Plastic Nev

This is a very useful guide to the BIOS, but only in general terms, as different BIOS manufacturers have different arrangements, settings, and means of access. This article only deals with one, but it does give an idea of how the BIOS works, its purpose, and some helpful hints and tips for improvements. Ultimate BIOS Guide: Every Setting Decrypted and Explained! | Maximum PC

Just be sure to leave the registry cleaner part of CCleaner alone, deleting registry files without full knowledge of them can be disastrous. Nev.

Hi Fred, so long as it is 2.5" and ATA, then go for the biggest and fastest you can afford. Have a look here, this should be a direct replacement. Western Digital Laptop hard drive HDD WD800BEVE

Have you changed the duff drive jumpers to "slave"? They were on CS

Hi Adam and welcome to Extreme Tech Support - Free PC Help. By what you describe it sounds like the drive itself may have died rather than just the operating system on it. To find out, can it be temporarily installed alongside the older but working drive as a secondary master, or primary slave? I am assuming the system is IDE here as you don't say. If it can't be done that way because of shortage of room, it can be connected externally however, if you obtain an external caddy for it, or at least an adapter cable to connect it to a USB port. If it will work at all, windows should recognise a mass storage device, if that is the case then you can recover your data, it should also show up in the BIOS once connected. Is the system IDE or SATA? if IDE you will have to set the drive to slave first if doing it that way.

Where exactly does this "click" sound come from? is it the speakers, or a mechanical sound from the modem? If from the modem, it could be a line fault which would mean getting a BT engineer to check it out. Is it on DSL via the normal telephone line, and if so are there any noticeable crackling sounds in the telephone handset?

This instructor video, is it available on line? A look at it might help us understand what is meant. Nev.

Hi jud, time has passed on since I last worked on this, so a re read of it all makes me realise I may not have picked up on the virus issue last time. You state everything dates back to that point in time when the infected memory stick was inserted. Even though your anti virus picked up on it, something may well have got in anyway. So, to be on the safe side I will ask you to try our malware procedure. If you already have one or more of the antimalware programs installed, first make sure they are fully up to date. Your computer appears to be infected with Malware. Malware is software designed to infiltrate or damage a computer system without the owner's informed consent. It is a combination of the words malicious and software. The expression is a general term used by computer professionals to mean a variety of forms of hostile, intrusive, or annoying software or program code. It is in your best interest to note the following: Please disable your resident security applications (such as AVG, Spybot, WinPatrol, etc.) before performing the below procedure so that they do not interfere with the process. Perform all the steps in the order listed to avoid any conflicts. If unsure, please stop and voice your doubts. You might be required to go offline during the disinfection process. Therefore, it is recommended to print off the instructions below for ease of reference. If you stick to the above guidelines, all should go smoothly. ================================================ STEP 1 Download ATF-Cleaner by Atribune. Save the file to your Desktop. Double-click on the file to run the program. On the Main tab, check the Select All button. Next, click on the Firefox tab (if applicable) and check the Select All button. Note: If you would like to preserve your saved passwords in Firefox, then click No at the corresponding prompt. Now, click on the Opera tab (if applicable) and check the Select All button. Note: If you would like to preserve your saved passwords in Opera, then click No at the corresponding prompt. Press the Empty Selected button and click OK to acknowledge the corresponding prompt. Click on the Exit button to quit the program. ================================================ STEP 2 Please click here to download Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware. Save the file to your Desktop. Double-click mbam-setup.exe and follow the prompts to install the program. At the end, make sure a check mark is placed next to: Update Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware Launch Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware [*]Click Finish. [*]The program will download and update itself if it finds the necessity to do so. Please allow this. [*]Once the program has loaded, select Perform full scan, then click Scan. Note: Depending on your computer specifications, the scan may take some time to complete. Please wait patiently and do not interrupt the process. [*]When the scan is complete, click OK, and then Show Results to view the results. [*]Make sure that every entry is selected, and click Remove Selected. [*]Restart your computer. ================================================ STEP 3 Please click here to download SUPERAntiSpyware (Free Version). Save the file to your Desktop. Double-click SUPERAntiSpyware.exe and follow the prompts to install the program. Open SUPERAntiSpyware. Under Configuration and Preferences, click the Preferences button. Click the Scanning Control tab. Under Scanner Options make sure the following fields checked: [*]Click the Close button to leave the control center screen. [*]On the main screen, under Scan for Harmful Software click Scan your computer. [*]On the left, make sure you check mark All the Fixed Drives. [*]On the right, under Complete Scan, choose Perform Complete Scan. [*]Click Next to start the scan. Please be patient while it scans your computer. [*]After the scan is complete, a Scan Summary box will appear with potentially harmful items that were detected. Click OK. [*]Make sure every entry has a check mark next to it and click Next. [*]A notification will appear that Quarantine and Removal is Complete. Click OK and then Finish to return to the main menu. [*]Restart your computer. ================================================ STEP 4 Please visit the ESET Online Scanner, using Internet Explorer to initiate the scan. Note: If you are running Windows Vista, then you will need Administrative privileges to complete the latter part of the procedure. To do so, right-click on the Internet Explorer icon in the Start Menu and select the Run As Administrator option in the shell context menu. Check mark the YES, I accept the Terms of Use box. Click the Start button. Click the Install button on the following screen. Click Start. This will will initialize and update the scanner engine. Check mark the box beside Remove found threats. Click the Scan button. This will start the scan. Please be patient while it is in progress. Restart your computer. ================================================ STEP 5 Click on Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools and select System Restore. Choose the radio button marked Create a Restore Point on the first screen and click Next. Give the restore point a name then click Create. The new point will be stamped with the current date and time. Keep a note of this so you can find it easily should you need to use System Restore. Next, click on Start > Run, type Cleanmgr and click on OK. Click on the More Options tab. Click the Clean Up button in the System Restore section to remove all previous restore points except the most recent one. This will remove any infected files that have been backed up by Windows. The files in "System Restore" are protected to prevent any programs changing those files. This is the only foolproof way to ensure the deletion of those files. Note: Do not clear restore points on a regular basis as doing so will clear all previous restore points even those that you may need. System Restore is a useful tool to revert your computer back to a working condition if something goes wrong. Re-enable all your security applications and please return here and tell us how the computer seems to be operating. Happy Safe Computing! http://extremetechsupport.com/forum/../images/additional-smilies/thumb.gif Close browsers before scanning Scan for tracking cookies Terminate memory threats before quarantining

Hi Kev, and welcome to free PC Help. It does indeed look like a hard drive issue, my first thought is to run a defrag first then see how you go from there. Next maybe to download C.Cleaner and run it in clean mode only, Do not run the reg cleaner part of it. Nev.

Here is a view from the other side of the above bridge which incidentally carries the rail connections to both Preston or Bolton and on to Manchester. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/plasticpig/IMGA0012.jpg

Hi Geo, Can you tell us what the program is that caused this crash please? In the mean time have a look here, there are seven pages, but you may find something helpful. Search The Knowledge Base Nev.

Still on the subject of bridges, this is known as Darwen Street Bridge, it is famous for the fact that the main girder stretching right across the road, is actually the longest unsupported plate girder in the UK or maybe even the world now. A plate girder is one made by riveting many plates together and was the only method available when the bridge was built, the process of long rolling the "Rolled Steel Joist" or RSJ hadn't yet been invented. The other girders in the bridge are in fact supported by pillars, just this front one isn't. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/plasticpig/IMGA0005.jpg

Ok here are two photos of a rather unique situation in my home town of Blackburn and does quite often come up as a question in the old pub quizzes. The question being, "where in Blackburn is the road sandwiched between water". http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/plasticpig/MoreBlackburnandDarwen013.jpg The bridge carries the Leeds to Liverpool canal, however, the road, aptly named Aqueduct road, also crosses the river Darwen at the same place, and so is sandwiched between the canal and the river. In this shot you can see the river bed going up to and under the road. http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y282/plasticpig/MoreBlackburnandDarwen014.jpg

I know this thread is now going way off topic, but can't help but mention something about a certain choo choo from chatanooga, with you having mentioned it Ian. It concerns a chap and his friend who were on holiday in India. The chap, we will call him by his surname of Purdon, while there found on sale a beautiful pair of locally hand crafted shoes, they had been made by a real expert and so after some haggling over the price he bought them. Later that day, Purdon and his friend visited one of the local and fairly famous mosques. as is well known, you must leave your footware outside, so they both did so. Unfortunately, when they came out again he found his new shoes totally ruined and chewed to peices, a local person informed them it was an old but well known tomcat that had done the damage and then run off. Not at all pleased with the outcome they walked back down the street to see if the craftsman could do something either in replacement shoes or perhaps a repair. Just as they turned a corner, an old and well battle hardened moggie walked across the street, at which point, his friend shouted -- Wait for it-- "Purdon me boy, is that the cat that chewed your new shoes?" Sorry, I will go away now. :D

Hi again Ian, a standard ATX PSU should start up if you short pin 14 (green) to any black ground pin on the 20 pin molex connector.

Hi again Sarah, and good morning. Have a look round some of the retail sites to give you an idea of prices. However I have found a nice looking one on Amazon for you to look at here- HP-DVD1040E EXTERNAL DVD REWRITER DVD+-R/RW/RAM/DL: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo

Hi Sarah, back to your previous question then, any memory or pen drive that plugs into a USB port or socket will do, but as a device you may wish to use for other file transfers later, I would go for the one with the highest memory capacity you can afford. However, I recommend also obtaining a USB disk drive so you can in the future use it for other CD or DVD media, such as other software or music. Nev.

Hi Ian, the only thing I can see now is some possible connection differences, I suggest digging your multi meter out of your work tool box and checking the voltages on the connection pins, see if there are any differences between the two PSUs.

Thanks for the update, and please let us know how you get on. Nev.

Can I just add, there are several on line secure file storage facilities as well as Photobucket, some where you can have either full privacy of content, or also offer limited sharing, say for instance you wish other members of the family to see certain photo's but not the general public. The beauty of these facilities is that you can store any type of file, whereas Photobucket only stores photographs and video. One I use, which is totally free, and has a good reputation, though only my opinion of course, is- Free File Hosting Made Simple - MediaFire

Well apart from agreeing with all of the above up to some point or other, and just adding that society has been falling downhill since the late forties early fifties. (OK I was born around then, is it my fault?:D) My latest gripe is about two faced breweries, on one hand they complain about the number of pubs closing down, yet on the other, they themselves are closing them without even looking for a new landlord to take over when the previous one leaves. My local brewery has done just that with what have been very good and lively locals close to me, leaving those who like a beer now and then, to have to walk quite a distance to the nearest one still open. Thankfully not owned by the local brewery, or they would have closed that one too. The two faced hypocrites that they are. They make more profit selling cheap booze to the supermarkets so arn't interested in their tied houses any more.

I agree with Zinglebarb here and would even advise at the least borrowing a PSU if possible to prove the point. Until we are sure, I recommend not even trying again with the present PSU, it could fail catastrophically and damage other components if it is truly on the way out.

I also wondered about the fact that it will quickly reboot and continue for a similar length of time. The only explanation I have for that would be the length of time taken for all parts of the system to turn on and start running after a reboot, before you start using it again. This time could allow the heat build up to dissipate enough. I would be looking at better cooling fans on both the CPU and the GFX, just in case those you have aren't quite up to the job. Especially so as you say it lasts longer with the covers off, this points also at the exhaust fan not clearing perhaps a warm spot in the case. Have a look at air flow inside and if there are any obvious obstructions such as cable bundles etc.

Hi Bugsy, I am not too sure how it is done in Vista, but I would think it's not dissimilar from XP but have you any child protection enabled in your browser at all? Check at what level if so, as a stop on Amazon or specific pages from Amazon is not unlikely in the settings, to protect against say adult content or worse etc. As an aside, if you haven't got this sort of protection, depending on the age of course, I would set some up, just in case your problem isn't related to that in the first place. Nev.

That is excellent Jane, well done, the map is great and will be of much interest to all following his progress. I wish him all the best as well. Nev.