Computor gurus - help

[Jeremy Cottrell]

My PC will not turn on? Nothing - nada - just a black screen. It's a Pentium 4 running Windows XP. Any help is greatly appreciated.

[djmcmath]

Ok, I'll assume you've done none of the basic troubleshooting -- please don't be offended if this is too basic:
1 - Check the power. Are you positive the outlet is live? Are you sure the cable is good all the way in to the power supply?
2 - Were there any warning signs? Anything abnormal last run? Feel the side of the case -- is anything warm (especially near the power supply, hopefully)?

Hmm ... hope some of the other heavies can weigh in. Dumb question -- is the screen on? Is it connected to the beige box correctly? Is the video card known good? Do any of the fans inside the case come on? Do any of the drives spin up at all?

Dan

[island911]

Weird , Im having cmptr prob's too. . . .my internet connection isn't working.

[Jeremy Cottrell]

Thanks guys. We have power, the green light is lighting up on the CPU. The screen is on - green light there too. No warning signs. Could be somebody opened up a virus because there are a couple guys using that unit to check E-mails.

[Eric Coffey]

Are you at least getting a blinking DOS curser? Could be a random HD crash.

[djmcmath]

I'm sorry -- didn't mean to come across sarcastically or rude, just covering all the bases. Green light at the screen, you say, not amber? That means the computer is actually "coming up," per se, just not booting. Wierd. And green light on the box, but no fans or spinning up of drives?

Dan

[Jeremy Cottrell]

Dan - I am an absolute novice with computors, no offence taken at all. I am getting a "no signal" on the monitor, the green light then turns amber, like a euro tailight lens! I do hear fans going, and when I try to restart I hear a series of beeps.

[john70t]

I'm a novice too, but you should be able to look up the fault code and which lights on the keyboard work for those beeps on the manufacturer(OS/CPU/Motherboard?) website.
I suspect video card/memory/motherboard but I know squat. Make sure it's a humid day, don't where baggy clothes, the power is off but the computer is still plugged in(grounded), and you've touched the case and wall outlet to prevent any static from wrecking anything furthur if you open up the case and reseat the cards.

[Jeremy Cottrell]

John the beeps come up as
I IIIIIIII II I
Some sort of OBD for computors.

[john70t]

That should mean something in there is trying to fire up and protestingloudly that it can't.
I guess that's a good sign, but that's about the extent of my knowlege. A wise man knows when he doesn't know and I am very wise It sucks but mabye the HD can make a good secondary slave to another computer? Hope everything important was backed up on CD or RDVD

[84porsche]

Did you make any hardware changes or have any hardware replaced by somebody?? If you have power meaning power supply fan is on then it is obviously not the problem. If you are willing to become part computer savvy - open the case and slowly unplug unnecessary items - cd rom drives, extra hard drives etc. Keep just the motherboard, and one harddrive plugged in and see if it powers up. If yes, slowly put things back until you recreate the problem. I just faced a similar problem last week. Also check to see if your computer has a switch on the power supply and it is flipped toward the --- not the O.

[djmcmath]

Beeping is the bios' way to communicate when it has lost everything else. My room-mate's machine beeps on startup because it can't find the second processor. A different beep combination means "My memory is all dead." If you have the manual for your motherboard, it will usually tell you what the beep sequences mean. If you know what the board is (Manufacturer, designation, etc.), you could probably also google for it. Or if you posted it, perhaps some of the rest of us could help with the search?

Just to make sure I understand -- you flip the switch. Monitor goes green, then amber. Fans and hard drive go "buzz" indicating that you _do_ have power, right? Then, it beeps a whole bunch (in the indicated pattern). Is there anything else we're missing?

Dan

[Jeremy Cottrell]

Yes Dan that's what happens the beep sequence is 1 - 8 - 2 - 1, if that means anything. I do not know what brand the innards are. I may have to pull this thing apart. It can't be any more difficult then swapping chips in a DME brain, right?? LOL

[rcecale]

Swing by your local "Mom and Pop" computer store and pick up a new video card.....you can either go high-dollar and just replace it out/upgrade...or you can pick one up for $20 or so just for troubleshooting purposes....its a piece of cake to put in....

just open the case, find an open slot...and fit it in. Connect the monitor to it and fire it up.

My guess would be that your PC is using a video card built in to the motherboard and it has probably bitten the dust.

If you do this and find you require more help...just post your questions here...

Randy

[djmcmath]

Should be easier than DME chips. Those look scary to me, and I've been in computers for years. hahaha. Unplug everything, wait a moment, pull the case off, touch something grounded, and have yourself a peek. Vacuum some dust out, then see what you can see. Actually, if you have any of the original dox that came with the machine, it might be in those, which would be a lot easier than opening the case and digging around with a flashlight. Let us know what you find,

Dan

[Jeremy Cottrell]

Well gentlemen, it was a bad video card. Plugged in a new one and she's back up. Thanks to all of you for the advise. Of course it takes a bunch of Porsche guys to come through!! I got better advise here then on the computor tech boards. What a great bunch. I also notice you guys seem to all drive 3.2 Carreras, or an early long hood --- HMMMM, very interesting. Thanks again.