reg. problem but I wouldn't think so. I don't remember if you said you used it before but at this point you have already reached what us techs call PO-NR (Po-nar) Point Of No Return. Reimage the machine and start from scratch. Good luck.