MGB: Need computer help/advice

Please contact me off site on this issue.

My DVD player seems to have shot it's wad, the computer cant find it, the light on front is blinking about thee times per second, and eject will not work. I was on the phone with Dell support about a half hour and we can't make anything change no matter what we try. They said perhaps if I unplug and replug the DVD that will fix it.

I've been thinking about installing a CD burner and this looks like the time to do it, but I don't know a thing about them. Can some of you please tell me about them and give your recommendations. If I get the DVD working is there any point in leaving it there and installing a CD burner too?

John,
If youthinking abt installing a Cd-Burner go ahead. No reason not to leave the DVD drive inif you have room and get it working again.heckitwould 9with the rigth software) allow you to copy DVDs).try tigerdirect.com for burners- good selection of known brands and generally good prices.

I'm assuming that DVD has a manual-eject hole on it... take an unfolded paperclip and probe the lil 1/32" hole on the front of the drive


Unplugging and re-plugging a drive whilst the computer is off does nothing. Thats just like saying if your phone dosn't work, unplug the phone cable and replug it and it'll fix. That ribbon cable is just communication, thus it could be plugged into a camels butt and then back to the DVD and it wouldn't even bother the camel, much less fix your computer.

Is the DVD spinning whilst the light is dancing? Is there a disc in there?

When you boot your computer, the very first screen that comes up, the BIOS info stuff (if something like "I'm a Dell Computer! Yay!" comes up instead, press escape or something to see the actual screen) and see if it lists your DVD drive when it boots up, it will probably list out like your processor, how much RAM you have, what harddrive you got etc... if its listed there then its a OS problem

John:

Adding IDE drives:
Simple matter to you. There is a JUMPER BLOCK on the drive
most modern drives locate them 'twixt the power plug and the
ribbon cable.

These MUST BE SET CORRECTLY (one is MASTER the other is SLAVE)
can only have one or the other.
use MAS/SLA since cable select is a non defined state.
meaning your bios will determine "drive letter assignments".

John: The paper clip trick got my disc out. The light is dancing but the drive isn't running.

HowY: Device manager is what I couldn't think of to check, maybe I'll get somewhere now. Most of the rest is Greek to me, I'm on a steep learing curve here, but not afraid t get into it.

John,
I sent you an e-mail but forgot something: when a drive stops working, it's usually the drive, not software. Of course things like a virus, loading a program that might affect it, or human error (like you delete it from your device manager) will cause the drives to "disappear" but it's mostly a hardware issue. The fact you see a light tells me the power is ok.

Howy is on the same track I was in the e-mail: check your connections, and pull them apart-plug them back up.

It could be a conection. I've lost it like this before, but could usually find it again by doing a slow boot. That is, shut down for about 10 seconds bring it up, and the DVD would work, but that didn't do the trick this morning. It doesn't show in the device manager, in "MY Computer", Control panel, or anywhere.

All I know about computers is I'm on my third hard drive in a year and a half. Their slogan should be: "Dude...Don't get a Dell!"

I've had my Dell for over 3 years and this is the first thing I haven't been able to deal with.

Sounds like you have a ASPI problem. I had the same problem with my DVD burner it would not open but if i restarted it would open BUT only once. Nothing could be read in that drive. As for a cd burner its pretty simple ti hook on you need to hook up the jumper in the back for slave, and hook up the power and the IDE cable it hink its called. Its pretty simple at the store that you buy it from they will install it for free most likely. Have you tried reinstalling the drivers for your dvd rom? Tell me what operating system your running andi can tell you how to do it if you dont already know.

John:

I added a TDK burner to my machine about a year or so ago. The directions that came with that unit were pretty clear about jumpers, master vs. slave, etc., which was great 'cause I would have been lost!

I managed to get it installed and operational without screwing things up!

John, the problem is that you didn't retorque the drive after 1000 hours of use. Now your gonna have to reseat the head.



:>

hot or cold?

Well, I was hot after banging on the head trying to reseat it. I did everything I knew. Turned it off and on, kicked and cussed it, sprayed PB Blaster in all the slots, and ran some Sea Foam through the intake; I guess it was the intake air was goin' in it. I guess next I'll float test it in the Mississippi River. If it floats I'll mess with it some more and if not I'll just forget it.

I couldn't find SeaFoam at Baxters when I was there, guess I need to go to NAPA

If the DVD Player let any of the smoke out of the wiring you may have to replace the smoke before anything will work right.

Also if you are running any version of windows, the Haitian chicken ritual may be required to remove any MS demons.

Will a small parrot suffice in place of achicken? My bird Penny has been squawking a lot lately.

The parrot should do but; the voodoo ritual requires that the chicken be alive at the beginning of the ritual. If that parrot is extremely annoying try to use restraint until the time for the ceremony.