I NEED HELP - DPChallenge Forums

04/01/2004 01:48:58 AM · #26

Originally posted by Ram21:

You don't need the battery in the computer to boot. I would take the battery out, then see if the computer turns on. You have a gateway, the BIOS screen is either F2, ESC, or F10 or DELETE. If you can't even get into the BIOS or see it. I would suggest calling Gateway tech support in the morning. It would seem to me that you would need a service technician to look at it. I have a Dell and they are pretty good about coming out but that is Dell. If you have a Gateway store around you try taking it there first. It's kind of late and my mind is barely running so if any of this makes sense then great!

Thanks Mark... I'll give that a try.

dustin03

Canon EOS-20D

04/01/2004 02:44:07 AM · #27

Hi, I had a simular problem with my laptop. However, it's a Ibook G3. Not windows, but none the same problem it seems. I had to replaace my whole motherboard and never had any problems again. Hope you get it all back up and working.

Canon EF 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 USM

04/01/2004 09:08:38 AM · #28

Originally posted by dustin03:

That is a possibility... unfortunately I cant figure out how to get the motherboard out. I think I may have to end up taking it into a shop. Thanks.

Ram21

Canon EOS-10D

04/01/2004 12:23:58 PM · #29

//support.gateway.com/support/supinfo/index.asp?pg=2&file=mo_400.html

Here is some information, the Users guides give a little explanation on to dissasembling the laptop.

oksamit

Canon EF 28-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS USM

04/01/2004 01:58:38 PM · #30

Did you call Gateway it's look like the system have woranty.
Gateway have 3 yers woranty for parts , and when servise is close to end the representativ from Gateway call you about extendet woranty. So befor you open yours laptop call Gateway, and make copy of yours H/D.
That whot i toldyou you have problem whith
1 Power
2 CPU
3 MainBoard.
NOT THE MEMORY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Gateway 400 series. About a year and a half old and it did come with XP preloaded. [/quote]

tfaust

Canon EOS 80D

Canon EF 100mm f/2.8 USM Macro

04/01/2004 02:08:34 PM · #31

I had a similar problem and it was the motherboard. Apparantly because of a short in the AC plug adaptor, that fried the board. My laptop is less than 1 year old and Toshiba wasn't going to cover the repair. The motherboard alone is $950 without labor. After a week of fighting with them, I did get it covered under warranty.

Good luck with your system... it does sound like something with the board... I would take it in if I were you.

vadvirag

Canon EOS-350D Rebel XT

Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 II

04/01/2004 03:19:35 PM · #32

When my brother's XP has enough of him playing, it reboots automatically and randomly. XP is a funny thing, what language pack do you have? The original English is fine, the Hungarian one has heaps of bugs, though.

Your problem can be an incompatibility problem, too. Did you improve your laptop since you bought it? Can be the main board, maybe the video board of the PC, but some kind of incompatible memory cause crashes. Mine hates PS. :-) Imagine, it's awful when I want to crop a photo and it crashes, though, I have memory problems.

I think it's the best to ask a professional about this one. Take your cmputer to the service, or ask the manufacturer whether there were similar problems with the brand before and what's the solution for it. Maybe you need a BIOS refresh, or a driver refresh, but if you are not sure, I suggest asking an expert.

Sigma 18-200mm f/3.5-6.3 DC OS for Canon

04/01/2004 04:48:49 PM · #33

Thanks for all the help everyone... It is greatly appreciated.

ElGordo

Canon EOS-400D Rebel XTi

04/01/2004 04:57:51 PM · #34

Try plugging in an external monitor. It may be that the screen backlight is
dead.

Canon EF 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 USM

04/01/2004 05:20:49 PM · #35

I tried the external monitor and had an odd result. The external monitor had the scrolling message on its screen saying to check the power and the cords as normal when the computer is not turned on. But when I turned the laptop off, the message went away. I'm confused to say the least. Thanks for the link Mark... it helped me figure out how to get the keyboard off. Still no luck though.

Ram21

Canon EOS-10D

04/01/2004 05:44:39 PM · #36

Originally posted by xcharrier:

check the power and the cords as normal when the computer is not turned on.

It is possible that the laptop is sending data down the VGA connector but isn't displaying anything.

GeneralE

Canon PowerShot S3 IS

Canon 12x IS USM (S3 IS built-in Lens) -- 36-432mm (35mm EQ)

04/01/2004 07:03:17 PM · #37

Originally posted by Ram21:

If you have a Gateway store around you try taking it there first. It's kind of late ...

Yes, better hurry as the Gateway stores will close next week.

Mark

Canon EOS-600D/T3i Rebel

Canon EF-S 17-85mm f/4-5.6 IS USM

04/01/2004 07:11:30 PM · #38

You could try wiping it clean and re-installing the Opperating system. Tat would determine weather it is a hardware problem or a software problem. If it's a software problem, re-installing the OS should remove any glitches (and any work) and get back up and running. If it's a harware problem and its still under warranty I would send it in.

If worst comes to worst you could try re-programing it with an alluminum baseball bat.

soup

04/01/2004 07:16:55 PM · #39

this happened to a dell at work ( not a laptop ), power light was on, fan was on, black screen, wont read disks.

turned out the hard drive had crapped out. they came and replaced it.

i have heard if you can find that its the HD that's the issue, and have no other option, and its out of warranty, try putting it ( the hard drive ) in the freezer for awhile, in a static free bag, in a plastic ziploc, and then see if it boots up - if it does shut down all the screen savers and power saving features, and figure out a way to get the data you need off. also try running it on the 120v wall plug in, instead of the battery.,

maybe i am crazy.

KevinRiggs

Canon EOS-1Ds

04/01/2004 07:32:46 PM · #40

X,

OK, you gotta know you're getting some kind of power through the motherboard since its generating a signal to push out the 15-pin video out port on the back of the laptop. Try plugging a monitor into the video out port, turn the machine on and use the key combination to select where you display the video (sounds like you only halfway tested this originally). Most laptops have the ability to display video output (A) on the LCD screen, (B) out to the video port or (C) to both outputs at the same time. If you turned on the machine and connected a monitor to the back but did not tell the computer to push video out the "video out" port on the back, the basic operation of the hardware is to send a "fake" signal down that port. Often this is a completely blank signal but it could easily be a "Check all wiring connections and reboot" type message such as the one you were seeing. Most laptop key combinations for pushing video out the back rely upon a special laptop key (Dells have an extra button down beside the spacebar - not ALT or CTRL but right around those); you normally have to hold this down and tap the F7 or F8 key to select a different video output.

You also should take a shot at booting from a WindowsXP installation CD. Most laptops (at least most of the ones the same age as yours) will boot from a bootable CD when its placed in the CD drive and powered on.

If neither of these tests produces any useful results then it sounds like you're having some kind of hardware problem like a fried board or a broken/loose connection and you would do yourself a service to have it looked at by an authorized and warranteed repair center. Once you verify that you have tried pushing video out the back of the laptop's "video out" port, you can reboot and attempt to enter the laptop's CMOS via the F2/Delete keystroke. Failing that I'm going to think you have a hosed machine.

Just my $0.02

Kev

Canon EF 28-200mm f/3.5-5.6 USM

04/02/2004 12:03:54 AM · #41

Thanks for all the replies and suggestions.

Unfortuantly I'm not even able to get to the point of reinstalling software so that is out of the question.

Tim,
I've never heard of putting the HD in the freezer... is that a real suggestion or is it and April fools suggestion? :) I'll give it a try.

Kev,
When I got the previous results I was sending the signal to the external monitor... key combination of Fn+LCD/CRT. I also tried booting from a windows xp cd but nothing happens when I turn the machine on.

Ram21

Canon EOS-10D

04/02/2004 12:20:03 AM · #42

I have never heard of putting an HD in a frezer.

Rgarcia

Olympus OM-D E-M1

Olympus 75-300mm f/4.8-6.7 II M.Zuiko ED

04/02/2004 12:28:21 AM · #43

Do you have access to a desktop computer? If so, take the Hard Drive out and connect it as a master in the secondary ide of another computer using an adaptor (can be found in CompUSA), and make a backup of your files. Then take it to a Gateway repair shop. If you're not getting any beeps at all when turning it on, there's a good chance that the motherboard is dead. Other possibility is that your Hard Drive is fried and this could sometimes give the symptoms you're experiencing. I really hope it is the motherboard so you can recover your data. Good luck!!

Message edited by author 2004-04-02 00:29:43.

soup

Canon RF 24-70mm f/2.8 L IS

04/02/2004 10:25:39 AM · #44

the freezer thing i have not tried myself, but know of others who have, and had it work out. like i said its a last resort. by the symptoms you mention, it sounds like the HD is shot...

and yes as mentioned above - it could be the main board as well, but here we had the same symptoms, and it was the HD...

it would seem as though you could get to the bios though, even if the drive is dead..

kirbic

Canon EOS R5

04/02/2004 10:35:47 AM · #45

Originally posted by Ram21:

I have never heard of putting an HD in a frezer.

As Soup posted, it is a "last resort" and is likely to yield a very temporary fix (read several minutes at best) if it works at all.
The reason it can work is that often a failure may be due to the breaking of an electrical connection, either a solder joint, wire bond, or circuit trace. Freezing the unit can temporarily force the separated connection into contact because of the different coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE) of the materials involved. When the electronics warm up, the problem will be back again.

soup

04/02/2004 10:55:53 AM · #46

so i'm not crazy ;}

even if the mechanics of the drive are shot - a data recovery service could retrieve the data from it - for a price of course

oksamit