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manuel

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#1
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#1
my brother in law gave me a laptop he had for a while and couldnt fix. he said if i could get it to work i could keep it. anyhow, i installed an OS(win2k) on the hdd through an adapter with my desktop. the problem it has it will lock up and start up, it was happening before i installed the OS. someone help me please.

ive attached a file of what i get.
 

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///M SPEED

///M SPEED

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#2
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#2
Have you gone into the BIOS? Have you tried to update the BIOS? When you say, "the problem it has it will lock up and start up, it was happening before i installed the OS." do you mean it starts the OS and then lockup or it just locks up and never acutally loads the OS?
 
M

manuel

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#3
i does not load the OS. also i tried entering setup but it will just say "entering setup.....". i have not tried to update the BIOS.
 
///M SPEED

///M SPEED

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#4
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#4
Go online and see if there is a BIOS newer than the one currently running now. How old is the laptop? The screen you have in your post, is that where the laptop locks up at?
 
///M SPEED

///M SPEED

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#8
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#8
manuel, I have to leave work now and pick up the kids. I will check back later and see how much help I can be. Until then try and update the BIOS and see if it helps. Sorry I have to run on you at this time. I will check you later.....
 
Tom

Tom

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#10
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#10
Hey Manual, it could be a bad or faulty hard drive. This is not an uncommon problem with laptops. Remember that some BIOS cannot be reflashed and require you to replace the motherboard. Importantly if you improperly reflash the BIOS, you may end up causing even more problems.

Did you specify the sequence in the BIOS to boot up from Removable Devices before the HD?

Most older computers won't let you do this, if this is the case, your computer may be having some problems trying to find the OS and therefore won't let you boot up.

I would start with replacing the Hard Drive first to see if that resolves the issue.
 
M

manuel

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#11
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#11
i tested the HDD through my desktop with an adapter. i rebooted a few times and created a few files, i even installed PS. i havent been able to even mess with BIOS.
 
Last edited:
bmwhighrolla

bmwhighrolla

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#12
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#12
first was the computer ever taken apart?? were the jumpers ever played with?? it sounds to me the the system cache was played with and now it wont bootis there a booklet with the top if not look on the internet for were you jumpers are so you can reset it i doubt it the hd
 
gizzy

gizzy

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#14
An 800MHz machine should definately allow you to flash the bios (if it can boot that far on a floppy). I would follow start with trying to flash the BIOS followed by removing the floppy and/or cd drive. If you can get into the bios you could also see if everything is set to there defaults, or change memory speeds to a lower setting. If it still fails, then I would reinstall the floppy with a boot disk and remove the hard drive. If all of the above fails, then you would probably have to get the mb replaced.
 
Section_8

Section_8

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#15
gizzy said:
An 800MHz machine should definately allow you to flash the bios (if it can boot that far on a floppy). I would follow start with trying to flash the BIOS followed by removing the floppy and/or cd drive. If you can get into the bios you could also see if everything is set to there defaults, or change memory speeds to a lower setting. If it still fails, then I would reinstall the floppy with a boot disk and remove the hard drive. If all of the above fails, then you would probably have to get the mb replaced.
Click to expand...
If 'anything' has changed on it recently (new mem, new HD, new CD drive, whatever), change it back, and work backwards from there.

Gizzy's offered the best solution(s) I think. The big clue you gave - that you try to get into the BIOS and all it says is 'Entering Setup', is the big tip. Sounds like your BIOS is hosed, or the MB itself has issues. Do you get any beeps? A Bad CD/HD or the like, wouldn't kill your getting into your BIOS, it'll just wait for a keystroke and beep at you. bad mem/wrong voltage mem, it either wouldn't boot at all, or would turn on and beep like mad. Still wouldn't interupt the entrance to the BIOS.

Seeing as how you can't get it to boot to the HD/OS, or even go into the BIOS, updating or flashing the BIOS isn't gonna work. (This is done in 2 methods usually - updating bios from within the bios, or a bootdisk with a flash bios). Being a laptop, that also means it's not going to have any jumpers or anything simple to 'reset' it under the hood, so to speak. (Something desktops used to have on older machines).

Best bet, is to 'try' to take it apart and locate the BIOS battery. Remove it/short it, this should kill your onboard clock and should default the BIOS to factory settings.

If that doesn't work - sounds like a dead laptop(bad motherboard) honestly. Replace the MB, or use it for a paperweight. [:(]
 
M

manuel

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#16
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#16
i did everything everyone mentioned and still no cigar. i hope it isnt the heaviest paper weight i have ever owned.

thanks for everyones help...

how can i know the type of motherboard i have?
 
Section_8

Section_8

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#17
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#17
manuel said:
i did everything everyone mentioned and still no cigar. i hope it isnt the heaviest paper weight i have ever owned.

thanks for everyones help...

how can i know the type of motherboard i have?
Click to expand...
Did you locate the BIOS battery and yank/short it out? If you did and that didn't do anything, you need a MB. I would however, pull all my devices (floppy, CDRom) and memory and just see if it will boot (most machines you can still get into the BIOS even if they are 'naked').

The MB type is specific to that model laptop. Your best bet is to find a 'parts' one like it on Ebay, possible you may even find the MB itself on ebay. (A parts machine - another one like it that doesn't work for it's own reasons, is the best bet. usually these have busted screens, etc, but otherwise are ok IE: a MB for you)

Could contact the manufacturer about a replacement original MB - you said it's a presario, so it's Compaq (HP now). Check the Compaq site, look for your specific laptop model (it'll tell you where to look - what numbers it needs to identify your laptop).

Good luck, hope something turns up for ya.
 
Kirby

Kirby

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#18
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#18
It uses Compaq proprietary motherboard.

The Presario 1200 is a known problematic system - lots of issues. Some known problems are loose processor that must be reseated, dead/weak BIOS battery that scrambles the CMOS, and just plain failed motherboards.
 
MrElussive

MrElussive

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#20
I have a feeling it's probably something with the hard drive. Usually laptop BIOS can't really be updated or tampered with, and you can REALLY screw yourself over if you try to update it (assuming it is even possible).

manuel, have you tried booting from another OS CD? I mean, rather than just Win2K, if you have some other OS lying around, try having the laptop boot into that OS's CD.
 
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