Posted on 12/11/2013 10:43:36 AM PST by R. Scott
My old laptop died and I had to buy a new one. Unfortunately it had Windows 8. It had no word processor and I had to buy the Office Suite and an external CD drive. Total cost? Near $1000! Now the problem. Word has no spell check, no dictionary. Any one know how I can get them? The internet was no help.
The fan runs. and I have a lot of ventilation.
Just so you know. I fired up the machine a few minutes ago and didn’t do anything.
Just sat here, and it just shut down completely, powered down for no reason.
I am going to double check my power settings, but I usually have them all turn off.
but sometimes it works for a while?
which is the weird part. loose wire connection inside somewhere?
I don't know this HDD guy or Mr. Linux for that matter. And your wanting me to "install" one for the other on the assumption that he's gonna die is offensive. I shutter to think what "install" is a euphemism for.
(kidding of course. But all I know about Linux is that it is an alternative to Microsoft. This FReeper is not computer tech savvy the way Al Gore is about Global Warming.)
lol
That sounds like some kind of newspeak in a scifi story now.
And while yer at it, clean the old gunk off the mating surface of the heat sink/CPU and apply a dab of new cpu grease (thermal paste).
Unless yer a total mechanical putz, it couldn't hurt and a small tube of quality paste will only set ya back about $5.
ps: office 07 sucks beyond description .. cheers
I think I may have found the issue.
I always set my power settings to “Never”.
That got changed somehow.
Somehow I found a power setting that was shutting down my HD after 20 minutes.
That should be “20 minutes” of “inactivity” keyboard or mouse.
So, if I’m watching a Youtube video and I don’t touch the keyboard or mouse ? It maybe shutting down as a result.
In addition, while going through a hundred or so “updates” It would always crash.
I’ve had this problem before when running auto-updates with NT machines that had a “Sleep” feature turned on.
Set it to not update automatically too.
Inactivity of the keyboard and mouse, not the broken ones I hope. You said you use external ones.
Been there done that.
I think I was caught in a “death spiral” between auto updates and an inadvertent change in my power settings.
(the first thing I always do with every PC I own, is to set every power saving feature to “Never”)
Something changed this on my machine.
I’m up and running now.
I’m going to attempt to run this thing until it crashes.
Are you a Mac person?
nah. I use Ubuntu Linux
Set it to not update automatically too.
Yep.
I went with auto updates after experiencing so many problems.
I went through over 200 updates.
It took an entire day.
Crashing all along the way.
I generally try to stay away for any program that is designed to “Help Me”, by automatically doing something that “it” thinks I want to do.
So I put on “Pink Floyd” Pulse, Live. It’s well over an hour long and is pretty demanding without being a streaming video.
I’ll see if it plays.
That’s all geek to me. I have a business. We use computers, period.
lol
* assuming you're the sort who won't rest till ya get it fixed .. lol
THAT part sounds like power/power protection problems... Try removing the battery and running on 110 power only. If the battery is failing, it can cause a panic-kill like you are describing... If that doesn't fix it, see if you can borrow a compatible power supply to use for testing - Yours may be failing, or may have a near break in the cabling that will cause power loss if not perfectly aligned...
If the power plug socket in the computer is all wobbly, that is another place where laptops often fail - that connection takes a lot of abuse. If that socket is bad, it is usually not worth fixing, although that depends upon the laptop - some are replaceable.
Currently, if I try to start the machine it may or may not boot up. It can take anywhere from 2 minutes to two hours.
That sounds like a hammered hard drive, or an horribly infested machine... Try removing the hard drive entirely and booting from the DVD with a live Linux CD or something. If it runs nice from the CD, then either the drive is failing, and should be tested for such... or needs dis-infected, restored, or some other software problem.
If it is still having problems with the hard drive out and running from the DVD, then switch around - put the hard drive back and remove the DVD drive and see if it works better then... If so, the DVD drive is faulty and needs to be replaced... technically, it would be better to use a known-good hard drive with a rudimentary system on it, but I don't suppose you have that as such just laying around.
My first issues happened about a year after I bought it, when the keyboard/touchpad died and I resigned myself to using a USB keyboard and mouse.
It might be a good idea to disconnect or remove the faulty KB and mouse, as they could be causing trouble too - And if you get the thing running decently, a new KB is going to be around 15 bucks, and a new mouse pad cheaper than that.
I know that all sounds like a lot of gymnastics, but a decent service tech should be able to diagnose the problem in well under an hour of bench time. It may well be a motherboard or processor issue, but if that is the case, the thing is a frisbee anyway : ) So all these ancillary issues can be eliminated before deciding it is doomed to the junk pile. Good luck.
Take it back. Go to staples and buy one for about $400. It’ll have everything you need. What are the specs on that laptop? Must be a screamer for a grand.
Funny story.
Back in the late 1990’s I ran a Daytrading office. I had 20 or so traders in the office and supported a dozen remote clients.
This one remote client was a very very active trader, executing a few hundred trades a day. We spoke on the phone constantly. I had supervisory rights that could not only see, instantly, every message he sent but could reach into his account and make changes as needed.
He knew this, it wasn’t unusual.
Soo, he calls me one day Screaming....
“This system sucks”...........
“It doesn’t work”...............
“Look...I’m trying to buy XYZ ? ....nothing... nothing ..Sell ABC ? nothing... “
“I push the button to buy or sell and nothing happens” (he knows that I can see every buy or sell request he submits, instantly)
I tell him “I got nothing” “Can I put in an order for you ?”
He says “LOOK !!, I’m hitting BUY BUY BUY, SELL SELL SELL, and nothing, Nothing”
OK, so I’m trying to figure out what is going on while he is “rightfully” screaming since he has money on the line.
Keep in mind, this entire conservation happened in less than 30 seconds.
Suddenly he says “wait” ...................
“WTF” ?
“Somethings wrong”
“WTF” ?
As he watched his earlier mouse movements and commands being played out.
Every single movement of his mouse and clicks he made were being replayed without his control.
I saw his orders come flying in as he said “I gotta go”
It was insane. He must have entered 2 dozen buy/sell orders in an attempt to prove the system/platform was flawed.
I watched all those orders come through.
What a mess.
So, he comes back and says “there is still something wrong and you need to come down here to fix it”
I made the trip.
I walked into his office, all a very respectable presentation of an up and coming Hedge fund.
He had four Dell flat screens, running on a single PC.
Cool.
As I turned the corner and saw the “Pipes” screen saver running,,,,, WOW
WOW
I knew instantly the problem.
WOW
He happened to catch his “screen saver” at a point in which it built up and prioritized the resources needed to run.
His mouse actions didn’t override the screen saver and were put in a cue, so to speak.
The screen saver never launched.
I turned off his screen saver and went home.
ok. that is a funny story
Thanks for your feed back.
Sadly, this HP laptop, has issues with it’s battery and keyboard, according to help sites.
The solution is to remove the battery...and put it back.
That actually worked, until it became so frequent that I got a USD Keyboard.
It won’t run without the battery in place.
It won’t run on the battery alone.
I do think, after cleaning up a boat load of programs that it is a power issue.
Did I mention that I HATE VISTA ?
I’ve taken the battery out and cleaned the contacts.
Heat and power is my gut, but the OS seems to be complicating my efforts to find a solution.
It’s a “Strange disposition” that I find myself in.
I sincerely hope you're kidding here, mate. Ignoring for the moment the fact that ANYONE in these tough times thinks that purchasing a laptop for a throwaway price of 1000 dollars, with no included apps you can use or functional optical drive (and no support, apparently)... do a websearch for free spellcheckers or dictionarys. There have been several quite good ones that have been around for years, even decades. Borrow a friend's computer for a bit if you have to to download it. Preferably an Electronics Tech or above since there is no way a good one would have a computer that could not back up data to an optical disc or separate drive.
Otherwise, let's see: Libre Office, Open Office, Star Office, Wordstar Office Suite -just to name a few.
Or beg, borrow, or download a live Linux disc and use that on your shiny new toaster. If you like it, you can even install Linux as a dual boot and still keep that 'doze OS on it as well, since you seem so keen to have it.
Of course, you could always simply purchase the newest MS Office version and install it, as long as you get a written guarantee from the sales rep that you can return it if it does not contain a spellcheck or dictionary. Even purchase a spare monitor, speakers, mouse, modem, webcam, and backup drive while you are at it.
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