KenB

Hi and welcome to ExTS How much RAM do you have in this machine ? Do you know how to get access to the RAM modules ?

Hi and welcome to ExTS Do you get any POST beeps ? ( one is normal ) Can you boot up Safe Mode? Switch on and constantly tap F8 about once per second. Select Safe Mode from the list of options. If this is XP - do you have the original installation disk ( not recovery disks ) ?

Hi and welcome to ExTS PlasticNev ( moderator ) usually has an idea or two when it comes to sound related problems. Check back to see if he has added to what Kr5fx has suggested already.

Let's know how you get on.

Hi and welcome to ExTS This doesn't sound good at all. DO NOT under any circumstances attempt to switch this machine on again. Take the panel off and see if you can locate where the "flash" came from. There will be burning / charring. I would be inclined to send the motherboard back - they can be faulty from new. Check the PSU for burning - it may smell too !!

Hi and welcome to ExTS Was this you .......or the machine that made the decision ? On my Acer if I plug in an external monitor I can toggle to it by using Fn + F5 Take a look on the "F" keys there will be blue icons - you are looking for the one with 2 monitors.

Hi Rosmon Good to hear that you managed to change the router username and password. Sorry for the mix-up in the earlier posts - I thought for some reason it was a connection problem :) Good Luck :)

Keep us informed :)

The username that you changed was the login name to get into the router software. The name that you see when you click on the icon in the bottom right is the SSID ( Service Set Identifier ) This is the name of your Wireless Network - it is broadcast by your router. The names of other networks that you can see ( your neighbours ) are their SSID being broadcast by their routers. It is possible to change the SSID - but this will not make the router any more secure. No. If, when you connect to the network for the first time, you are asked for a Network Key ( password if you like ) then your network is secure. The time to worry is if the network shows as "Unsecured" - then we need to do something about it. No - not at all. The username and password that you have changed is the one that gives you access to the router settings - nothing else. I hope this clears things up for you ?

Hi Rosmon Sorry for the mixup :) I had posted before your last post - but somehow I had made it invisible !! Please see post #5 ( the one before this ) I have deleted your second post with the IPconfig /all data.

Hi Rosmon As you are concerned about the data provided - I have made the previous post invisible to all except forum staff :) I think I have gone off at a tangent here ..... Do you have access to the internet via your Wireless connection ? If you go into the router using the 192.168.0.1 method and look for this page: You should be able to change the username and password there. You would need to click on "Save Settings"

No. The point of using an adapter is that it is temporary - just to access the drive say to get data off it. It plugs into the USB port and just hangs there. Functional - but not permanent. If you wanted something a little more permanent - convert the hard drive into an external drive - then I suggest an external enclosure ( caddy ) These are more expensive. There is no guarantee that by attaching your drive to another PC's USB port the drive will be able to be read. It depends on what damage was done. There is a very good chance that it will be accessible :)

Hi and welcome to ExTS Try this: ( I am doing this on Vista - hope it holds good for Win7 ) Start > right click on "Documents" > Properties > Location. Change the C:\ in the Location to D:\ ( or whatever letter your HDD has been allocated ) You will probably be prompted regarding creating a folder and moving all documents across to the new location. Then test it by saving a new Word document. It should end up in the new location. If there is a problem there is a "Restore Defaults" button that will allow you to move things back.

Hi John If you buy an adapter you are going to need to use another computer with it - not the damaged one. You will need to take the hard drive out to do this. Adapter - click here

They have their uses .........sometimes :) Good to hear you are up-and-running again :)

Hi I have just come back from France - with my caravan :) Some campsites have free wifi connection - no need for proxy.

Do you have a voltmeter to test the output voltage of your mains adapter? Or a friend with a Dell machine to borrow one from ? Do you have a battery charge indicator - if so what does it show ? ( full / empty )

Martyn - can you post the results rather than a clickable file please? I would rather see a table of results in the thread. Thanks.

Flattery will get you anything :) You are welcome. I have just tried making a file Read Only - it CAN be deleted.

Snodge182, If you want help with this there is no problem :)

Hi Sue With Read Only checked it is still possible to delete the file :)

Hi, At the moment I know Starbuck ( our security expert ) is recommending MS Security Essentials. I know he uses it and so do I. Never had a problem with it - it updates itself daily ............just install it and let it do it's thing :) http://windows.microsoft.com/en-US/windows/products/security-essentials You will need to know if you have a 32 or 64 bit Operating System

Hi Sue That is different. I don't think it can be done with a flash drive. What you can do is right click on the file > Properties and put a check against "Read Only" This will prevent the file from being written to. If you save it to CD this is a better way of securing the data. There should always be 2 or 3 copies of important data. TrueCrypt will prevent others accessing the flash drive but once accessed the file could still be deleted.

Hi I am sure that you appreciate our position and I thank you for being so understanding. As we have explained - there is software freely available to allow access to another machine and you may wish to let your ex. know. It is a simple matter of removing the software from her machine if her step-dad has access this way. I think it best all round if this thread is now closed.

Hi I have had a quick look and cannot locate the flash codes for dell battery indicator. Try taking the battery out and using the mains adapter. I assume that the LED indicator goes out ? Re-seating the battery may correct the problem - does it ?