Plastic Nev

Hi Nev, first thing to try is see if it will go into safe mode or at least the start to safe mode. Turn it on, then keep tapping the F8 key fairly rapidly until a black screen with white letters appears. Once it does try selecting (up and down keys) "Last known good configuration" then hit the enter key. Let us know how you get on with that. Nev.

Hi again, can you give me first the exact model number of your Packard Bell notebook, just in case we need to go chasing for the drivers, best we do that before we go removing or uninstalling the drivers, so at least you will have the new drivers to install. Nev.

Well to answer at least one question, when the PC is shut down, it should automatically send the power supply into standby, therefore shutting off all power, including fans connected. The rest of it I will have to leave to someone who has more knowledge of Antec products. Nev.

There are two mugs here, one has just been emptied of coffee, by the other mug, me. Love your hair by the way, but I think I might have said that somewhere else before.

Hi Rob and welcome to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help. I think perhaps some other editing software may be the answer, there are plenty of free programs available that should allow files much longer than yours to be edited, however try this- Audacity: Free Audio Editor and Recorder For this program to handle MP3 format you will have to download and install into it the L.A.M.E. encoder, but don't worry, Audacity actually gives you the help to download and install it. Nev.

You may have to swap the monitor and keyboard plus mouse backward and forward to install the software which must be installed on both machines for it to work, but once that has been done, the data can be transferred from one to the other by using just the one computer with keyboard, monitor and mouse connected as the controlling machine. Please make sure before you buy, that the transfer cable you get is compatible with both XP and Windows 7. The other options are to use a large enough pen drive to collect the data from one machine, then swap keyboard etc, and pen drive to the other to transfer over. Nev.

It all depends on the motherboard type and whether it has facilities for control of case fans built onto it, if it has it will have corresponding sockets which should also be labelled as such, if it hasn't, then you will have to connect them direct to the PSU and put up with them running all the time. Though I did hear of someone connecting an ordinary room heating thermostat between the fans and power supply and mounting it inside the case, set to a maximum of around 24C. Connect the fans to the normally open contacts on the thermostat. (some do have N/O contacts, some don't) Nev.

Laptops do have overheat protection in general but do normally reset once cooled down. If the system had not reset then the laptop wouldn't work at all, however it does with the lead plugged in. That suggests either the heat has damaged the battery, or worse the printed circuit connections on the board. Not knowing the type of battery or its voltage, I can only generalise, but a test of the battery with a meter, or if possible a car headlight bulb would prove whether the battery is OK or not. If the battery proves OK then it will be a fault on the board. This is sometimes all part of the main motherboard or can be a separate charging board attached to the main board. Nev.

Hi and welcome to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help Werewolf. When you say a replacement unit, do you mean a replacement monitor or replacement computer? If it was the monitor that was replaced and is still showing the fault it must be within the computers graphics, either the on board or if fitted, a card. Considering it is still well within any guarantee period I would send the computer back rather than trying to fix the graphics, especially if it is on board and a possible hardware fault. Nev.

Hi newdog, have a look here- Gateway M-6315 Parts - Gateway M-6315 Replacement Parts/Accessories - Notebook/Laptop Parts Expert they may be able to help with a direct replacement for you, plus I see they have complete manuals plus a breakdown of how the laptop comes to bits to help you. Nev.

Hi have a look here- Philips DVD+RW Drive DVDRW416K: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo As you can see a full CD/DVD RW drive is not too expensive and will give you the ability to record to either CD or DVD blanks plus of course play both CD and DVD disks. all for less than £20, and may be cheaper in Europe or Spain, so can't be bad, I would buy one at that price if I didn't already have one:D Nev.

That's good news John, thanks for letting us know too, saves us chasing all over the net:D

Free ice cream!! when we want them to produce a copyright free operating system!! The cheek of 'em, huh, signed- disgruntled of Lancashire. Ps I can't even get down to London to get a free ice cream. Nev. (now where is that tongue in cheek smilie when you need it)

Hi Urchin, I take it you mean a separate TV tuner card plugged into a PCI or PCIE slot on the motherboard? If it is of an older manufacture, in other words made before the introduction of Windows7 it is more than likely not compatible for the Windows7 operating system. Do you have full details of the card, make and model? if so a search may find updated drivers that may let it work on Windows7 but if the card is more than two years old I doubt it. Nev.

Hi D1egend, and welcome to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help. I will leave this in case Dalao spots it and gets back to you, if not I suggest starting a new thread and describe in full exactly what your problem is, it may not be related to these now out of date posts above, there may well be newer drivers available or other updates anyway. I won't move this post, as on its own it does not convey enough information. Nev.

Hi Jimin, before going to the expense of a new PSU, do check the drivers first as Dalo suggested, if drivers or lack of correct drivers are the issue then a new PSU, although may be ideal for the job, will still not get it to work.

Hi, these are properly termed RF chokes or filters, and they are there as Ken says to prevent radio frequencies from passing through into other parts of the circuit. Considering they are nearly always placed in a power supply line, and for it to have burned through, it means something else has failed to create the high current that has blown it. A fault of that nature is not worth trying to follow through as there may well be other unseen damage that an incredible amount of work would be needed to find. The cost of that alone therefore means it is cheaper to buy another motherboard. Nev.

Hi again, if it is exactly the same model of motherboard you may be OK, but if it is a different model you may find the operating system will refuse to start. If that happens it will be because Windows will see a new environment and give a stop error. In this case the only cure is a Windows repair, which will mean having a full copy of the Windows operating system disk, and not just a recovery disk or disks. I assume it is as in your profile Windows Vista? Do you have the disk or can you obtain one? Let us know if you do find a problem with the operating system failing to start with the new motherboard. Nev.

If as Beeceebee suggests that you have upgraded to Windows7 from some other operating system, but the only drivers available are as you state are XP or Vista, then XP is unlikely to work at all. However Windows7 is actually just a better version of Vista so the Vista drivers stand a good chance of working OK. The other thing I think you may have meant, is that you have a graphics card that you wish to install in a Windows7 machine. As before the Vista driver stands a good chance of working, the XP very likely won't. Nev.

Hi Judy, without that password there may be only one way forward and that would be a complete reformat and reinstall Windows. That of course will delete everything so all files and folders will be lost. Nev.

Providing the shop did install a legal copy of Windows XP they should have placed a sticker with that product key on it, probably underneath the notebook. Have a look if it is there and says it is for XP as the original sticker for the Vista may still be there as well. Ignore that one and do not try the key on that Vista sticker. If there is no XP licence sticker or label, your only course is to take it back to the shop and make some very loud noises at them for not providing that key. Nev.

Hi Paul my guess at first is the movement itself may just have shaken that graphics card so that the contact strip isn't connecting properly. I know they are held in with the screw in the bracket, but there is that much weight on these cards it may just have moved a little. Shut the power off and remove the cover, remove the screw and then the complete card and replace it again, that should make sure all the connections are correct then try again. Nev.

There are a few possibilities here as well, first have you tried a system restore back to a time previous to this fault starting? Next is a question, are you having other problems with it, such as unwanted adverts or other things popping up? browser pages not going to where you think they should or anything else untoward? if so it could be malware related.

Hi, it does indeed look like the motherboard got hit, it may also have taken or damaged other things as well, the probable costs of replacing, first the motherboard, to then find the CPU also fried, then possibly the hard drive as well it may well be best to start again with a new PC. The hard drive may still be OK, and if so, any vital data can be recovered and transferred to the new machine if needed. Let us know which way you want to go and we can advise as needed. Nev.

By Heck JB, that is a very tidy desk top, even for a working environment, I will forgive the coffee mug, and the slightly untidy cables, ha ha. Nothing at all like mine here, bits of paper with stuff scribbled on 'em, pens and pencils, screwdriver and pliers. Don't ask why the tools. Nev.