Help re start up???

[Guest]

HI all, hoping someone can help me out here. I've come back from a few months
holiday when my computer was working fine, and now after having my sis in law
stay the computer does not start up until after many attempts at rebooting.
When you turn the computer on it makes noises but doesnt seem to click over
properly, we have had to resort to rebooting often 6 or 7 times before it
seems to click over. Once into the computer itself it seems to be working ok.
I am thinking she's picked up a virus from a website at some point, but
Norton is not picking anything up in our searches. Do you think it's a virus
or just a problem with the computer itself??? Any help would be greatly
appreciated.

 

[Malke]

HI all, hoping someone can help me out here. I've come back from a few
months holiday when my computer was working fine, and now after having
my sis in law stay the computer does not start up until after many
attempts at rebooting. When you turn the computer on it makes noises
but doesnt seem to click over properly, we have had to resort to
rebooting often 6 or 7 times before it seems to click over. Once into
the computer itself it seems to be working ok. I am thinking she's
picked up a virus from a website at some point, but Norton is not
picking anything up in our searches. Do you think it's a virus or just
a problem with the computer itself??? Any help would be greatly
appreciated.

That's a classic symptom of a failing power supply. What happens is that
the power supply doesn't have enough "juice" to get the hard drive up
and spinning all the way. After numerous restarts, the drive has enough
momentum to boot the operating system. To test, swap out the power
supply with a known-working one.

Of course, your sis-in-law could have picked up viruses, but that
wouldn't affect the hardware. You can test for computer cleanliness by
going through these steps:

http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/page2.html#Removing_Malware

Malke

 

[Guest]

Stupid question, but i'm a bit of a computer dope..how do i go about 'swap
out the power supply with a known-working one.'

Thanks for the advice

 

[Malke]

Stupid question, but i'm a bit of a computer dope..how do i go about
'swap out the power supply with a known-working one.'

It's not a stupid question. I'm assuming this is a desktop. If it's a
laptop, you'll need to contact the laptop mftr.'s tech support for
repair/replacement.

I Googled "how to install a power supply" and got a lot of links. Here
are a few that have pictures:

http://www.build-your-own-computer-tips.com/install-a-power-supply.html
http://compreviews.about.com/od/tutorials/ss/DIYPSU.htm
http://www.smartcomputing.com/Edito...cle=articles/2004/w1510/28w10/28w10.asp&guid=

If you are uncomfortable opening your computer (or don't have a spare
power supply lying around for testing and don't want to buy one unless
you're sure), take the machine to a professional computer repair shop
(not your local equivalent of BigStoreUSA).

Malke

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the advice. If it is the power supply, how much do u think that
would set me back to repair??

I wouldnt have a clue how to check it so i'll have to take it to a repair
shop.

 

[Daphne Foldes]

Hello Ishy

A decent Power Supply costs about $40. Some are higher and some lower. I am able to change the Power Supply myself in about 30 minutes and I am no expert. I presume that pros can do it in much less time.

Take it to be changed to a big store that is reputable and I am guessing that it should not cost you very much. Big reputable stores are reasonable when it comes to repair of this type. And you will also have a peace in mind that it is done properly and honestly

Bye