Apparent 'puter disk drive meltdown!!

“My PC at home looks to have major problems.

I was using WORD and it locked up. (that happens a lot and is no biggie)

However, as I restarted it I could only watch in horror as it the XP opening screens, it said it was reconfiguring (or something) and gave a disk No.

I thought WTF!!!!??!??!!! I had National Geographic TOPO! mapping disks in both the DVD and CD drive.

So when it had restarted, I tried to access my National Parks disk. No disk to be found -- apparently it is ruined from whatever the hell the computer did?!??!

I took it out of the DVD drive. Tried to access the CD drive, which won't even open. I thought it had a place you could push in a pin or something to open it, but couldn't find that.

On the computer, going under "managing devices," only one numbered drive is showing up. Am not sure which one it was (had to go to work -- deadline day -- busy since, but I wanted to get these questions and exasperations out there!!!)

Would a virus do this #&%!$? Just mechanical problems? I have a Compaq (yadda, yadda, I know your Compaq opinions, but it has served me well since Nov. of 2000. got enough unexpected expenses without being told "go buy a new one." )

WHAT TO DO NEXT, WHEN I GET HOME AT THE END OF TODAY??!?!”

“Take a sledge hammer to it!!!



LOL....Hi Liz!!!!”

“Probably your TOPO is fine.

Try rebooting. You may have a power issue with one of your drives.”

“Probably not a virus either.”

“You didn't click on one of V's links did you?”

“didnt you just have PC troubles a few months ago?”

“The 'puter may be dorked, but the TOPO cd's should be fine.

I suggest a hammer!”

“didnt you just have PC troubles a few months ago?

Yeah, you gotta watch out for those Compaqs.”

“Try this:

http://www.big-boys.com/articles/bustcomputer5.html”

“Old folks ain't no mind fiddling wit newfangled computers.


LOL

As proof, just as I was reading this string my compac started giving me some trouble. But I blame Florida Power & Light(FPL). I gotta get out and buy a battery back-up.
last edited: 6/28/05 1:10:13 PM”

“My guess is, you had both your DVD and CD-ROM drives on the same ATAPI (or IDE) bus, and the master drive (probably the CD-ROM) is toast. To find out, do this:

Shut down the computer.
Unplug it from the wall, just to be safe.
Remove the cover.
Unplug the power and IDE cable from the CD-ROM.
Change the jumpering on the DVD to whatever setting is "only one drive on this bus" or "master". This may be a function of the cable, but in a system that old I doubt it.
Put the cover back on.
Plug computer back into the wall.
Power on, and see if it works.

If you discover that the DVD drive is the master, just unplug the power from the CD-ROM. But I'm guessing that since the DVD player is a later add-on (it is, right?) that it will be the slave drive.

You may need a new CD-ROM drive.”

“Before you do all that, just reboot. Shake it a bit. Could be a loose cable. I recommend an over the shoulder shake followed by a round and round motion. Ever get stuck candy out of a machine?? Use a similar striking technique as well. It'll work. Trust me.”

“Oh, and Compaqs are big, steaming piles of horse crap. Thanks.”

“bit - To be fair, they used to be good, before they were horse crap.”

“Everyone around here got Compaqs a few years ago. Then they rushed into the next replacement cycle to get rid of them before they were out of warranty. After the first year at least one person's HD fried every week. Mine was one of them...

Your CDs are fine, don't worry.”

“Try safe mode. Use last known good config.”

“I've had a Compaq P.O.S. for several years now but it's served me well. I also have XP and have used the "system restore" application a couple of times which takes your computer back to the system settings of a previous date. That always seemed to do the trick for me when I've had problems.”

“It could also be a controller card gone bad.”

“Try using linux. Then you'll never now if it's broke or not. It always acts goofy.”

“I can feeeeeel the Compaq love. LOL!

Yep, the hard drive crashed a year ago or so. Have had problems with what the techie did since then bastid.

I will have to try a bunch of these suggestions. Now that I think about it, there is now an air conditioner on that same outlet, along with 3 trillion computer things into the outlet strip (meant to run cord for the air conditioner elsewhere, but it got hot and I forgot!)

Bit, both CD and DVD are original on it -- it came that way.

Yeah, I didn't have time to just do the "unplug" it thing.

Also interesting -- with both my old monitor and now my new monitor, I have to hit the "on" button on the monitor at just the right time when starting up, or it won't come on and just goes to sleep”

“Well at least you learned your lesson about Compaqs.

Trade it in for a sturdy used Packard Bell.

eMachines rock too. Maybe you can get a good deal somewhere.”

“don't feel too bad about having a Compaq lizs. I bought one in 98(?) and just replaced it recently with a cheapo e-machine. The kids pretty well trashed the Compaq and at the end it was like, work for 10 minutes, reboot, reboot again, repeat. Of course when I bought my Compaq I was replacing an old HP 486. For some of us it is just our destiny to always be at the tailing edge of technology, due to finances.”

“Aw man! Now I feel bad. That wasn't a shot at "cheap" machines. I might by an inexpensive machine myself soon for some specific tasks.

btw - Dell has some low cost machines that aren't too bad if inexpensive is what you're looking for.”

“I can't get the CD drive to open. The DVD drive will open but -- will let me put a disk in other than the one supposedly trashed. Hold on....

The only disks showing up are C and A (floppy).

Let me see what happens with a card reader (she said, with fear)...

OK, I don't have a card in it, but it did show up.

I'll need to work more on it later... ugh, meeting. And preparing for a three-day week, following by a week's vacation. No rest for the weary...”

“Probably either a dead CD drive or a loose connection. Do you see a light on the drive? (if there is one)

You can open the case and check the wires leading to it.”

“Left it just plain ole unplugged overnight.

Turned on this morning

"Updating disk drives 1,3 and 5" (something like that -- I see it listed three)

The CD and DVD drives are back.

I was trying to figure out if there's a "D" drive missing. I thought there was a drive with that letter containing the memory for "system restore." Can't say that I've remembered seeing that drive listed lately (not just something you normally look for if you're me), but I don't see it now. Unless it is not just listed, unless doing a hard drive defrag or something.”

“How long had you had the computer on when the failure occurred?”

“Look on the cover plate of the CD Drive for a tiny hole, take a paper clip and straighten it out, now insert the paper clip into the eye of anyone who tells you to buy another Compaq.
last edited: 6/29/05 8:53:46 AM”

“LOL@mtnsteve, good one!

These 'continuing adventures of lizs' threads are great entertainment! ;-)

It's amazing one woman can get into so many pickles.”

“Well, one of the problems has been solved on the old Compaq -- (the circa Nov. 2000 machine is still operating, sorry, you Compaq naysayers!)

First of all, let me say both CD and DVD drives were working for most of the summer, mystery of mysteries! So I wasn't too concerned while they were working. This fall, they "reconfigured" and wouldn't work.

Dryfoot was meticulously looking it over yesterday. He found that one drive was a "slave" to the other drive. The slave drive was not working. He switched them around... and voila, I now have (I think this is right) the DVD drive working. We tried putting a disk in to write to it, which wouldn't work. So I need to either get another CD drive, or get an application to write to DVD, which dryfoot might have.

I am sooooooo happy! I can use mapping software again -- which is a thing I just love to mess with, LOL!

I had to come back here and look at the various diagnosises. I see it was much as the (currently missing) bitpusher said above. BRING BACK BITPUSHER!!!”