Buddy's PC screwed up

**DaGeek** · 04-02-2010, 08:38 AM

A buddy of mine has a Dell laptop, and it's having some major difficulties. For background info, he hasn't always treated it terribly well, and he's had it for about three months now. He's not great with computers, so I'm not sure that he did any spyware/virus scans. I'm honestly not sure what the cause of this issue is, whether it's a virus or (he just told me today) he says he left a semi-powerful magnet on his computer right over the harddrive (

). Like I said, not great with computers.

Anyway, here's the problem:

The computer will not go into Windows, no matter what, not even on Safe Mode or with trying to boot from the disc drive. My other friend and I have tried everything we can think of, including all the different setup options, rebooting from a restore disc and an original Windows 7 disc, etc., and we can't get even a command prompt to reformat. I ran a diagnostic test (well, about 2/3 of one --- it froze before it finished), and it gave me at least one, if not two, error numbers to give to Dell. Since we're in Iraq, the chances of my friend contacting Dell are fairly low, at least for a while. The issue when it tries to go into Windows is that it will freeze at the blue-tinted screen that would normally load a login prompt. The mouse is also completely unable to move. The cursor shows up on the screen (even in the Setup menu when booting), but there's no way to make it move. The keyboard, however, is functional.

Anyone got any suggestions? Could this be caused by that magnet, and, if it is, is there any hope?

Cam42 · 04-02-2010, 08:54 AM

Can you get to his BIOS screen?

Is there a working computer around that you could use to download Ubuntu? And a blank CD or DVD?

**DaGeek** · 04-02-2010, 12:03 PM

I'm not sure if I can get to the BIOS or not. Walk me through it, please, as a refresher? I haven't messed with my BIOS for a while.

There are working computers, but nowhere near that kind of bandwidth. Our internet here is barely faster than dial-up. He doesn't care about anything on the hard drive, so no need to try to recover data.

Cam42 · 04-02-2010, 12:11 PM

Turn on the laptop. Immediately after pressing the power button, mash delete, esc, or one of the f keys.

If all else fails, you may want to try Damn Small Linux, or Knoppix.

tigerfan88 · 04-03-2010, 09:17 PM

Yeah, usually on Dell, I think the BIOs key is F2 or something like that.

As for the magnet, it's entirely possible that it has messed up the HDD and that it is on its last legs. You said you ran a diagnostic test--was that on the hard drive? You might want to try finding out the brand of hard drive and then download a diagnostic tool. Burn that to a disk and then boot into it. I did that recently and used the disk to determine that my hdd was failing.

JeffZTB · 04-07-2010, 09:11 PM

First off, when you turn the computer on, a screen that says Dell and has some trademark logos should come on, as well as a BIOS version. Usually it gives you a key combo to get into the BIOS settings, usually ctrl alt delete or f2 works. If the screen doesnt come up, chances are, your friend has a fried motherboard on his hands and he would be well off buying a new computer. If it does come up, it's likely a hard drive problem.

If the screen came up and you got into the BIOS settings, go to the tab at the top that concerns your hard drive. You can usually run some sort of diagnostic from there to see if there's any response, this should give you a good idea of what's wrong. If it is the hard drive, a new one isnt that cheap and they're pretty easy to install.

If it isnt the hard drive, a virus is a possibility. Download a tool that allows you to scan your hard drive for viruses (most major virus protection services have one if you dig for it, or you can just google it and find one you like, but be careful in doing so). Put the program on a disc and boot to that, like the poster above said. This should help clear up any possible viruses.

Concerning magnets, there is a chance that this fried a few vital components, such as the RAM, or could have caused a failure in generally any capacitor on the motherboard. If the solutions above dont seem to help, just get a new computer. And try building one yourself, saves a ton of money.

Cam42 · 04-08-2010, 05:27 PM

Building a PC can't be too practical in Iraq...

**SporkV** · 04-08-2010, 05:35 PM

and since when is it feasible to build your own laptop?
I was under the impression it was not very doable...

***Art*** · 04-08-2010, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TFK14

and since when is it feasible to build your own laptop?
I was under the impression it was not very doable...

It is very doable. It is not very practical, though. I think there are a lot of benefits to buying a laptop as opposed to building one, unlike with a desktop.

Cam42 · 04-08-2010, 08:08 PM

You can buy a "barebones" model from newegg and add your own RAM, HDD, optical drives, etc.