Boot problem.

[LouisVauban]

oops, I mean DISCS... I have a hot thing for Indians.

 

[b.c.]

I'm not one to go about tooting the horn of any major corporation. On the other hand, I don't think forum members are done a service by misinformation either.

So, owning a Dell, I got curious about the above posts re. the company and did a bit of research in the one source of info that I consider fairly reliable: consumerreports.org.

Interestingly enough, in their June 07 ratings of desktop computers, the two top models listed are Dell Dimensions (E520 and E521, the latter rated a CR best buy).

C. Reports calls Dell's service repair history "undistinguished" and it does have a rating of 18% of its laptops having been in need of repair or having a serious problem. But that's the same incidence of repair as Toshiba, Apple, Gateway, and HP.

As for the desktops, their reported repair percentage is 16%. Not as good as Apple's 11% or Sony's 15%, but BETTER than Compaq's, Emachine's, HP's, and Gateway's 18%.

Or at least that's Consumer Reports findings. Take it as you wish.

References:

[Removed because you need an online subscription to Consumer Reports to be able to reference this info.]

 

[zgrog2000]

Take a look at the Mac computers. They are nice. I've got two and have never had any problems.

 

[ManlyBanisters]

Take a look at the Mac computers. They are nice. I've got two and have never had any problems.

YouTube - Mac Rant :biggrin1:

 

[Pecker]

Yeah, eliminate the source of the problem: Microsoft's shitty operating system.

Seriously. download the desktop edition of Ubuntu linux. It's free, it works, and you don't have to be a technogeek to install or use it.

Plus, it gives you all those nifty 3D desktop effects that supposedly make Vista so cool, without requiring Cray-level hardware.

Most apps you use in Windoze are part of Ubuntu:

Web browser: Firefox
Email: Evolution, Thunderbird
Office Apps: OpenOffice
Music Player: XMMS, MPlayer
Video Player: MPlayer

Etc, etc, etc. Just try it out. If you don't like it, I'll refund you the purchase price! :tongue:

Worth looking into once I get the damned thing to boot.

 

[Rikter8]

Its a corrupted OS file causing it to loop.
It is NOT microsoft's Fault, it's Dell's.
Classic Dell high production Image on the Hard disk drive.
Hasheesh won't be able to help you. He's reading down a list of to do's.

Pecker, Dell ships their machines with a Rescue partition on the hard drive.
Try to boot with that first, and choose to repair.
I would still request a restore CD, as you should have a copy.

If you cant get it, call me tonight and I will walk you through getting it up and running.
I've even got Recovery CD's here too I can send you.

For the rest, Anybody that buys a new Dell should do the following when they first get it.
1. Format completely and re-install Windows.
2. Download all new device drivers for the components
3. Run Microsoft Windows Update Microsoft Windows Update
4. Install Software applications such as Office, Paint shop Pro etc.
5. Do not install online applications until after an Anti-virus has been installed
6. Use Avast Antivirus, its free, and strong.
7. Then install online applications using Custom setup to avoid the toolbars and other free spyware crap.
(If using AOL Instant messenger, use version 5.5. the new version is FULL of spyware)
8. AOL is a nasty creature that is guaranteed to corrupt and destroy your work. Use caution when installing this.

Windows VISTA runs FLAWLESSLY without all the other Goobily Shit that people load into it.
It's the third party softwares issues that are NOT truely compatable with Vista that are causing all of the crashes.
If you install VIsta straight up, it will run solid as all hell.

C

 

[viking1]

Yeah, eliminate the source of the problem: Microsoft's shitty operating system.

Seriously. download the desktop edition of Ubuntu linux. It's free, it works, and you don't have to be a technogeek to install or use it.

Plus, it gives you all those nifty 3D desktop effects that supposedly make Vista so cool, without requiring Cray-level hardware.

Most apps you use in Windoze are part of Ubuntu:

Web browser: Firefox
Email: Evolution, Thunderbird
Office Apps: OpenOffice
Music Player: XMMS, MPlayer
Video Player: MPlayer

Etc, etc, etc. Just try it out. If you don't like it, I'll refund you the purchase price! :tongue:

Best advice I've seen so far. The heck with Bill Gates!

 

[Mr. Snakey]

You should be able to burn a recovery disk. Most brand name PC's come with no software/driver disks included, leaving it to the consumer to be savvy enough to burn their own backups with the proprietary apps provided.

Check for it.

The recovery disc you are allowed to burn is only for backing up documents and files not software or drivers. You set restore points in which it will put your computer back to a point when there were no problems. So thats your recovery. I will check again. I taked with an Hp tech last night and they said the same thing. They offered me the disc for 15$ so i ordered it. But the disc you can burn only recovers files and documents not drivers and software. From what other people tell me can only be burned once. My old hp is about 8 years old now and still runs great because i have back up software. Its like giving and old car new parts.. Im working in one of the office stores as a tech/salesman and from what i hear bill gates will no longer support XP in a year or so. So get ready for Vista. Becarefull of the updates for Xp because he will make them so heavy your XP will crash and you will have to go to Vista. A very smart trick indeed. Only update the security patches. So please be aware...................

 

[Mr. Snakey]

I'm not one to go about tooting the horn of any major corporation. On the other hand, I don't think forum members are done a service by misinformation either.

So, owning a Dell, I got curious about the above posts re. the company and did a bit of research in the one source of info that I consider fairly reliable: consumerreports.org.

Interestingly enough, in their June 07 ratings of desktop computers, the two top models listed are Dell Dimensions (E520 and E521, the latter rated a CR best buy).

C. Reports calls Dell's service repair history "undistinguished" and it does have a rating of 18% of its laptops having been in need of repair or having a serious problem. But that's the same incidence of repair as Toshiba, Apple, Gateway, and HP.

As for the desktops, their reported repair percentage is 16%. Not as good as Apple's 11% or Sony's 15%, but BETTER than Compaq's, Emachine's, HP's, and Gateway's 18%.

Or at least that's Consumer Reports findings. Take it as you wish.

References:

[Removed because you need an online subscription to Consumer Reports to be able to reference this info.]

Dell ia a great computer. Its not the computer. Its the software thats in it. Its all about the software

 

[dong20]

Worth looking into once I get the damned thing to boot.

It's not an either/or, you can choose to muli-boot. That way you get the worst of both worlds....

 

[dong20]

Dell ia a great computer. Its not the computer. Its the software thats in it. Its all about the software

Often, but not necessarily. It could be a (possibly intermittent) hardware fault; it may have caused the drive to corrupt a file, it could be a memory or mainboard problem causing the driver not to load, and so on. Not that common but it does happen and hard as hell to diagnose without appropriate tools or swap out spares.

Without physical access to the machine, with the best will in the world most of the advice given here, while well intentioned is educated guesswork at best. It may be right or it could make things very much worse.

Dell (or any other OEM) helpdesk staff are rarely actually qualified technicians, the same problems tend recur so often that's enough but in the end, all they have is a script to follow - how often do they tell you to wipe your PC back to factory setting because of a single driver failure (for example)? It's a total overreaction but it's the branch of the script your responses lead them to.

Occasionally one will find a person who knows their stuff, a rare find, get their name!! These considerations apply not just to Dell, they apply to all manufacturers.

Pecker, best of luck.....

 

[B_Think_Kink]

I"ve been considering buying a Dell laptop...now I'm reconsidering ...
hmmm...

Yeah, I'd warn you against that...


As for the failing boot up, my computer does that once in a while. I manually turn it off, and start it up again, instead of letting the computer do it itself. I've had it checked out before, and it is a hard drive failure. Mines under warrenty, but I still haven't brought it in to get fixed. Mine is not a Dell though.

Hopefully Rikter can help you figure it out.

 

[HazelGod]

Worth looking into once I get the damned thing to boot.

Why wait?

You can boot (and fully run) Ubuntu linux from the CD. It will "see" your existing Windows disk partition and allow you to access all your files, documents, etc.

It includes a CD burning app (more than one, actually), so you can boot from it, run it in "live" mode (no actual installation), copy all your files to CD, etc, etc. Once that's done, you can do the actual installation...or not. Your choice. As dong20 pointed out, you also have to option to perform a non-destructive installation...keeping your existing Windows setup and choosing which OS to load at boot-time.

If you're waiting to be able to download the CD, hell...PM me your address and I'll send you one.

 

[SteveHd]

For the rest, Anybody that buys a new Dell should do the following when they first get it.
1. Format completely and re-install Windows.
2. Download all new device drivers for the components
3. Run Microsoft Windows Update Microsoft Windows Update
4. Install Software applications such as Office, Paint shop Pro etc.
5. Do not install online applications until after an Anti-virus has been installed
6. Use Avast Antivirus, its free, and strong.
7. Then install online applications using Custom setup to avoid the toolbars and other free spyware crap.
(If using AOL Instant messenger, use version 5.5. the new version is FULL of spyware)
8. AOL is a nasty creature that is guaranteed to corrupt and destroy your work. Use caution when installing this.

Why is that recommended Dell? Or did you mean any mass-marketed computer?

It's good advice but realistically most folks can't do that. Many of those who can, won't, due to time and hassle factors. I have a Dell I purchased in 2001 and I did most of the above before using it in order to verify the reinstall CDs. Another reason was to re-partition the HD. It took awhile. I can't imagine most folks doing that. Note: The PC has Win2000 and the full O/S on CD.