My desktop was making noise, so I took the computer apart trying to find out where it was coming from. Turned out to be the power supply ... Put things back together and now all I get is a notice that says "quick start guide for proper hardware installation".
Ten years of loyal service undone by some carelessness. :'(
That's strange, I've been building my own computers for the last 15 years and don't ever remember seeing that message. I would go back in and re-seat everything including your RAM sticks. Who knows what could have got knocked loose when you took it apart.
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Hey, at least it took tinkering from your end to generate the message. Went to visit family for a week, unplugged the Windows 8 disaster that is my desktop while we were gone, got home yesterday to the blue screen of imminent death, followed by four hours of it fixing itself.
Ouch has it been powered on for 10 years? sounds like the bios battery died at one time and now it doesn't remmber anything, or you just have a loose cable.
Quote from: jimilee on July 02, 2013, 11:04:46 PM
Ouch has it been powered on for 10 years?
Um, not continuously ...
Lexa thinks it's my video card.
Quote from: midwayfair on July 02, 2013, 11:07:04 PM
Quote from: jimilee on July 02, 2013, 11:04:46 PM
Ouch has it been powered on for 10 years?
Um, not continuously ...
Lexa thinks it's my video card.
I used to build and work computers about 10 years ago, but that all changed when I switched to mac. Shouldn't be too hard to fix, she sounds like a smart woman.
We need screenshots man!
Quote from: midwayfair on July 02, 2013, 11:07:04 PM
Quote from: jimilee on July 02, 2013, 11:04:46 PM
Ouch has it been powered on for 10 years?
Um, not continuously ...
Lexa thinks it's my video card.
I never saw that message either... at which point does it appear? Just before the POST ?
Methinks if your video card was the culprit, you wouldn't see any message at all. I'm more thinking about something else you forgot — the EPS 12V plug for instance (4- or 8-pins connector near the CPU socket).
Quote from: aballen on July 02, 2013, 11:16:40 PM
We need screenshots man!
aaaahahahahaha you know the drill :P
I never saw that message either... at which point does it appear? Just before the POST ?
Methinks if your video card was the culprit, you wouldn't see any message at all. I'm more thinking about something else you forgot — the EPS 12V plug for instance (4- or 8-pins connector near the CPU socket).
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I agree. If it is the video card I doubt you'd see any message. Again, I'd go through everything and make sure it's all seated correctly.
Does it see the HardDrive in the bios? I'm thinking you might get that message if it can't see the drivers for your hardware. Make sure that cable is plugged in correctly.
I agree with Bill. First thing I would do would be to pop it back open and verify that everything is plugged in and in the right place (assuming you haven't already done that, of course).
Quote from: jimilee on July 02, 2013, 11:21:06 PM
Quote from: aballen on July 02, 2013, 11:16:40 PM
We need screenshots man!
aaaahahahahaha you know the drill :P
Okay, lemme just take some voltag-----zzzzzzzzztt
Quote from: billstein on July 03, 2013, 12:02:11 AM
I never saw that message either... at which point does it appear? Just before the POST ?
Methinks if your video card was the culprit, you wouldn't see any message at all. I'm more thinking about something else you forgot — the EPS 12V plug for instance (4- or 8-pins connector near the CPU socket).
I agree. If it is the video card I doubt you'd see any message. Again, I'd go through everything and make sure it's all seated correctly.
Does it see the HardDrive in the bios? I'm thinking you might get that message if it can't see the drivers for your hardware. Make sure that cable is plugged in correctly.
[/quote]
She googled it ... Apparently as long as it has power, it has enough information to display that message. We backed up my hard drive before I mess with it further.
Smart, Jon. I recently had a total hard drive loss and it was terrible. Far worse than any hardware loss.
Suffice to say I do nightly backups now.
Quote from: pickdropper on July 03, 2013, 12:41:32 AM
Smart, Jon. I recently had a total hard drive loss and it was terrible. Far worse than any hardware loss.
Suffice to say I do nightly backups now.
The sad thing is, the only thing I really really cared about was a single word perfect document. I could back that up a thousand ways and just never have done so.
I hate saying this man but computers are not meant to live that long. MTBF on things like consumer grade hard drives is just a few years. It's pretty amazing it lasted as long as it did.
Hopefully you can pull out the disk and back up the files you need. The hardware itself probably not worth saving.
Disaster averted! Ironically, taking voltages would have helped. After I pulled out a bunch of the hardware, I figured out that the extention power cable I was using on the hard drive and video card ... er ... wasn't actually plugged in.
I do need a new power supply, though. This one whines when the computer's turned off. I took it apart and narrowed it down to the big transformer inside. AND I'm still alive! Maybe now I can build an amp without fear!
Ah cool, glad you got it working. Although it's true that it's put in its years of service, some of the older components are just built better. The big problem I've had when older computers die is that the replacement parts are usually expensive because they aren't common anymore.
First thing, back up that important doc.
That's great. I love it when it's simple.
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Quote from: midwayfair on July 03, 2013, 01:15:11 AM
Quote from: pickdropper on July 03, 2013, 12:41:32 AM
Smart, Jon. I recently had a total hard drive loss and it was terrible. Far worse than any hardware loss.
Suffice to say I do nightly backups now.
The sad thing is, the only thing I really really cared about was a single word perfect document. I could back that up a thousand ways and just never have done so.
Go ahead and back that file up now,just store it on your website but don't post a link to it.
Before you repair it check out the prices for new stuff online. You can get a low end laptop from Dell for $3-400 and the lowest end production laptop is going to run circles around any 10 year old. I have and old xps17 which was really high end when I got it maybe six years ago, it's pretty much a paperweight now.
Anyway, whatever you decide I'm glad to hear you figured it out and backed up your docs, now go debug that aquaboy ;)
Quote from: midwayfair on July 03, 2013, 01:55:50 AM
Disaster averted! Ironically, taking voltages would have helped. After I pulled out a bunch of the hardware, I figured out that the extention power cable I was using on the hard drive and video card ... er ... wasn't actually plugged in.
This made my morning. Apparently the curse of the disconnected power supplies runs beyond the 2.1 mm connections.
Glad to hear everything is OK. I just backed up all my build documents onto my phone last night. Why I am not sure, it's not like I can read a schematic off a three inch screen, but for some reason it gives me a little reassurance.
Quote from: GermanCdn on July 03, 2013, 03:29:47 PM
Quote from: midwayfair on July 03, 2013, 01:55:50 AM
Disaster averted! Ironically, taking voltages would have helped. After I pulled out a bunch of the hardware, I figured out that the extention power cable I was using on the hard drive and video card ... er ... wasn't actually plugged in.
This made my morning. Apparently the curse of the disconnected power supplies runs beyond the 2.1 mm connections.
Glad to hear everything is OK. I just backed up all my build documents onto my phone last night. Why I am not sure, it's not like I can read a schematic off a three inch screen, but for some reason it gives me a little reassurance.
If you had to you could find a projector and use your phone to project them on to the big screen to read them.
I do what Jimi suggested and put files in the non-public area of my website. Pretty convenient and it get's backed up to industrial backup services every night.