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disk read error? sounds like the hard drive failing

The first thing I would check is the wires connected to the hard disk drive, maybe one got loose. The second thing - BIOS settings, maybe the comp tries to boot from something else first, perhaps from a CD.

Firstly check if there is a disc (USB drive or cd) in any drive and remove it. If the error still occurs you may have a hard drive fault (not good). You can try starting and pressing F1 then a CMOS settings screen may appear and you can auto reset these settings, but do it with the power cable in.

disk read error indicates that the hard drive is crashing.
assuming she’s running Windows, the DOS like screen is an error log, blue/black screen of death.
unfortunately next to batteries, failing hard drives are one of the biggest recurring issues with notebook computers

oh wait, miss read sometihng.
the screen is cmos generated. however it still means the hard drive is Fubar.

haha first id try banging in a windows disc (assuming you use windows) otherwise you should think about having hdd replaced probably looking for a 2.5″ ide not sata

Bring on the 1TB SSD @ 200+ mbs out any month!

hehe that wouldnt be fitting in an old vaio now would it lol and would be unimaginablly expensive

it could be that the file system’s corrupt.
but unless you manually change the boot sequence it won’t change. evene if it did the computer’s not going to generate an error code for that. it simply goes down the line until it it finds a bootable device, and unless you got a handfull of external hard drives with linux on them that won’t be a problem.

The 512GB is an extra $1300 in an Apple pro. SSS has dropped by at least 50%pa…. but the sky is still blue and the trees still green, that’s what counts ;)

haha well since you put it that way

do you honestly think windows would run on an SSD?

Think? It does. SSS servers have been out for about two years.

yea and they don’t run windows, they run linux.
it took microsoft 3 years to get on the sata bandwagon. think how long it’ll be before SSD drives are supported

Windows runs beautifully on an SSD; very fast, even in an older machine (I know, I’ve built several at work). Also a lot of manufacturers are jumping on the SSD bandwagon and the prices are sure to come down. I’m betting we see a price war by the end of the year.

Anon, Windows already supports SSDs… they have since vista. You can’t boot from them though, because they are less reliable (too many read/writes into the boot sector will wear out an SSD)

blarghwhargah wrote:
Anon, Windows already supports SSDs… they have since vista. You can’t boot from them though, because they are less reliable (too many read/writes into the boot sector will wear out an SSD)

Sorry, most of these statements are incorrect. Windows (including XP) sees an SSD just like any other hard disk and can boot from it without a problem. The concerns about reliability are also based on out-of-date information. It’s true that flash memory cells have a limited number of writes that they can perform, but with today’s technology, this is in the hundreds of thousands or even millions. This fact combined with the wear-leveling technology built into these drives renders an MTBF of like 50 years.

http://www.storagesearch.com/ssdmyths…

joe.schmo wrote:

blarghwhargah wrote:
Anon, Windows already supports SSDs… they have since vista. You can’t boot from them though, because they are less reliable (too many read/writes into the boot sector will wear out an SSD)

Sorry, most of these statements are incorrect. Windows (including XP) sees an SSD just like any other hard disk and can boot from it without a problem. The concerns about reliability are also based on out-of-date information. It’s true that flash memory cells have a limited number of writes that they can perform, but with today’s technology, this is in the hundreds of thousands or even millions. This fact combined with the wear-leveling technology built into these drives renders an MTBF of like 50 years.

Hah, yeah, I haven’t really kept up on them for a while, too pricey for me.
Eh, I was kind of basing it on my old mem stick… got it last year, died a month ago, ran quake III off it. meh, doesn’t help I live in a climate over 30 degrees C
I didn’t realise XP supported them , but mostly because I didn’t realise anyone bothered with them that long ago…
I do have a 3 year old EEE laptop that still goes, so that’s decent for the tech back then I guess

A new SSD in an older laptop is actually a really good way to extend its life if you can’t afford a new machine. You can get a 40GB drive for around $100. They even have PATA versions if you’re machine isn’t SATA. Checkout newegg.com.

cool

an ssd will run windows but extemely slowly as windows is optiised for use with a paging file ssd wont cope all that well and all write speeds will be dramatically reduced

J3LW wrote:
an ssd will run windows but extemely slowly as windows is optiised for use with a paging file ssd wont cope all that well and all write speeds will be dramatically reduced

Also not true. Ask someone whose done it (me). I have a dozen SSDs deployed in older Windows XP machines in my company and they all run fabulously. We are moving in the direction of installing SSDs in our our older hardware and expect to get another couple of years of life out of them before they have to be replaced based on the performance we’ve seen.

So basically jubi your HDD is probably fked. Replace it, maybe with a SSD goodluck.

joe.schmo wrote:

J3LW wrote:
an ssd will run windows but extemely slowly as windows is optiised for use with a paging file ssd wont cope all that well and all write speeds will be dramatically reduced

Also not true. Ask someone whose done it (me). I have a dozen SSDs deployed in older Windows XP machines in my company and they all run fabulously. We are moving in the direction of installing SSDs in our our older hardware and expect to get another couple of years of life out of them before they have to be replaced based on the performance we’ve seen.

have done it tried it on an asus ee pc and there was a considerable speed difference when tried with other netbooks that are hdd based

and if you want life out of older hardware an 80 gb ide hdd is around £15 and linux is the best way of doing that, so that is somewhat cheaper than £130 for an 8 ssd

oh sorry back on topic

hope this gets sorted for you

Lol, my laptop just went down a similar route! Everytime i try to turn it on the dreaded windows blue screen of death shows up! Ahhh, it’s so frustrating! Time for a new laptop, i think =D

Coolbrav wrote:
Lol, my laptop just went down a similar route! Everytime i try to turn it on the dreaded windows blue screen of death shows up! Ahhh, it’s so frustrating! Time for a new laptop, i think =D

I’m left with using my mobile to access the net, now! Haha

J3LW wrote:

joe.schmo wrote:

J3LW wrote:
an ssd will run windows but extemely slowly as windows is optiised for use with a paging file ssd wont cope all that well and all write speeds will be dramatically reduced

Also not true. Ask someone whose done it (me). I have a dozen SSDs deployed in older Windows XP machines in my company and they all run fabulously. We are moving in the direction of installing SSDs in our our older hardware and expect to get another couple of years of life out of them before they have to be replaced based on the performance we’ve seen.

have done it tried it on an asus ee pc and there was a considerable speed difference when tried with other netbooks that are hdd based

and if you want life out of older hardware an 80 gb ide hdd is around £15 and linux is the best way of doing that, so that is somewhat cheaper than £130 for an 8 ssd

oh sorry back on topic

hope this gets sorted for you

Oh no, not a linux head! Linux is not a viable option for most users. If you are like most people and just want your computer to work, get a Mac or PC. If you like to be constantly tinkering with your system and pouring through technical forums to try to resolve your own computer problems, or are interested in what’s under the hood, then give Linux a try. Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a Linux hater. I do this stuff for a living and support both Windows desktops and Linux servers. I just know the realities of end-user support.

I also can’t speak to your experiences with SSDs except that you mention an 8GB unit, which makes me think you are dealing with older technology. I’ve used Intel x25s and Transcend TS32’s, (retailing for around $115 - £75) all with dramatically better performance in both laptops and desktops. Yes, conventional hard disks are cheaper, but the newer SSDs are definitely faster.

just got the invite. Problem fixed now?

Jubilee wrote:
any ideas?

Get a new computer? lol … I’m sorry, I’m not being very helpful, am I?

Jubilee wrote:
haha, ok, any ideas that are cheap to the point of being free ;-)

Use the computers in your library? … it’s free! haha

Yeah, I’m gonna shut up now and let the techies solve your problems before I embarrass myself by being so useless! :)

Aim
1. Recover data
2. Fix function key
3. Fix touchpad
4. Fix browser issue.

Constraints
No money.

1. Has anyone you know got one of these?
http://www.lewis.edu/steve/images/Ext…

if so, you can plug your old hard drive in and read your data.

2, 3, & 4.
Who installed the OS on it? These are all installation issues.

the library suggestion is a good one. Also, if you go somewhere with nerds, they will be unable to not fix your computer. Just don’t wink at them.

I agree. You need to find yourself soem nerds :)

chunkymove wrote:
the library suggestion is a good one. Also, if you go somewhere with nerds, they will be unable to not fix your computer. Just don’t wink at them.

Ok Im sorry if this has been covered but I didnt want to read the whole thread.

Ive had this happen and I reinstalled windows and it fixed it right up. It doesnt have to be very hard and it can be free. If you have a windows installation disc but dont want to risk it by yourself I’m happy to walk you through it myself through IM or something. You’ve just given me some good advise on another post and its the least I can do.

If you dont have a windows disc and arent opposed to becoming a pirate, the are plenty of free versions out there you can use.

Install Linux.

lol, no, e-data, that’s a bit hard for an inexperienced user, even if it solves most problems…

haha notice how no one omoaned at the ninja for mentioning linux lol jokies im not a linux buf either bt is good to konow what is actually in your system no ? and who cares about user support :)

anyway the function keys and the mouse will work all you have to do is go to the website of the manufacturer of your laptop look up support and then your model and look through the list of software it will have been custom written by the manufacturer but ultimately based on others

and antivirus : SOPHOS haha at around £230 a pop
lol or avg ?

I suggest running Bitdefender. Comprehensive tests show it scans more files and scans them more thoroughly than other big av progs. They have a free version available without realtime protection (not active protection, but scan only. I’ve found probs with this that were not found by avg,avira,norton,trend micro, ect. As I said it’s free and will do the deepest and most thorough scan I know of. Afterwards I’d suggest Avira for free virus protection. I used avg for years, but last I check they had dropped some of the critical functionality in the free version, but from what I understand the pay version is still tops. I have spoken with the great nerd elders and they concur

Btw, i’m not just regurgitating info from somewhere else. This is my advise from years of work in this field.

backup your data and start again?

okay another way would be hold the windows key and press r then type in msconfig and press enter or return or click ok then
go to startup tab and disable anything that looks a little out of place

then click apply then restart

if you cant follow its okay i just thought it may help otherwise you may have to look into a local computer store for help if you cant find a suitable antivirus util

seems like hard disk crash
get a new one,sony vaio…could be expensive:(

Jubilee wrote:
new problem :p

i figured i’d put it here rather than starting a whole new thread-

i have some sort of virus, that whenever i click on a google search result takes me to some website called goingonearth, i’ve run malwarebytes, advanced system care and tds killer (no idea what they are, someone told me to do that haha) and it’s still doing it. any ideas?

and this is a malware,we call it “mislead”
get kaspersky

Linux for people. Free people.

There are lots of distributions of Linux that are really user friendly, like Ubuntu.
They’re very stable and light (meaning not taking up a lot of resources or disk space).

I’ve also used Mint, which is nice, and I run a current distro of that at home.

Have you tried running ad-aware? That’s free. And running too many anti-virus, hijacking, malware programs at once sometimes cause blind spots, or for your system to think that the (anti-virus) software is a virus. -__- yeah, annoying!

Yups,Ubuntu,is good.
I use it.
Or may be you can install windows as a program on linux,that way you will never have to worry about viruses as your OS is Linux,and still can enjoy windows.If windows crashes you can reinstall without worrying about your data being lost.
Hope I Helped.