Compaq Presario h/w problem help!

[r3b00+]

A friend of mine asked me to have a look at her laptop because of my uber h/w skills!
Thing is im not very up on my h/w related issues, but shes a friend so i told her i would have a look at it to see what i could do.

She then produced a list of issues, as follows (in her own words):

- Floppy drive sometimes doesn't save, computer then stalls and crashes
- Laptop has been put back to factory settings twice
- Laptop crashes when there is lots of work being done
- Lines on screen fixed last Oct/Nov, computer crashing since, especially floppy drive

So thats it guys!
I havent had a proper look at it yet but it seems like this baby is a bit worse for wear!

Anybody any ideas as what the underlying problem(s) is?

Thanks in advance

r3b007

[instronics]

Hmm, maybe the CPU fan is not working, so it crashes if it gets too hot. What OS is she running. Also try to get one of those floppy disks which clean the drive. Maybe its heads are dirty or something

Also check to see if the BIOS is setup correctly. My first guess though is the fan from the CPU.

Good luck.

[r3b00+]

Thanks for the input instronics, appreciated!
Im just going to establish exactly what the problem is, then tell her what parts she needs replacing!

Cheers

[r3b00+]

Thanks for the input instronics, appreciated!
Im just going to establish exactly what the problem is, then tell her what parts she needs replacing!

Cheers

[Und3ertak3r]

I havent had a proper look at it yet but it seems like this baby is a bit worse for wear!

that may be your underlining problem there.. certainly if it is running win9x a dicky FDD will cause the o/s to lock during read or write/verify operations. so insotronics advice is first.. Clean the FDD and check the CPU fan, oh and any of the air ducts.. are they full of fluff and dust? double check the seating of the memory modules / plugs for the fdd and the HDD .. that is about all you can easily do with a laptop.

all the best


cheers

[Und3ertak3r]

I havent had a proper look at it yet but it seems like this baby is a bit worse for wear!

that may be your underlining problem there.. certainly if it is running win9x a dicky FDD will cause the o/s to lock during read or write/verify operations. so insotronics advice is first.. Clean the FDD and check the CPU fan, oh and any of the air ducts.. are they full of fluff and dust? double check the seating of the memory modules / plugs for the fdd and the HDD .. that is about all you can easily do with a laptop.

all the best


cheers

[r3b00+]

Well funnily enough it is running win98! Go figure.
Right, so suggestions so far:

- Check CPU fan is working correctly
- Clean FDD
- Clean air ducts
- Check seating of RAM
- Check plugs of HDD and FDD

Any more suggestions?
Thanks again guys!

[r3b00+]

Well funnily enough it is running win98! Go figure.
Right, so suggestions so far:

- Check CPU fan is working correctly
- Clean FDD
- Clean air ducts
- Check seating of RAM
- Check plugs of HDD and FDD

Any more suggestions?
Thanks again guys!

[leakey]

had slightly similar problem before we were able to fix it by dismantling the laptop and reassembling it back...it appears taht you might have some lose connections inside.
Hope this helps

[leakey]

had slightly similar problem before we were able to fix it by dismantling the laptop and reassembling it back...it appears taht you might have some lose connections inside.
Hope this helps

[neta1o]

If the lines come back that may suggest that there is an intermittent video problem, You can test it by hooking up to external monitor. If lines go away, monitor problem, if not then video problem. Video problem along with the CPU fan instronics mentioned above are the most common laptop problems.

-neta1o-

Any more suggestions?

[neta1o]

If the lines come back that may suggest that there is an intermittent video problem, You can test it by hooking up to external monitor. If lines go away, monitor problem, if not then video problem. Video problem along with the CPU fan instronics mentioned above are the most common laptop problems.

-neta1o-

Any more suggestions?

[shadow_dancer]

hhmmm .. i have compaq presario too .. but never found h/w problem since i used it.
what OS she's running ? perhaps it had related with the OS .. who knows mate ?

www.compaq.com

[shadow_dancer]

hhmmm .. i have compaq presario too .. but never found h/w problem since i used it.
what OS she's running ? perhaps it had related with the OS .. who knows mate ?

www.compaq.com

[Alpa]

1. buy a new A:
2. check the ram , maybe look into a upgrade on the ram
3. Its dose sound like the fan is all gumed up , clean it even the ducts . (everthing)
4. Maybe some software is conflicting with each other .

Thats just some info .

-alpa

[Alpa]

1. buy a new A:
2. check the ram , maybe look into a upgrade on the ram
3. Its dose sound like the fan is all gumed up , clean it even the ducts . (everthing)
4. Maybe some software is conflicting with each other .

Thats just some info .

-alpa

[whitedragon]

may i asked what model of presario is the puter ?
cuz most of the times for weird problems with compaq computers are resolved with rompaqs
What rompaqs are? They are just bios update that fixes "most" of the Compaq problems so far.
so i'll suggest beside checking all the suggestions before to check compaq support page with the model and verify that you have the newest ROMPAQ. Like i said in others post before its the first shot that Compaq support will do ( I used to be one of them ;) )

[whitedragon]

may i asked what model of presario is the puter ?
cuz most of the times for weird problems with compaq computers are resolved with rompaqs
What rompaqs are? They are just bios update that fixes "most" of the Compaq problems so far.
so i'll suggest beside checking all the suggestions before to check compaq support page with the model and verify that you have the newest ROMPAQ. Like i said in others post before its the first shot that Compaq support will do ( I used to be one of them ;) )

[h@rdb@ll]

I've to agree with Whitedragon. The issue is to use a new ROMPAQ. A little while ago i did a update with the new ROMPAQ and since then i've having troubles with my USB. Keyboard and mouse didn't function propely anymore after the update. Also i've experience several weird problems that i can't related to anything. So my advice to you is, be carefull if you are updating your ROMPAQ. Check indeed your fan's like Instronics said, also check your RAM.

Good luck!!

[h@rdb@ll]

I've to agree with Whitedragon. The issue is to use a new ROMPAQ. A little while ago i did a update with the new ROMPAQ and since then i've having troubles with my USB. Keyboard and mouse didn't function propely anymore after the update. Also i've experience several weird problems that i can't related to anything. So my advice to you is, be carefull if you are updating your ROMPAQ. Check indeed your fan's like Instronics said, also check your RAM.

Good luck!!

[devilbile]

I own a Compaq Presario 1277 laptop, it has a problem with lines and artifacts due to the on board video. Unfortunetly you have to replace the motherboard to fix this problem. By the way if you do take the machine apart, do a search for a parts/troubleshooting manual on compaq's website so you don't break any parts when disassembling the thing. I have tons of info on this laptop and running Linux so if you need a hand bug me or something..

good luck

[devilbile]

I own a Compaq Presario 1277 laptop, it has a problem with lines and artifacts due to the on board video. Unfortunetly you have to replace the motherboard to fix this problem. By the way if you do take the machine apart, do a search for a parts/troubleshooting manual on compaq's website so you don't break any parts when disassembling the thing. I have tons of info on this laptop and running Linux so if you need a hand bug me or something..

good luck

[Alpa]

O i for to post agin on this thread so here it goes .....

i use to work at a compter repair shop .....
and compaq and hp was the most computer that i saw there .
see anything wrong with that ?
my bro says if you overclock it it will cause it to freez up and crash ...

-alpa

[Alpa]

O i for to post agin on this thread so here it goes .....

i use to work at a compter repair shop .....
and compaq and hp was the most computer that i saw there .
see anything wrong with that ?
my bro says if you overclock it it will cause it to freez up and crash ...

-alpa

[avenger_jcc]

I also worked in computer repair. I once a long long time ago bought a presario and had it for about 2 days. *Hint* If she owns one of these things I am truly sorry. I am with everyone else here - what it sounds like is a definate thermal issue. theres one other thing you can try after you clean it out - and this sounds FUNNY but its a proven working method. run it, and if it crashes let it cool then place it on top of a huge boxfan on high. the air will help cool it enough to experiment. if it still crashes after this, then your issue is not as likely to be a thermal one, as most of the heat in a laptop is dissapated thru the bottom. (thats where the mobo is)
I used to do this with a PC in the summer that I overclocked. The internal case temp would get too high on real hot days, so I slid the side off and bungied a fan to it. is it pretty? no. Quiet? no. effective? You bet.

[avenger_jcc]

I also worked in computer repair. I once a long long time ago bought a presario and had it for about 2 days. *Hint* If she owns one of these things I am truly sorry. I am with everyone else here - what it sounds like is a definate thermal issue. theres one other thing you can try after you clean it out - and this sounds FUNNY but its a proven working method. run it, and if it crashes let it cool then place it on top of a huge boxfan on high. the air will help cool it enough to experiment. if it still crashes after this, then your issue is not as likely to be a thermal one, as most of the heat in a laptop is dissapated thru the bottom. (thats where the mobo is)
I used to do this with a PC in the summer that I overclocked. The internal case temp would get too high on real hot days, so I slid the side off and bungied a fan to it. is it pretty? no. Quiet? no. effective? You bet.

[sigmund_freud]

hi, i have a presario 3000 n i just recently found out that one of the fans is not working(the one at the right side of the computer). its weird coz I always could feel the fan from the side of my laptop last time. I tried letting it running for few days(let the laptop get hot) but the fan still isnt working.
i did bring it to the shop few days ago though, without checking the repairman said there's no problem, the fan sometimes just aint working if it is not hot.
well, the repairman really sucks honestly...he didnt even check it, how if the fan really not working??
have any idea how to check??

Nb. my comp still running fine, never crash.

[nihil]

If the fan is temperature controlled there should be an option in your BIOS or in some special compaq management software on your machine, that will let you disable the control and have the fan always on.

Otherwise you should be at least able to set the temperature very low so that it does activate.

Either of those options should tell you if it is working.


:)

[sigmund_freud]

well, i tried to find the software...but i din see anything(compaq prob dun hav that kind of software) or i just couldnt find it, aw... i dont really understand about BIOS...:(
the fan still isnt working although ive let run for 3 straight days...
thanks anyway...I really appreciate it...

[nihil]

Well,

I checked the model, and yes, that fan is temperature activated and will only start if triggered by the right temperature.

Incidentally I would not recommend leaving laptops on for days at a time, they are just not designed for it.

Cheers

[sigmund_freud]

lol, thanks very much...
huh...so thats how it works..i'll follow ur advice, lol

[Und3ertak3r]

sigmund_freud,

Welcome to AO, You met nihil, he is a nice fellow, very helpful.. There are a few on the site like him, a rare and dieing breed..

Then there is me... I recycle defunct PC's.. send it to me for a eco-friendly recycling.. I disinfect the system to get rid of any bugs and Viruses that may still be carried.. not forgetting the eviction of any resident Dust Bunnies.. then find usable parts to use in other systems.. or perhaps parts to use in it.. .. oh I also remove any naked ladies that may be hidding on the HDD. this can be very time consuming..

OH...

two things..

Thread Hijacking is not popular.. with a problem it is a good idea to start a New thread. you can put a link to this if it helps the reader
Reopening an old thread is even less popular.. this one is over 2 years old

Best to read the Site FAQ.. it is a good guide..

Cheers