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Computers are stupid

E

ExileOnDaytonStreet

Drunkard
The problem:

Woke up this morning, noticed computer was frozen (I had left an alarm clock program running on it, and it didn't go off... the program is freeware, but I've used it for a few years and it's never been a problem before).

I do a cold reboot of the computer, Dell screen pops up, then it goes into the screen where its loading Windows. (We, sadly, have Vista...)

After a few seconds, computer stops loading Windows and restarts. The cycle continues thusly.

If I hit F8 and try to go into safe mode, no change in behavior. If I try "last safe configuration", no change.

So... uh... help?
 
Re: Computers are stupid

Boot from a CD/Disk and run the Windows repair program. That might fix the issue if its OS related.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

My "informed enough just to be dangerous" opinion is that it could be a number of things. Try booting from another source. If it works, then you've limited it to either a faulty hard drive or some corrupted files, in which case I'd try repairing windows, re-installing it, and reformatting then re-installing it in that order. If it doesn't work, or only works temporarily, it's probably hardware related. - I had a Dell laptop whose motherboard (or more specifically, the video card attached thereto) would fry every 12-18 months - apparently it was a faulty design as they actually extended the warranty for that specific issue for an extra year or two for free. The first symptoms were a lot like yours, it'd start booting then freeze and either i'd have to restart it or itd restart itself.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

Many times(but not always) when it keeps rebooting it's a corrupt windows boot file, the best way to fix it is to boot the pc from your windows Vista CD and go through the setup you can try the repair (which mostly never works) or reload windows again.

If it is a hardware failure more than likely it will fail during the windows repair\installation.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

If you don't have a rescue disk, you might want to think of trying one of the computer repair shops. I saw a bunch on the internet in Madison; some of the non-Geek Squad types might be a little cheaper and actually do a better job getting it running again.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

Do you have multiple hard drives on the computer? I had a similar problem (w/ a built computer, not a Dell) and the computer had just decided to try booting from a different drive which obviously wouldn't work. The tech that fixed it (since I didn't have a clue what was going on - I can fix in future) said it is a weird glitch with Asus motherboards.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

mwade said:
Do you have multiple hard drives on the computer? I had a similar problem (w/ a built computer, not a Dell) and the computer had just decided to try booting from a different drive which obviously wouldn't work. The tech that fixed it (since I didn't have a clue what was going on - I can fix in future) said it is a weird glitch with Asus motherboards.
Click to expand...

We do have a D:\ drive for recovery. I don't think we've ever actively used it (beyond the pre-installed routine for backups, of course), but I suppose that's not entirely out of the question.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

ExileOnDaytonStreet said:
We do have a D:\ drive for recovery. I don't think we've ever actively used it (beyond the pre-installed routine for backups, of course), but I suppose that's not entirely out of the question.
Click to expand...

More than likely your "D" drive is just a different volume on the same physical disk and you probably do not have 2 separate physical hard drives.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

ExileOnDaytonStreet said:
We do have a D:\ drive for recovery. I don't think we've ever actively used it (beyond the pre-installed routine for backups, of course), but I suppose that's not entirely out of the question.
Click to expand...

That's more likely just a recovery partition on the same physical drive, so I would rule that out.

Definitely sounds like a boot issue. Vista has a startup repair option on the disc as described on this page, I'd give that a try first of all:

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows-vista/Startup-Repair-frequently-asked-questions

If not, you may need to do a full repair of Windows with that disc. And if that doesn't work, as other have said you'd have to re-install Windows, but hopefully it won't come to that.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

If I ever think I'm having hard drive problems, I always take it out and hook it up to another computer as a second hard drive. That way I can see if it's totally screwed or if it's not I can grab any important files off of it before I attempt a repair/reinstall.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

It could be a PEBCAK error. Those are almost always fatal.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

Could just be an overheating issue. On my computer (desktop, not laptop), It'll go into the perpetual reboot if I leave it on for too long (week or two). But, leaving it off for 8-12 hours cools it down enough where I can leave it on for another week or so.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

Hee.

tech_support.png
 
Re: Computers are stupid

Thread hijack:

My laptop battery isn't charging, but it WILL run off line power (it's currently stuck at "12%, plugged in, not charging") without draining the battery further. It's a Dell XPS M1530 with a 9-cell battery and 90W power adapter, running MS Vista Home. However, I tried using a friend's 65W charger, and it charged all the way. I'm assuming that means it's a fault with my power adapter, but I'd also read it could have to do with the internal charger board?

If anyone could lend some advice, I'd be much obliged. Thanks!
 
Re: Computers are stupid

Weird, not sure how it could run off the charger yet not charge the battery?, generally a power brick either works or it doesn't. Dells are known for bad connections where the power brick plugs in?
 
Re: Computers are stupid

I had the problem you describe. I had to place the power brick cable just right in the back of the laptop so it would actually work. It had to be sitting about 1/3 of the way out of the 'power jack' as it's called. That, and the battery eventually lasted no more than 10 minutes. The power jack is easy to replace if you know how to solder. In the case of the original question, I would tend to think it's the power brick.
 
Re: Computers are stupid

Sounds like the power brick to me too.

Interesting to me is that I have had my Dell for almost 2 years and my battery still runs at around 90% capacity. I count myself lucky since I have a Dell ;)
 
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