Computer stops booting up to Win XP

Hi...A couple of months ago, when I turned on my computer (Dell Inspiron 6000, Win XP, 2G RAM), it brought up the Dell logo, but wouldn't go to Win XP. Instead, I would get a blinking cursor at the top left my screen. A Dell-authorized techie said I had a bad cluster in my hard drive, so he installed a new one.

I went through the long, tedious process of reinstalling my programs and everything worked fine. Then, two days ago, the same blinking cursor problem occurred. The techie ran a repair program to fix the boot issue. When it was finished, it told me to click any key to boot up the system. I tried (every key) and nothing happened.

The techie now says it is a software issue ("conflict"). I don't want to have to reinstall everything again, especially if, once I do, the problem re-occurs.

Any ideas why this is happening?

Thanks!

Never ask the Farmer In The Dell what's wrong with your PC. The first thing to try is F8. If the boot menu appears, try safe mode or last known good config. If you can get to the desktop, run msconfig, go to the startup tab, disable all, reboot & click ok. If the PC runs ok, then one of the programs in startup was killing the boot.

If none of that works, download the manufacturer's diagnostic tools for that hard drive. Create a boot CD & run it. It will tell you if there are any bad blocks on the drive, in which case, replace it.

A third possibility is a bad memory stick. Remove them one by one & boot.

Thanks Don2007! Now that you mention it, the Farmer (LOL) upgraded my RAM. I had 2G and wanted 4G. He said I would need a 64-bit computer in order to have 4G. So, he replaced one of the 1G sticks with a 2G to make it--we thought--a total of 3G. HOWEVER, it has NEVER come up as 3G. Only 2G. (1) Was he right about the 4G/64 bit issue? (2) Why wouldn't 3G show up/work? (3) If it is--as it appears likely to be--the 2G memory, once it is removed or changed, will I be able to boot up to Windows or will I have to reinstall? Involved/David

If it's not the correct memory for the mother board, it can cause all kinds of problems. If it's corrected, the PC should be fine.


http://www.crucial.com/upgrade/compatib ... /list.html

Quote from ^^:

Each memory slot can hold DDR2 PC2-5300 with a maximum of 1GB per slot.*

Don..."The Farmer" has my computer and I think this is his day off (my luck!). Ozzu is such a terrific site and it's a wonder to me that techies (or self-annointed techie-types) who can't solve a problem for a customer or themselves don't sign up and ask for the quality help (and a much-appreciated fast response) like you're giving me...David

LOL Well, even "Farmers" need a day off. Let us know what happens.

"Alas, Poor Dell Inspiron 6000. I knew it well, Don2007". (Apologies to Mr. Shakespeare.)

I met with The Farmer today and he said he had tried booting up by first removing the 2G stick that we hoped would be outed as the culprit. No joy. He said he also (hope this makes sense) "rebuilt the boot sector" (I could be inaccurate in my memory of his wording) and also ran every diagnostic tool in his "fully loaded arsenal".

He said it is "not a hardware problem". I dread reinstalling Win XP and then program-by-program, especially since I don't have any confidence that the problem won't re-occur. Could there be some sort of software conflict or whatever? And, if so, would there be a way to find it? Needless to say, this leaves me VERY frustrated since I use my laptop for work as well as play. Thanks!

Did you say "the 2G stick"? It takes 2 Gs max, 1 G max per slot.

Right. Take a look back at my post on 4/28 at 1:46 pm and yours at 2:41 pm. You made us aware that my laptop could only support two 1G sticks. That's why The Farmer removed the 2G stick and tried getting the system to boot up with just the 1G stick in place.

Now we are up to the HD. Has anyone tested it for bad blocks using the manufacturer's diagnostic tools? They can be downloaded from their site.

I'm quite sure (but definitely not positive) that The Farmer checked out the hard drive. I could be wrong and will ask him when he arrives at work this afternoon.

(BTW, can you tell me how to change my password?)

I checked with him and this is what he wrote back:

"I ran full diagnostic on all hardware. The hard drive is good. I get to store at 2.30. I ran pc doctor as well as other diagnostic utilities. The hard drive spins fine and when hooked externally is completely accessible."

Which password do you want to change, the password to the PC?

Try the basic XP installation again but don't install your programs for about a week. If all is well, install them. If there is a problem, then one of them is causing it.

Whoops! Sorry I wasn't clear about the password. I meant the password on Ozzu. I had lost my original pw and got one of those alphanumeric thingies, which I'd like to change to something I have a chance of remembering.

Your idea about the "XP but no program" installation certainly makes sense, but the thing is that I had a whole bunch of programs installed and the system worked for more than a month before the non-boot problem re-occurred. It seems almost like finding a needle in a haystack or like there is a conflict that lies dormant and pops up after you get comfortable and feeling that it won't happen.

I've the same password problem.

Can you safely assume that all hardware is ok? What installation CD are you using with the PC? Is it the OEM version that came with machine? After you reinstall, are you installing service pack 3?