laptop trouble: A45 Toshiba Satellite

myself ^ | 10-21-08 | Wobbly Bob

[WOBBLY BOB]

I have a 5-6 year old A45 Toshiba Satellite. I recently replaced the main fan to get it running again.(and added memory while it was apart)

It worked for a month and now it's acting like it's overheating again. This time it give me a quick blue screen with something on it I can't read (because it disappears too fast) and starts automatically rebooting. It will keep doing this until I power it off.

any suggestions? (yes, I know I should get a newer computer,but can't afford it now)

I'd at least like to figure out how to keep it on long enough to transfer everything to another laptop(I may be able to get a 2 year old Dell for free)

[TomGuy]

Is the loading problem when Windows starts or when the laptop starts?

Blue screen would seem to indicate a software problem. It could be a corrupted file.

Can you boot in to Safe Mode?

[The more info you give, the better chance you might get a solution.]

[allmost]

I've heard of freezing and have had momentary success in retrieving data from busted drives. I guess I just didn't get em cold enough.
:)

[TomGuy]

That puppy is four years old and almost eight pounds.

That's like 93 years old in computer years.

[WOBBLY BOB]

not sure. couldn’t find it.

[WOBBLY BOB]

I’m in Minnesota, so in another month or so, that might work.

[WOBBLY BOB]

just after Windows starts and Outlook comes up

[RichardW]

They are so dirt cheap it doesn’t pay to fix one. Bite the bullet and get a new one. Some of the deals don’t even require a payment for a full year.

Consider going to the Dell Outlet site. You can virtually get them for free there. They are essentially brand new machines.

[WOBBLY BOB]

is “refurbished” really “like new” ?

[celtic gal]

I read, not long ago, that when a computer the age of yours starts having problems and the replacement parts cost more than those for a newer computer think twice about going through the effort of doctoring up an only unit. I too have an old desktop and was tempted to get it “ spruced “ up but now am going to wait. In the meantime, I have a laptop which is a MAC and I love it.
If you can’t afford a MAC..search the other brands if a laptop is what you need and get the best one you can afford.

[RJL]

My Daughter has a Dell laptop that was poorly designed for cooling, even a very tiny amount of dust was enough to cause it to overheat.

Many folks had the same problem, one solution posted on the Internet that works well is to reverse the hose on your vacuum, so it blows instead of vacuums and then blow into any vents and fan ports to blow out as much dust as possible.

Of course this wasn't supported by Dell, but it works better than anything Dell ever did or suggested under warranty or otherwise.

[shoe212]

You said it ACTS like it’s overheating, but it may or may not be that. A bad power supply can do cause the restarts, or, as happened to me, some bad memory.
You can check the memory free, by downloading this Microsoft program: (It will help you make a bootable floppy or CD that checks memory before you start.)

http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp

[WOBBLY BOB]

did that too...clean as a whistle.

[free_life]

Will it boot to a OS on a CD?

There are Trojans and viruses that do exactly what you described.

Try a system restore. That might fix a corrupt system file or registry mess.

[TomGuy]

You might try getting a DOS file manager program.

I use DOS Navigator freeware program (http://www.ritlabs.com/en/products/dn/) sometimes to access my files outside of Windows. A DOS file manager can run from your C:\prompt, if you can get there. For DOS Navigator, you would run the DN.COM.

DOS Navigator is old — 1999. It recognizes my USB drives.

Get a USB drive, if you have a USB port. The drives are cheap. Then, use a program such as DN to copy your important data files to the USB drive.

[caveat emptor]

Speaking of Toshiba Satellites, has anyone ever replaced any of the keys?

Yeah, all of them. I have a very old TS -a hand me down from an in-law - and can't stand the keyboard. I use a basic external keyboard most of the time. It's a pretty bulky laptop anyway, and carrying the keyboard when I travel isn't a problem.

[coolbreeze]

Before tossing this box try just flashing up the bios..I know Dell used to have an overheating problem because some genius sent out a new flash that upped the temp because there were complaints about fan noise...way to go, skippy.

[caveat emptor]

I have an oldie hand-me-down TS which runs too hot. The small feet which ought to raise the bottom off the table to allow for some air circulation don’t do enough. Added some 1/2” X 1/2” felt furniture glides about 3/16” thick and that helps.

[ken in texas]

I'll chime in and support TASMANIANRED's advice.

It's a 5-6 year old machine... get the hard drive out of it and figure out a way to hook it up to your new machine so you can salvage your data.

Computers are cheap... your data is priceless. Protect that hard drive.

[TChad]

a quick blue screen with something on it I can't read (because it disappears too fast)

Often it is possible to read screens that you only see for an instant by focusing on a small area of the screen. Get a few words each time you reboot, record them, and keep rebooting until you have the whole message.

Can you boot to safe mode or not?