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Electronics Repair (sci.electronics.repair) Discussion of repairing electronic equipment. Topics include requests for assistance, where to obtain servicing information and parts, techniques for diagnosis and repair, and annecdotes about success, failures and problems. |
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#1
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Computer Stopped Working - Help
I purchased a Gateway laptop about 1.5 years ago and have only used it
maybe 100 hours at most. Recently it locked up so I shut it down. But when it rebooted it did not fully load. Then I think it asked if I wanted to reload, restore (or something like this) the Gateway software. I clicked yes but now I get a black screen with a choice of a boot or bios menu (which is only for the computer settings). Then it runs and says "operating system not found". Gateway did not provide a restore disk with the laptop (now they want $35.00 for the disks). I tried my desk top restore disk and it was working but then it said "hard drive not found, can not continue". How do I fix this? |
#2
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Computer Stopped Working - Help
wrote in message oups.com... I purchased a Gateway laptop about 1.5 years ago and have only used it maybe 100 hours at most. Recently it locked up so I shut it down. But when it rebooted it did not fully load. Then I think it asked if I wanted to reload, restore (or something like this) the Gateway software. I clicked yes but now I get a black screen with a choice of a boot or bios menu (which is only for the computer settings). Then it runs and says "operating system not found". Gateway did not provide a restore disk with the laptop (now they want $35.00 for the disks). I tried my desk top restore disk and it was working but then it said "hard drive not found, can not continue". How do I fix this? At a guess, it sounds like either the hard drive has failed or the motherboard's IDE controller, more likely the former. You'll need a tech to physically examine it to give a definite diagnosis though. Dave |
#3
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Computer Stopped Working - Help
" wrote in
oups.com: I purchased a Gateway laptop about 1.5 years ago and have only used it maybe 100 hours at most. Recently it locked up so I shut it down. But when it rebooted it did not fully load. Then I think it asked if I wanted to reload, restore (or something like this) the Gateway software. I clicked yes but now I get a black screen with a choice of a boot or bios menu (which is only for the computer settings). Then it runs and says "operating system not found". Gateway did not provide a restore disk with the laptop (now they want $35.00 for the disks). I tried my desk top restore disk and it was working but then it said "hard drive not found, can not continue". How do I fix this? Sounds like your restore thing mangled your system. Try it again, ensuring it completes. If that doesn't work, you may want to take it to a professional. No offense, but it sounds like you're not very skilled with computers, so a professional would likely be your best bet. Puckdropper -- Wise is the man who attempts to answer his question before asking it. To email me directly, send a message to puckdropper (at) fastmail.fm |
#4
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Computer Stopped Working - Help
Dave D wrote:
wrote in message oups.com... I purchased a Gateway laptop about 1.5 years ago and have only used it maybe 100 hours at most. Recently it locked up so I shut it down. But when it rebooted it did not fully load. Then I think it asked if I wanted to reload, restore (or something like this) the Gateway software. I clicked yes but now I get a black screen with a choice of a boot or bios menu (which is only for the computer settings). Then it runs and says "operating system not found". Gateway did not provide a restore disk with the laptop (now they want $35.00 for the disks). I tried my desk top restore disk and it was working but then it said "hard drive not found, can not continue". How do I fix this? At a guess, it sounds like either the hard drive has failed or the motherboard's IDE controller, more likely the former. You'll need a tech to physically examine it to give a definite diagnosis though. I agree the drive is probably hosed. You can buy a laptop-to-desktop hard drive adapter for just a few bucks. Get one of those and install the drive as a slave in your home computer. BIOS should report if the drive is toast or not. If it works at all, immediately back up anything vital to your desktop. Then try it again in your laptop. If it doesn't work there, it's likely your laptop motherboard. That's serious. You might find one on eBay, but it won't be cheap or easy to replace. If it doesn't work, I hope there was nothing irreplaceable on it. It's lost.... jak Dave |
#6
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Computer Stopped Working - Help
In message .com,
" writes I purchased a Gateway laptop about 1.5 years ago and have only used it maybe 100 hours at most. Recently it locked up so I shut it down. But when it rebooted it did not fully load. Then I think it asked if I wanted to reload, restore (or something like this) the Gateway software. I clicked yes but now I get a black screen with a choice of a boot or bios menu (which is only for the computer settings). Then it runs and says "operating system not found". Gateway did not provide a restore disk with the laptop (now they want $35.00 for the disks). I tried my desk top restore disk and it was working but then it said "hard drive not found, can not continue". How do I fix this? Download yourself a copy of the IBM/Hitachi drive fitness test, write it to floppy and boot the laptop from it, run the diagnostic tests, report back here. From your description though, it sounds like the HDD is faulty. Generally not difficult to replace usually and not expensive either. As for the backup disks, buy them once you've determined and fixed the fault. -- Clint Sharp |
#7
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Computer Stopped Working - Help
Clint Sharp wrote: In message .com, " writes I purchased a Gateway laptop about 1.5 years ago and have only used it maybe 100 hours at most. Recently it locked up so I shut it down. But when it rebooted it did not fully load. Then I think it asked if I wanted to reload, restore (or something like this) the Gateway software. I clicked yes but now I get a black screen with a choice of a boot or bios menu (which is only for the computer settings). Then it runs and says "operating system not found". Gateway did not provide a restore disk with the laptop (now they want $35.00 for the disks). I tried my desk top restore disk and it was working but then it said "hard drive not found, can not continue". How do I fix this? Download yourself a copy of the IBM/Hitachi drive fitness test, write it to floppy and boot the laptop from it, run the diagnostic tests, report back here. From your description though, it sounds like the HDD is faulty. Generally not difficult to replace usually and not expensive either. As for the backup disks, buy them once you've determined and fixed the fault. -- Clint Sharp |
#8
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Computer Stopped Working - Help
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