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Thread: I'm an Amatuer-This is WAY beyond my pc knowledge.

  1. #1
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    Unhappy I'm an Amatuer-This is WAY beyond my pc knowledge.

    Bought my HP 11/01,I depend on hp's help and support.Problem:H/S remote ass. wouldn't work, emailed hp, they told my to delete a certain file. Didn't work. HP-do a undestructive recovery. Couldn't get into my PC at all. HP-do a destructive recovery. Did that, could get into my computer, but some things respond differently. I have a cable modem but it takes up to 2 min. for a page to load. I have a lot of error reports, these 3 are the main ones.4 ACPI %2: ACPI BIOS is attempting to read from an illegal IO port address (%3), which lies in the %4 protected address range.-7000 Service Control Manager The %1 service failed to start due to the following error:%2-11 Cdrom no help. The acpi is the one I get the most.HP refuses to give me any more help. I'm about ready to give up on this computer stuff! Can someone PLEASE help me? (there is no BIOS update for my pc.) XP home edition.Hewlett-Packard Pavilion,Intel(R) Celeron(TM) CPU1200MHz, 1.20 GHz,128 MB of RAM,Used space-7.62 GB,Free-25.2 GB.

  2. #2
    Super Moderator Super Moderator Big Booger's Avatar
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    TONYA,

    First try this,
    Boot into your BIOS,
    HP BIOS (Pavilion)
    Enter the BIOS: Press F1 during the blue HP screen for setup.

    Try changing your BIOS to default settings then save and exit. I dont know your particular BIOS but I am sure it will be in the column to the far right of the screen. Just looking around in the bios hitting the left and right arrow keys and up and down.

    Once you have reset the BIOS settings and saved them. Reboot the machine. See if it works.

    If that does not work for you,
    Then try doing another destructive restore. If that does not work I recommend you to do the following:

    This is a BIOS issue. Basically you need to contact HP again, this time, tell them you don't want the support you want to return the defective unit, ask them to issue you a RMA (return merchandise authorization). YOu might have to pay for shipping, but at least you'd get hopefully a new PC, that is undamaged. If they give you any shit, tell them a sob story. Go on and on about how you trusted their company and they are letting you down, you don't know much about PCs etc... etc... etc...
    Let them know you are totally disappointed with your computing experience. You expect the best out of a top company, and when you need them the most they are letting you down etc...

    Hopefully all will go well and you will get a new PC, and all you had to pay for was the 40-50 dollar shipping fee. Just think now you have a PC that is 1 year old, you get a brand new one for 40 to 50 bucks, not to shabby.

    If you dont want to go that route, you could try returning the Pc to the place of purchase. If you got it from walmart, you might have some success.
    Did you by chance purchase the extended warranty plan through your PC retailer, wherever you purchased it? If so, you might want to read that contract and see if they pay the shipping, if they do in home service etc...
    Please keep us updated on your progress and don't give up!
    Hope that helps,
    BB

    One other thing, what is the model and brand of your PC.
    HP Pavilion 786X? or something like that?
    That would help a lot in finding the solution to your problem.

  3. #3
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    Blond Moment

    Ok, I admit that I'm blond, but I didn't think I ever acted like it!! It didn't even occur to me to return the darn thing! Thanks for that piece of "technical" advice.(how do I backup onto a floppy before I do anything?) Thanks!! I've already tried setting the BIOS back to default.
    hp pavilion v50-model #XT963

  4. #4
    Super Moderator Super Moderator Big Booger's Avatar
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    Dont forget to backup the following:
    Favorites,
    Contact lists from outlook
    documents,
    pictures,
    etc...

    To do this simply pop in a floppy and move the files from your HDD to your floppy drive. The trick is finding where these files are in your HDD.
    So to find favorites
    C:\Documents and Settings\YOURUSERNAME\Favorites

    To get outlook contacts:
    Try this site:
    http://www.outlook-express-backup.com/

    Documents,
    Simply go to your documents folder and drag and drop the files you want to save into your floppy. Make sure to check the size, floppy disks can only store 1.44Mb of data. So you might need to go get a 10-30 pack, depending on how much data you have.

    Pictures,
    Same as documents. Just watch the file size.

    If you had a CDR or CDRW drive you could back it all up on one disk, using a burning program like easy cd creator or NERO. Much faster and easier.
    Hope that helps,
    and good luck with returning your defective PC.
    BB
    Before sending it back MAKE SURE TO FORMAT THE DRIVE USING THE DESTRUCTIVE RESTORE. That should get rid of any personal information and protect your privacy.

  5. #5
    Gold Member harrytb's Avatar
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    Originally posted by Big Booger

    Before sending it back MAKE SURE TO FORMAT THE DRIVE USING THE DESTRUCTIVE RESTORE. That should get rid of any personal information and protect your privacy.
    nice tip there BB.
    i must admit,i would have never thought of that.

    imagine how many others don't properly erase all their personal details when sending stuff like P.Cs back.

    ill be back soon,
    just watching some paint dry.

  6. #6
    The Beast Master TZ Veteran PIPER's Avatar
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    Question

    Tonya,

    after you ran the recovery cd furnished by hp, did the computer function normally? excluding your cable connection of course.

    Next, did your cable company furnish any kind of software that may need to be reinstalled? It may be as simple as calling your cable provider for help getting their equipment reconfigured. HP's
    recovery cd should have put your puter back to factory specs at time of shipment.
    Last edited by PIPER; August 10th, 2002 at 05:43 AM.

  7. #7
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    My pc didn't come with a recovery cd. My hp came with a parition-based system recovery. According to the flyer that came with my pc, hp no longer sends recovery cd's with there pc's. I didn't think I had a internet problem. Is that why the pages load so slow? They didn't put anything but the cable modem on my pc. I have done the undestrctive recovery twice, and the destructive recovery once. It still didn't run very well, but it did run better for a short time. The store where I bought my hp, will only exchange it for 30 days after you buy it. Hp's policy is: If there is a problem with your pc they will refund 100% the first 3 months. 85% for 3-6 months, 55% for 6-9 months, and 35% for 9-12 months. This is my first pc, I had never even been near one until 11/23. Before I did anything on my computer I would read everything I could on the subject before I did anything. I didn't know I had a problem until I learned more about computers. I thought the error messages were my mistakes Now that I know how to go into the pc and find out when, where and what the error had to do with, I know they were not my mistakes.

  8. #8
    Super Moderator Super Moderator Big Booger's Avatar
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    Tonya,
    YOu dont want a refund you want a replacement unit, or a repair. They tell you that refund business to scare you away from trying to get your PC replaced or repaired. They will give you a refund and it is scaled by the time of use..
    Another thing you might need to hurry up and do is get an extended warranty from HP, if they have one.

    READ BELOW TO GET A FULL UNDERSTANDING
    HP unit exchange service

    In the event of a hardware failure in the computer itself, we will send you a refurbished replacement computer equivalent to or with higher performance than your original system. When it arrives, pack the defective computer in the replacement's box and return it to HP using the enclosed prepaid mailer.

    Send-in repair service

    Service can be obtained by shipping your PC to the HP Central Repair Center. The PC will be repaired and returned to you.

    ATTENTION: USE OF THE SOFTWARE IS SUBJECT TO THE HP SOFTWARE LICENSE TERMS SET FORTH ON THE FOLLOWING PAGE, USING THE SOFTWARE INDICATES YOUR ACCEPTANCE OF THESE LICENSE TERMS. IF YOU DO NOT ACCEPT THESE LICENSE TERMS, YOU MAY RETURN THE SOFTWARE FOR A FULL REFUND. IF THE SOFTWARE IS BUNDLED WITH ANOTHER PRODUCT, YOU MAY RETURN THE ENTIRE UNUSED PRODUCT FOR A FULL REFUND.

    The HP Software Product License Agreement will govern all Software, which is provided to you with the exception of Microsoft Software. Microsoft Products are licensed to you under the Microsoft End User License Agreement (EULA) contained in the Microsoft documentation online.
    THE ABOVE TAKEN FROM THIS SITE:
    http://www.hp.com/cposupport/persona.../bph06814.html


    YOu have two options:
    Get a replacement unit, which in my opinion is the best bet.

    or

    send in your unit for repair

    Both I think you have the right to, since your 1 year warranty is not up.

    I used to do outsourcing for a computer company. I was hired by a company to take support calls for software and hardware. I know how it works. We were supposed to try our best to dissuade the user from trying to return it or get a refund. BUt if you press them hard enough they have to by the obligations written in the expressed warranty.

    Hope that helps, and don't let them get you down!
    hehehe
    BB

    One last thing, you could try updating your NIC driver. NIC stands for network interface Card. It is connected to your modem on the back of your PC.
    That might help. To find out what kind of NIC you have simply click on start, right click my computer, click on hardware, devices, then scroll down until you see network adapter.
    Then please write down that information and post it on here and I will help you find an updated driver.
    BB
    Last edited by Big Booger; August 10th, 2002 at 12:40 PM.

  9. #9
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    Angry

    You have no idea how frustrated I am right now!! I went to back up on a floppy and had a heck of a time. So I ran a floppy test, this is what came back: Results:

    The test has failed and indicates there is a hardware problem that may require attention from an HP Support Professional.

    I have no idea if I should laugh or cry!


  10. #10
    Super Moderator Super Moderator Big Booger's Avatar
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    DO you have a CD burner? CDR or CDRW drive? IF so try burning your data onto a Cd.
    IF not, you could always save the files in compressed form ZIP, RAR, ACE etc...
    and email them to yourself, use an online email service like hotmail or yahoo. Keep the files in your folders until you get your PC back and then reinstall them.
    Hope that helps,
    Don't give up, get your PC exchanged, reinstall your info and you'll be back in business in no time.
    For future reference you might want to look at another company that does in home repair when you buy your next PC. It is a service worth its weight in gold!

    BB

  11. #11
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    Network Adapter: Motorola Surfboard 4100 USB Cable Modem Driver Date: 9/25/2001 Driver Version: 2.0.0.0
    I'm going to try the destructive recovery in a little while. If you know of any xp critical update or service patch that I shouldn't use on my pc, could you let me know? I usually just do what windows update tells me to.

  12. #12
    Super Moderator Super Moderator Big Booger's Avatar
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    What company are you with in terms of internet service? Charter, Roadrunner, earthlink?

    I would recommend doing all the updates except for the SONY VIAO update, and the movie maker update..


    HEre is the manual for your USB cable modem:

    http://support.chartermi.net/support...tor_sa4100.pdf

    YOu might give it a try. You will need acrobat reader installed to view this pdf document.


    SB4101 and SB4100 USB Drivers
    Motorola BCS is proud to announce the availability of its SURFboard SB4100 and SB4101 USB driver (v2.0). The SURFboard SB4100 and SB4101 cable modems were the first in the industry to earn the Microsoft Designed for Windows logo for the newly introduced Windows XP operating system as well as Windows 98, Windows Me, Windows 2000. The Designed for Windows logo validates the SB4100 and SB4101 cable modemsf compatibility with Microsoft Windows operating systems.


    Before downloading these new drivers, please click here for the installation instructions.

    You can download these Microsoft WHQL certified 2.0 drivers here, or you can download the compatible non-certified 2.1 drivers here.


    HEre are some drivers you can try for your USB modem. I found them on the motorola website:
    http://www.gi.com/downloads/USB_util.exe

    These are the certified drivers for your modem.
    You can view the main site for the drivers here:
    http://www.gi.com/usb_drivers.asp

    Try that and then report to us your findings. If it doesnt work, I highly recommend exchanging your Machine for a new one. First let's try to exhaust all of your options.
    BB

  13. #13
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    I live in a really small town, and we have a local internet service. So I use them. Their prices were better than the few other internet services we get out here.- mtc.net

  14. #14
    Hardware guy Super Moderator FastGame's Avatar
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    Originally posted by Tonya
    I live in a really small town, and we have a local internet service. So I use them. Their prices were better than the few other internet services we get out here.- mtc.net
    I used to live in a small town in Iowa...you know where Lone Tree is Tonya ?

    Back to topic...I think BB has you on the right track , so keep at it

  15. #15
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    Nope, never heard of Lone Tree, looked it up though. Right between Des Moines and Iowa City. We go to Iowa City every few months to visit my son. Lone Tree is about 400 miles from me. I live in Hull.
    Small World!

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