Troubleshooting Hard Drive Issues: Tips for a Quick Fix | My Experience

[Intrepid_Chef]

My roomate called me with some bad news. After a circuit flipped ... my computer is not turning on. And his computer is on wireless internet and won't work without mine. (for the short term, I told him to use my modem.)

I fear I need a hard drive.

If I have to, I will fix it ... and probably not pay my electric bill this month. But meanwhile, I have the sell-a-thon deadline to deal with, and a show almost ready to close.

If I load P3 on his machine or some other one, do I have to enter all the other shows ... or can I just number it "show 13" and go from there?

 

[jrstephens]

Do u have a back up of P3? After u install it you can load the backup of your files and have everything in it. As far as I know you can enter the show number. I know when I go to set one up that section is blank until i enter in all the info and I could type in it if I wanted.

 

[chefann]

If you have P3 on 2 separate computers, then you need to sync them using a backup or something. But if you can't do that and are just more concerned about getting your shows submitted then, yes, you can just start numbering at 13.

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

I am pretty sure I do have a backup, but not a recent one.Last time my roomate upgraded my computer P3 data was lost because it wasn't saved to "my documents." So now I save directly to My Documents in a file called P3backup.I'll worry about restoring it later ... right now I am just concerned about getting Show 13 submitted. I don't care WHO'S computer I use!!(What do you expect from "Show 13??"

 

[jwpamp]

If the computer is not turning on at all (power surge), the hard drive wouldn't necessarily be affected. You can have the hard drive installed into another of the same type PC and it should work.

The hard drive is only the brain -- it stores info no matter what. If the power is the only problem, it may not be as bad as it seems. Even if the motherboard is fried, the hard drive may still be intact. They are two seperate parts.

It's a little known fact that some of us PCers also have degrees in Computer Technology!!

Oh, by the way, if you are only on show #13, it's not all lost anyway. My director lost her Hard Drive at show #600 and only kept her backup on her computer.....ALWAYS USE A FLASH DRIVE as a second back-up!! Also, not a bad idea to keep the flash drive in a firesafe box, too.

Good Luck!

 

[janetupnorth]

Just got online, but you probably blew your power supply in your PC...costs about $35-$50 to replace. It may also be the motherboard which is about $75 depending on your PC. Easy to do to replace either. Your data is probably fine.

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

Well, it's not that it wouldn't turn on exactly ... it's that it would not launch windows. He tried to re-install Windows XP and was unable, which means either a) the hard drive is shot or b) the XP software is faulty.I'm hoping it's just the software because he tried to install XP from the same disc on my laptop, which is now a $500 paper weight.Anyway, in trying to re-install XP all my data was likely lost.Last time he did this to me, someone at HQ read me all of my shows.I did not see the need for a flash drive because I was told all my data was being backed up on disc ... now I find it's been a while since he's done this. I was afraid to ask how long "a while" is ...

 

[jrstephens]

I did not see the need for a flash drive because I was told all my data was being backed up on disc ... now I find it's been a while since he's done this. I was afraid to ask how long "a while" is ...

Is it's on a disc you are fine until the disk runs out of room. You just don't need your back up to be on your computer in case it crashes and you cannot access it.

Hope u get everything worked out!

 

[janetupnorth]

Well, it's not that it wouldn't turn on exactly ... it's that it would not launch windows. He tried to re-install Windows XP and was unable, which means either a) the hard drive is shot or b) the XP software is faulty.

I'm hoping it's just the software because he tried to install XP from the same disc on my laptop, which is now a $500 paper weight.

Anyway, in trying to re-install XP all my data was likely lost.

Last time he did this to me, someone at HQ read me all of my shows.

I did not see the need for a flash drive because I was told all my data was being backed up on disc ... now I find it's been a while since he's done this. I was afraid to ask how long "a while" is ...

No, actually if you had a hardware failure of another sort Windows wouldn't launch.

Sorry, but it sounds like your roommate just messed you up...

Best not to play techie if you're not that familiar with hardware.

Good luck recovering what you have on disk.

I hope you still have your customer information.

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

I do have most of it ... what was added after January, when he messed me up the last time.And I printed all my orders from my BIG show ... and have those printouts somewhere.I'm thinking maybe it's best to take my machine to someone more knowledgeable before I plunk down $79 for a hard drive ...

 

[janetupnorth]

Probably a very wise decision. With a power surge or sag, the most likely parts to be affected are motherboard and power supply, not the harddrive.Do you have your system on a good back-up power supply? If not, THAT would be a good use of about $79!

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

The machine is plugged into a surge protector ...Anyway, I am not suspecting a power surge. You have to understand something about the electricity in my house ... this curcuit flips frequently, and I have NEVER had a problem with my machine when this happened, other than having to reboot the modem. It is definitely overloaded, as it has that wall of the living room, parts of two bedrooms, a room in the basement that nobody uses anymore, and part of the living room and kitchen.I NEVER turn my machine off for the simple reason that it takes a long time to reboot.This time, when he turned the machine on, it said something like, "error, press any key to continue."Anyway, my money is on the hard drive (it's like an 8 year old machine) but I am hoping against hope it's something else. I am not sure where I'd get a drive that will even fit in a machine with 384 megs of Ram, so I have a feeling I won't have my machine back until after conference.

 

[PamperedDor]

WOW - who needs tech support when we have all you guys! Amazing!! I will never hang on hold again! You all rock!

 

[Kitchen Diva]

WOW - who needs tech support when we have all you guys! Amazing!! I will never hang on hold again! You all rock!

Awww, c'mon Dor...sitting on hold is half the fun! The other half is getting an annoyed, tired and irritated IT person to "help" you!

 

[jwpamp]

I am not sure where I'd get a drive that will even fit in a machine with 384 megs of Ram,

Oh my, time to cut your losses and get a new computer, Di! Be happy that you didn't lose more shows, and just go from here....and remember to buy a flash drive while you are at it (I also back up my PC files on it -- flyers, biz info, etc).

Have fun shopping!!!

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

Ha, ha! You have no idea how limited my finances are! There is no such thing as a "new" computer for me!

I am, however, looking at one on ebay that is slightly less old than mine. Since I just put $600 into my car, I will probably have to not pay my electric bill to afford it.

 

[janetupnorth]

Ha, ha! You have no idea how limited my finances are! There is no such thing as a "new" computer for me!

I am, however, looking at one on ebay that is slightly less old than mine. Since I just put $600 into my car, I will probably have to not pay my electric bill to afford it.

Oh, don't buy off E-bay for PCs - really...it is usually a waste. You can get new or build one SO much cheaper...



You can even get a decent laptop for about $250 sometimes! I just had an ad from Dell the other day...

 

[janetupnorth]

P.S. Slightly less old is STILL old and will fail on you.

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

I bought my current machine on e-bay about 5 years ago and it was going strong until yesterday ... only thing I replaced are the drives. (floppy, DVD-Rom, and CD-RW.)

I figure if I get a hard drive I will have a brand new computer ... except that the processor is Pentium 4 and still slow.

The machine is an HP Pavillion 7970 desktop. It used to have a 20 G hard drive. I'd be thrilled to death to have 60 or 80!

Anyway, Roomie installed P3 on his computer (I had to call a customer to get her credit card number again!) and set me up on his machine. Only thing is, I cannot read my e-mail on it, or log in and post on any message board but this one! Only way I could read my e-mail was by going to the library. Stupid overprotective message board!

 

[Intrepid_Chef]

Oh, and when Roomie sent back his brand-new, under-warranty HP to the factory SEVERAL TIMES to get his hard drive replaced, I laughed at him and said that my dinosaur was still running strong!

They don't make them like they used to, which is why the idea of fixing my machine or getting one very similar to it appeals to me.