Tables 11.1 through 11.14 contain common problems and possible solutions.
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
Dead computer (nothing happens when you press the power button). |
|
Boot Error Messages | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
ntldr missing or non-system disk or disk error, or similar message. |
|
OS not found. |
|
Computer locks up while booting. |
|
Computer boots directly to Safe Mode. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
Windows won’t shut down properly. |
|
Compaq Presario won’t shut down properly. |
|
Computer runs badly; might lock up, give random error messages, etc. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
Windows won’t install. |
|
2000 or XP installation hangs during hardware detection phase. |
|
Windows 98 error message: Windows Setup requires `largest executable program size’ to be at least 442368 bytes to run. |
|
Program won’t install. |
|
Driver installation unsuccessful. |
|
Hardware not detected when installation is attempted. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
Computer runs hot. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
No video. |
|
Video at low resolution with splotchy colors. |
|
Artifacts (parts or shapes of windows continue to appear on screen after the window is closed), other unwanted spots appear on screen. |
|
Line appears on screen. |
|
One or more colors missing. |
|
Problems with video and display settings. No choices in either resolution or color depth, or both. |
|
One parameter decreases as the other one is increased. |
|
The image is odd-shaped. |
|
The page displays unusable or poor quality video. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
No sound |
|
Bad sound. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
Printer won’t print. |
|
Print quality is bad. Printer prints nonsense characters and/or prints on every page without stopping. |
|
One or more colors missing. Printed documents have streaks. Printer prints too light. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
Certain files won’t open. |
|
Entire folders won’t open. |
|
Disk drive not recognized. |
|
Files open, but nonsense characters appear. |
|
Entire partitions or drives don’t open. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
Expansion cards don’t work or work poorly. |
|
External devices don’t work or work poorly. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
System reports bad sectors. |
|
Hard drive crashes. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
Change in fan noise. |
|
Strange noises coming from speakers. |
|
Symptom | Check and/or Try |
---|---|
You cannot connect to the ISP—dial-up or broadband. |
|
| |
You can connect to an ISP, but no Web pages appear. |
|
Your home page changed. |
|
The wrong e-mail program or Web browser appears when you connect to the Internet. |
|
Data transfer speed is slow. |
|
The connection gets dropped frequently. |
|
You can’t get your e-mail. |
|
You can’t download attachments. |
|