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Monitor problem
Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254
700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
#2
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Monitor problem
Your (current) problem appears to be due to the video adapter (card) no
longer being offered the correct WinMe driver. Confirm that you have the correct driver (originally supplied with the pc - on a separate CD perhaps?) and re-do Mike's and my advice (at the bottom of your post) and reinstall your video driver. You MUST remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first. When your PC re-boots (into Normal Mode) it *should* ask you to direct it to the video driver. Be sure to point it to the correct driver - don't let it guess and find a default "PCI VGA compatible display adapter". You MUST direct it to the correct WinMe compatible one, specifically designed for your card/adapter. Good luck Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254 700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
#3
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Monitor problem
Mart,
Whenever I remove the Monitor and Video Display Adapters in the Device Manager in Safe Mode, the subsequent reboot does not ask me what driver I want but just does its own thing and then says to reboot, which I only do when I do not need to get online. I did not do the following but just want to be sure I'm doing things right: When you say to remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first, are you talking about using Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the couple of nVidia drivers that are present in that list? I have a Compaq Softpaq with the latest nVidia driver they supplied in 2001 which I did install back then. I also have the installation program for nVidia's 71.84 driver which I installed a couple of years ago. Thanks for your assistance, Nevans On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:39:09 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Your (current) problem appears to be due to the video adapter (card) no longer being offered the correct WinMe driver. Confirm that you have the correct driver (originally supplied with the pc - on a separate CD perhaps?) and re-do Mike's and my advice (at the bottom of your post) and reinstall your video driver. You MUST remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first. When your PC re-boots (into Normal Mode) it *should* ask you to direct it to the video driver. Be sure to point it to the correct driver - don't let it guess and find a default "PCI VGA compatible display adapter". You MUST direct it to the correct WinMe compatible one, specifically designed for your card/adapter. Good luck Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254 700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
#4
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Monitor problem
Nevans,
My guess is that your Video Adapter is trying to use a combination of old and new driver files - a sort of soup of residual files - some of which *may* have the same name but are the incorrect version. So you need to start over again. Under the circumstances, yes, uninstall any/all nVidia utilities (in Safe Mode) using add/remove programs first then open Dev Man and 'Remove' all Display Adapters (How many do you see? And are they all the same versions (according to their Properties) You might even have to search for and remove any stubborn nVidia files still floating around on your C: drive. You might even have to repeat the process a couple of times to ensure that you've got rid of them all. Eventually when you re-boot - with a bit of luck - it *should* ask you for drivers. Only install the original driver (supplied 2001?) Do not install (or over-install) the later one. IIRC, there were issues with 'upgrading' to so-called universal nVidia drivers. Never affected me as mine were Matrox (desktop) and Neo-Magic (laptop) Not sure if Mike M (if he is watching this thread) may be able to add any further info on nVidia drivers as I seem to recollect he had some experience with them some years back. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message news Mart, Whenever I remove the Monitor and Video Display Adapters in the Device Manager in Safe Mode, the subsequent reboot does not ask me what driver I want but just does its own thing and then says to reboot, which I only do when I do not need to get online. I did not do the following but just want to be sure I'm doing things right: When you say to remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first, are you talking about using Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the couple of nVidia drivers that are present in that list? I have a Compaq Softpaq with the latest nVidia driver they supplied in 2001 which I did install back then. I also have the installation program for nVidia's 71.84 driver which I installed a couple of years ago. Thanks for your assistance, Nevans On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:39:09 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Your (current) problem appears to be due to the video adapter (card) no longer being offered the correct WinMe driver. Confirm that you have the correct driver (originally supplied with the pc - on a separate CD perhaps?) and re-do Mike's and my advice (at the bottom of your post) and reinstall your video driver. You MUST remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first. When your PC re-boots (into Normal Mode) it *should* ask you to direct it to the video driver. Be sure to point it to the correct driver - don't let it guess and find a default "PCI VGA compatible display adapter". You MUST direct it to the correct WinMe compatible one, specifically designed for your card/adapter. Good luck Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254 700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
#5
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Monitor problem
Thanks Mart.
There were two Display Adapters in Dev. Mon. when this saga started: a nVidia one and a "generic" one (can't remember exactly what it was called). Now there is only a "nVidia Vanta LT (Compaq)" entry. It has a yellow exclamation point in Normal mode but looks "ok" in Safe Mode. Also, the Monitor entry does not show up in Normal mode but is there and fine in Safe Mode. Thanks for the information about uninstalling the drivers in Safe Mode. I have actually found the original Compaq driver from 2000 that came with this machine in the folder C:\cpqdrv\nvidia. I'll try to install that when (and if) I'm given the opportunity to do so. Maybe later I'll apply Compaq's nVidia driver Softpaq from 2001. If things get to the point where I'm back to normal, I'll just leave the driver with a Compaq-supplied one unless Mike M says otherwise. I'll report back as soon as I can get online after getting the job done. Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 00:58:13 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Nevans, My guess is that your Video Adapter is trying to use a combination of old and new driver files - a sort of soup of residual files - some of which *may* have the same name but are the incorrect version. So you need to start over again. Under the circumstances, yes, uninstall any/all nVidia utilities (in Safe Mode) using add/remove programs first then open Dev Man and 'Remove' all Display Adapters (How many do you see? And are they all the same versions (according to their Properties) You might even have to search for and remove any stubborn nVidia files still floating around on your C: drive. You might even have to repeat the process a couple of times to ensure that you've got rid of them all. Eventually when you re-boot - with a bit of luck - it *should* ask you for drivers. Only install the original driver (supplied 2001?) Do not install (or over-install) the later one. IIRC, there were issues with 'upgrading' to so-called universal nVidia drivers. Never affected me as mine were Matrox (desktop) and Neo-Magic (laptop) Not sure if Mike M (if he is watching this thread) may be able to add any further info on nVidia drivers as I seem to recollect he had some experience with them some years back. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message news Mart, Whenever I remove the Monitor and Video Display Adapters in the Device Manager in Safe Mode, the subsequent reboot does not ask me what driver I want but just does its own thing and then says to reboot, which I only do when I do not need to get online. I did not do the following but just want to be sure I'm doing things right: When you say to remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first, are you talking about using Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the couple of nVidia drivers that are present in that list? I have a Compaq Softpaq with the latest nVidia driver they supplied in 2001 which I did install back then. I also have the installation program for nVidia's 71.84 driver which I installed a couple of years ago. Thanks for your assistance, Nevans On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:39:09 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Your (current) problem appears to be due to the video adapter (card) no longer being offered the correct WinMe driver. Confirm that you have the correct driver (originally supplied with the pc - on a separate CD perhaps?) and re-do Mike's and my advice (at the bottom of your post) and reinstall your video driver. You MUST remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first. When your PC re-boots (into Normal Mode) it *should* ask you to direct it to the video driver. Be sure to point it to the correct driver - don't let it guess and find a default "PCI VGA compatible display adapter". You MUST direct it to the correct WinMe compatible one, specifically designed for your card/adapter. Good luck Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254 700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
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Monitor problem
Ah! ... So the 2001 driver was not even the original?
Remove the 2001 & later from your machine and leave only the C:\cpqdrv\nvidia folder (and contents) in place. Repeat the 'Removal' of all Video Adapters and Monitors in Dev.Man in Safe Mode and re-boot. Hopefully, this time you will be asked for the video drivers. Just point (navigate) to C:\cpqdrv\nvidia and it should install the correct 2000 driver. The Monitor files are probably there too and all being well, should correctly identify your monitor. Personally, I wouldn't bother trying to update your drivers once you get them working. Just leave well alone. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Thanks Mart. There were two Display Adapters in Dev. Mon. when this saga started: a nVidia one and a "generic" one (can't remember exactly what it was called). Now there is only a "nVidia Vanta LT (Compaq)" entry. It has a yellow exclamation point in Normal mode but looks "ok" in Safe Mode. Also, the Monitor entry does not show up in Normal mode but is there and fine in Safe Mode. Thanks for the information about uninstalling the drivers in Safe Mode. I have actually found the original Compaq driver from 2000 that came with this machine in the folder C:\cpqdrv\nvidia. I'll try to install that when (and if) I'm given the opportunity to do so. Maybe later I'll apply Compaq's nVidia driver Softpaq from 2001. If things get to the point where I'm back to normal, I'll just leave the driver with a Compaq-supplied one unless Mike M says otherwise. I'll report back as soon as I can get online after getting the job done. Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 00:58:13 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Nevans, My guess is that your Video Adapter is trying to use a combination of old and new driver files - a sort of soup of residual files - some of which *may* have the same name but are the incorrect version. So you need to start over again. Under the circumstances, yes, uninstall any/all nVidia utilities (in Safe Mode) using add/remove programs first then open Dev Man and 'Remove' all Display Adapters (How many do you see? And are they all the same versions (according to their Properties) You might even have to search for and remove any stubborn nVidia files still floating around on your C: drive. You might even have to repeat the process a couple of times to ensure that you've got rid of them all. Eventually when you re-boot - with a bit of luck - it *should* ask you for drivers. Only install the original driver (supplied 2001?) Do not install (or over-install) the later one. IIRC, there were issues with 'upgrading' to so-called universal nVidia drivers. Never affected me as mine were Matrox (desktop) and Neo-Magic (laptop) Not sure if Mike M (if he is watching this thread) may be able to add any further info on nVidia drivers as I seem to recollect he had some experience with them some years back. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message news Mart, Whenever I remove the Monitor and Video Display Adapters in the Device Manager in Safe Mode, the subsequent reboot does not ask me what driver I want but just does its own thing and then says to reboot, which I only do when I do not need to get online. I did not do the following but just want to be sure I'm doing things right: When you say to remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first, are you talking about using Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the couple of nVidia drivers that are present in that list? I have a Compaq Softpaq with the latest nVidia driver they supplied in 2001 which I did install back then. I also have the installation program for nVidia's 71.84 driver which I installed a couple of years ago. Thanks for your assistance, Nevans On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:39:09 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Your (current) problem appears to be due to the video adapter (card) no longer being offered the correct WinMe driver. Confirm that you have the correct driver (originally supplied with the pc - on a separate CD perhaps?) and re-do Mike's and my advice (at the bottom of your post) and reinstall your video driver. You MUST remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first. When your PC re-boots (into Normal Mode) it *should* ask you to direct it to the video driver. Be sure to point it to the correct driver - don't let it guess and find a default "PCI VGA compatible display adapter". You MUST direct it to the correct WinMe compatible one, specifically designed for your card/adapter. Good luck Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254 700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
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Monitor problem
Hey Mart.
After trying unsuccessfully many times to get this system to recognize the video driver, I decided to accept the fact that either my video card was bad or that something in the BIOS got changed last Sunday night when I didn't connect my monitor correctly. This morning, I decided I'd better try Step 3 (the directions for resetting the BIOS) that I had obtained on Tuesday from HP's site regarding the monitor being blank on startup. First, I did a system restore in Safe Mode to a point before all of this trouble started (which I'd tried earlier and determined would not correct the problem but would at least clean things up a bit). Then I entered the BIOs and reset it to its default configuration by choosing "Load Setup Defaults and Exit" or something to that effect . Once I did that, the system came up properly in normal mode and everything in Device Manager is correct. I guess I shouldn't have been so chicken about messing with the BIOS. It's just not something I want to touch unless absolutely necessary - and I guess this was one of those times! I was a mainframe applications programmer for twenty years and was always used to the "systems guys" having to deal with the equipment and OS side of things. Sorry to have taken up your time. I've definitely learned some things from the information you gave me that helps me better understand how this machine operates. Thanks so much for all of your help! Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 04:46:27 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Ah! ... So the 2001 driver was not even the original? Remove the 2001 & later from your machine and leave only the C:\cpqdrv\nvidia folder (and contents) in place. Repeat the 'Removal' of all Video Adapters and Monitors in Dev.Man in Safe Mode and re-boot. Hopefully, this time you will be asked for the video drivers. Just point (navigate) to C:\cpqdrv\nvidia and it should install the correct 2000 driver. The Monitor files are probably there too and all being well, should correctly identify your monitor. Personally, I wouldn't bother trying to update your drivers once you get them working. Just leave well alone. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Thanks Mart. There were two Display Adapters in Dev. Mon. when this saga started: a nVidia one and a "generic" one (can't remember exactly what it was called). Now there is only a "nVidia Vanta LT (Compaq)" entry. It has a yellow exclamation point in Normal mode but looks "ok" in Safe Mode. Also, the Monitor entry does not show up in Normal mode but is there and fine in Safe Mode. Thanks for the information about uninstalling the drivers in Safe Mode. I have actually found the original Compaq driver from 2000 that came with this machine in the folder C:\cpqdrv\nvidia. I'll try to install that when (and if) I'm given the opportunity to do so. Maybe later I'll apply Compaq's nVidia driver Softpaq from 2001. If things get to the point where I'm back to normal, I'll just leave the driver with a Compaq-supplied one unless Mike M says otherwise. I'll report back as soon as I can get online after getting the job done. Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 00:58:13 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Nevans, My guess is that your Video Adapter is trying to use a combination of old and new driver files - a sort of soup of residual files - some of which *may* have the same name but are the incorrect version. So you need to start over again. Under the circumstances, yes, uninstall any/all nVidia utilities (in Safe Mode) using add/remove programs first then open Dev Man and 'Remove' all Display Adapters (How many do you see? And are they all the same versions (according to their Properties) You might even have to search for and remove any stubborn nVidia files still floating around on your C: drive. You might even have to repeat the process a couple of times to ensure that you've got rid of them all. Eventually when you re-boot - with a bit of luck - it *should* ask you for drivers. Only install the original driver (supplied 2001?) Do not install (or over-install) the later one. IIRC, there were issues with 'upgrading' to so-called universal nVidia drivers. Never affected me as mine were Matrox (desktop) and Neo-Magic (laptop) Not sure if Mike M (if he is watching this thread) may be able to add any further info on nVidia drivers as I seem to recollect he had some experience with them some years back. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message news Mart, Whenever I remove the Monitor and Video Display Adapters in the Device Manager in Safe Mode, the subsequent reboot does not ask me what driver I want but just does its own thing and then says to reboot, which I only do when I do not need to get online. I did not do the following but just want to be sure I'm doing things right: When you say to remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first, are you talking about using Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the couple of nVidia drivers that are present in that list? I have a Compaq Softpaq with the latest nVidia driver they supplied in 2001 which I did install back then. I also have the installation program for nVidia's 71.84 driver which I installed a couple of years ago. Thanks for your assistance, Nevans On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:39:09 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Your (current) problem appears to be due to the video adapter (card) no longer being offered the correct WinMe driver. Confirm that you have the correct driver (originally supplied with the pc - on a separate CD perhaps?) and re-do Mike's and my advice (at the bottom of your post) and reinstall your video driver. You MUST remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first. When your PC re-boots (into Normal Mode) it *should* ask you to direct it to the video driver. Be sure to point it to the correct driver - don't let it guess and find a default "PCI VGA compatible display adapter". You MUST direct it to the correct WinMe compatible one, specifically designed for your card/adapter. Good luck Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254 700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
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Monitor problem
Well, although I'm very pleased to hear that you've now fixed your PC, I did
wonder why you mentioned the BIOS when discussing what appeared to be a straight forward Video driver issue. And then I found this post dated 09/12/2004 :- http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/...-aperture-size Hmm... poking about in the BIOS is not always a good idea without keeping copious detailed notes of every thing you do - so that you can undo them if/when things go pear-shaped. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Hey Mart. After trying unsuccessfully many times to get this system to recognize the video driver, I decided to accept the fact that either my video card was bad or that something in the BIOS got changed last Sunday night when I didn't connect my monitor correctly. This morning, I decided I'd better try Step 3 (the directions for resetting the BIOS) that I had obtained on Tuesday from HP's site regarding the monitor being blank on startup. First, I did a system restore in Safe Mode to a point before all of this trouble started (which I'd tried earlier and determined would not correct the problem but would at least clean things up a bit). Then I entered the BIOs and reset it to its default configuration by choosing "Load Setup Defaults and Exit" or something to that effect . Once I did that, the system came up properly in normal mode and everything in Device Manager is correct. I guess I shouldn't have been so chicken about messing with the BIOS. It's just not something I want to touch unless absolutely necessary - and I guess this was one of those times! I was a mainframe applications programmer for twenty years and was always used to the "systems guys" having to deal with the equipment and OS side of things. Sorry to have taken up your time. I've definitely learned some things from the information you gave me that helps me better understand how this machine operates. Thanks so much for all of your help! Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 04:46:27 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Ah! ... So the 2001 driver was not even the original? Remove the 2001 & later from your machine and leave only the C:\cpqdrv\nvidia folder (and contents) in place. Repeat the 'Removal' of all Video Adapters and Monitors in Dev.Man in Safe Mode and re-boot. Hopefully, this time you will be asked for the video drivers. Just point (navigate) to C:\cpqdrv\nvidia and it should install the correct 2000 driver. The Monitor files are probably there too and all being well, should correctly identify your monitor. Personally, I wouldn't bother trying to update your drivers once you get them working. Just leave well alone. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Thanks Mart. There were two Display Adapters in Dev. Mon. when this saga started: a nVidia one and a "generic" one (can't remember exactly what it was called). Now there is only a "nVidia Vanta LT (Compaq)" entry. It has a yellow exclamation point in Normal mode but looks "ok" in Safe Mode. Also, the Monitor entry does not show up in Normal mode but is there and fine in Safe Mode. Thanks for the information about uninstalling the drivers in Safe Mode. I have actually found the original Compaq driver from 2000 that came with this machine in the folder C:\cpqdrv\nvidia. I'll try to install that when (and if) I'm given the opportunity to do so. Maybe later I'll apply Compaq's nVidia driver Softpaq from 2001. If things get to the point where I'm back to normal, I'll just leave the driver with a Compaq-supplied one unless Mike M says otherwise. I'll report back as soon as I can get online after getting the job done. Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 00:58:13 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Nevans, My guess is that your Video Adapter is trying to use a combination of old and new driver files - a sort of soup of residual files - some of which *may* have the same name but are the incorrect version. So you need to start over again. Under the circumstances, yes, uninstall any/all nVidia utilities (in Safe Mode) using add/remove programs first then open Dev Man and 'Remove' all Display Adapters (How many do you see? And are they all the same versions (according to their Properties) You might even have to search for and remove any stubborn nVidia files still floating around on your C: drive. You might even have to repeat the process a couple of times to ensure that you've got rid of them all. Eventually when you re-boot - with a bit of luck - it *should* ask you for drivers. Only install the original driver (supplied 2001?) Do not install (or over-install) the later one. IIRC, there were issues with 'upgrading' to so-called universal nVidia drivers. Never affected me as mine were Matrox (desktop) and Neo-Magic (laptop) Not sure if Mike M (if he is watching this thread) may be able to add any further info on nVidia drivers as I seem to recollect he had some experience with them some years back. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message news Mart, Whenever I remove the Monitor and Video Display Adapters in the Device Manager in Safe Mode, the subsequent reboot does not ask me what driver I want but just does its own thing and then says to reboot, which I only do when I do not need to get online. I did not do the following but just want to be sure I'm doing things right: When you say to remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first, are you talking about using Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the couple of nVidia drivers that are present in that list? I have a Compaq Softpaq with the latest nVidia driver they supplied in 2001 which I did install back then. I also have the installation program for nVidia's 71.84 driver which I installed a couple of years ago. Thanks for your assistance, Nevans On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:39:09 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Your (current) problem appears to be due to the video adapter (card) no longer being offered the correct WinMe driver. Confirm that you have the correct driver (originally supplied with the pc - on a separate CD perhaps?) and re-do Mike's and my advice (at the bottom of your post) and reinstall your video driver. You MUST remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first. When your PC re-boots (into Normal Mode) it *should* ask you to direct it to the video driver. Be sure to point it to the correct driver - don't let it guess and find a default "PCI VGA compatible display adapter". You MUST direct it to the correct WinMe compatible one, specifically designed for your card/adapter. Good luck Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254 700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
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Monitor problem
Wow! I'd totally forgotten about that post. I never did get an answer
back then and never did change anything. I started thinking about the BIOS at the present time because it is referenced in Step 3 of the following document titled "HP and Compaq Desktop PCs - Monitor is Blank after Starting the Computer": http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/fastFaqLiteDocument?lc=en&cc=uk&dlc=en&docname=bph 04760 I wouldn't be surprised if this week's BIOS problem resulted from my stupidiy using the keyboard while my monitor was blank (because it was not properly connected) when I rebooted to finish installing that new RAM stick last Sunday night. Quoting myself from this past Thursday: quote After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before powering up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). end quote Anyway, all's well that ends well? And I think I'll give things a rest for awhile before adding that new RAM again. I'm tired! Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 22:38:00 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Well, although I'm very pleased to hear that you've now fixed your PC, I did wonder why you mentioned the BIOS when discussing what appeared to be a straight forward Video driver issue. And then I found this post dated 09/12/2004 :- http://www.tomshardware.co.uk/forum/...-aperture-size Hmm... poking about in the BIOS is not always a good idea without keeping copious detailed notes of every thing you do - so that you can undo them if/when things go pear-shaped. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Hey Mart. After trying unsuccessfully many times to get this system to recognize the video driver, I decided to accept the fact that either my video card was bad or that something in the BIOS got changed last Sunday night when I didn't connect my monitor correctly. This morning, I decided I'd better try Step 3 (the directions for resetting the BIOS) that I had obtained on Tuesday from HP's site regarding the monitor being blank on startup. First, I did a system restore in Safe Mode to a point before all of this trouble started (which I'd tried earlier and determined would not correct the problem but would at least clean things up a bit). Then I entered the BIOs and reset it to its default configuration by choosing "Load Setup Defaults and Exit" or something to that effect . Once I did that, the system came up properly in normal mode and everything in Device Manager is correct. I guess I shouldn't have been so chicken about messing with the BIOS. It's just not something I want to touch unless absolutely necessary - and I guess this was one of those times! I was a mainframe applications programmer for twenty years and was always used to the "systems guys" having to deal with the equipment and OS side of things. Sorry to have taken up your time. I've definitely learned some things from the information you gave me that helps me better understand how this machine operates. Thanks so much for all of your help! Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 04:46:27 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Ah! ... So the 2001 driver was not even the original? Remove the 2001 & later from your machine and leave only the C:\cpqdrv\nvidia folder (and contents) in place. Repeat the 'Removal' of all Video Adapters and Monitors in Dev.Man in Safe Mode and re-boot. Hopefully, this time you will be asked for the video drivers. Just point (navigate) to C:\cpqdrv\nvidia and it should install the correct 2000 driver. The Monitor files are probably there too and all being well, should correctly identify your monitor. Personally, I wouldn't bother trying to update your drivers once you get them working. Just leave well alone. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Thanks Mart. There were two Display Adapters in Dev. Mon. when this saga started: a nVidia one and a "generic" one (can't remember exactly what it was called). Now there is only a "nVidia Vanta LT (Compaq)" entry. It has a yellow exclamation point in Normal mode but looks "ok" in Safe Mode. Also, the Monitor entry does not show up in Normal mode but is there and fine in Safe Mode. Thanks for the information about uninstalling the drivers in Safe Mode. I have actually found the original Compaq driver from 2000 that came with this machine in the folder C:\cpqdrv\nvidia. I'll try to install that when (and if) I'm given the opportunity to do so. Maybe later I'll apply Compaq's nVidia driver Softpaq from 2001. If things get to the point where I'm back to normal, I'll just leave the driver with a Compaq-supplied one unless Mike M says otherwise. I'll report back as soon as I can get online after getting the job done. Nevans On Sun, 29 Jun 2008 00:58:13 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Nevans, My guess is that your Video Adapter is trying to use a combination of old and new driver files - a sort of soup of residual files - some of which *may* have the same name but are the incorrect version. So you need to start over again. Under the circumstances, yes, uninstall any/all nVidia utilities (in Safe Mode) using add/remove programs first then open Dev Man and 'Remove' all Display Adapters (How many do you see? And are they all the same versions (according to their Properties) You might even have to search for and remove any stubborn nVidia files still floating around on your C: drive. You might even have to repeat the process a couple of times to ensure that you've got rid of them all. Eventually when you re-boot - with a bit of luck - it *should* ask you for drivers. Only install the original driver (supplied 2001?) Do not install (or over-install) the later one. IIRC, there were issues with 'upgrading' to so-called universal nVidia drivers. Never affected me as mine were Matrox (desktop) and Neo-Magic (laptop) Not sure if Mike M (if he is watching this thread) may be able to add any further info on nVidia drivers as I seem to recollect he had some experience with them some years back. Mart "Nevans" wrote in message news Mart, Whenever I remove the Monitor and Video Display Adapters in the Device Manager in Safe Mode, the subsequent reboot does not ask me what driver I want but just does its own thing and then says to reboot, which I only do when I do not need to get online. I did not do the following but just want to be sure I'm doing things right: When you say to remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first, are you talking about using Add/Remove Programs to uninstall the couple of nVidia drivers that are present in that list? I have a Compaq Softpaq with the latest nVidia driver they supplied in 2001 which I did install back then. I also have the installation program for nVidia's 71.84 driver which I installed a couple of years ago. Thanks for your assistance, Nevans On Fri, 27 Jun 2008 08:39:09 +0100, Mart wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Your (current) problem appears to be due to the video adapter (card) no longer being offered the correct WinMe driver. Confirm that you have the correct driver (originally supplied with the pc - on a separate CD perhaps?) and re-do Mike's and my advice (at the bottom of your post) and reinstall your video driver. You MUST remove the old driver(s) in Safe Mode first. When your PC re-boots (into Normal Mode) it *should* ask you to direct it to the video driver. Be sure to point it to the correct driver - don't let it guess and find a default "PCI VGA compatible display adapter". You MUST direct it to the correct WinMe compatible one, specifically designed for your card/adapter. Good luck Mart "Nevans" wrote in message ... Compaq Presario 5000 5WV254 700mhz AMD Duron 256MB Ram Windows ME This post is long. It begins.... I was adding one stick of RAM the other night to increase from 256 to 512. I was not having any problems. I know! I know! "If it ain't broke, don't fix it!" After reconnecting all cables at the back of my computer, connecting the electricity and powering up, my screen was blank. Thinking that ME had fully booted but I just couldn't see it (dumb me!) and being pretty sure my monitor cable wasn't completely plugged in (why didn't I double-check it before poweing up when I wasn't 100% sure?), I used Ctl-Alt-Del to try to shutdown by moving my "invisible" cursor to the "Shutdown" position and hitting Enter. (I know. Pretty stupid.) Nothing happened. Then I used Ctl-Alt-Del again because I realized I had used one of the arrow keys (to the left of the numeric keypad) instead of the Tab key to move my "invisible" cursor. Again nothing happened - surprise, surprise - so I shutdown using the power key (hard shutdown?). Powering back up resulted in the Windows ME screen followed by a blank screen with a blinking cursor briefly and then no cursor. Doing another hard shutdown/power on took me to the screen that lets you choose how to bootup. It had Safe Mode selected and the machine booted up there into Windows Help and Support. (The new RAM was recognized in Safe Mode; nevertheless I decided to remove it before proceeding further.) After many frustrating hours, including using System Restore to go back to a restore point from earlier in the day and going through the steps in a printout I had of MS article 273738 "How to Troubleshoot Windows Millennium Edition Startup Problems", I eventually realized I could access my newsreader program in Safe Mode. After looking through lots of posts in my archive of the MS Windows ME help newsgroups, I found a thread from April 2005 in which the recommendation to someone having a similar problem was to remove all Monitor entries in the Device Manager (which did not fix my problem) and then suggested removing all Video Display Adapter entries (which also did not fix my problem). I got the "detecting new hardware" message the very first time I rebooted (I'm not sure whether that was after removing the Monitor entries or the Video Display Adapter entries) but I have not seen that message in many subsequent reboots. There are now no Monitor entries present in Device Manager. Whenever I can do what I call a "semi-successful" boot, it starts with a message about "PCI VGA compatible display adapter" that goes by so fast I can't get the whole thing and then a message about nVidia. Then a box appears with "To finish setting up your new hardware, restart your computer.... Do you wish to restart now?". If I don't restart, I can get into Windows with 640x480 and 16 colors (a "semi-successful" boot.) That's where I am now which, fortunately, allows me to get online to access email, do other work and, most importantly, do more research on this problem I'm having. If I choose instead to restart, I get the blank screen scenario again. I then hard shutdown/power up and let my machine go into Safe Mode where I remove the nVidia Video Display Adapter entry so I can get another semi-successful boot. I've already checked that all cards and cables inside are secure. I have a feeling I'm going to have to mess with the BIOS and guess I just want some guidance (reassurance!) before proceeding. At http://www.annoyances.org/exec/forum/winme/r1077150248 it says that clearing my board's BIOS Plug and Play configuration data (DMI) may do the trick. although I'm not quite sure how to do that. Some reading I've done at HP's site indicates that resetting my BIOS back to its default configuration might fix my problem. Their site does tell how to do that but I'm not sure I'm ready (call it "scared") since this is the most complicated problem I've encountered since buying this machine in Nov. 2000. If necessary, I have the last BIOS update Compaq provided in 2002 for this computer. Thanks, Nevans P.S. Just for clarification, I did use the appropriate RAM for this machine. Several years ago I increased my ram from 64 to 256 (by replacing Compaq's 64MB stick with two 128MB sticks of Kingston KVR133Q/128R) and this time added one 256MB stick of Kingston KVR133Q/256R in the last available slot. Here's the portion of the old thread I mentioned above (which, by the way, fixed the OP's problem back then although he didn't say which action(s) actually resulted in success). I can provide more of the thread if you need it. On Wed, 20 Apr 2005 00:36:08 +0100, Mike M wrote in microsoft.public.windowsme.hardware : Follow Mart's suggestion and remove all entries in Monitor in the Device Manager. If that doesn't fix it then boot back into Safe Mode and remove all Video Display Adapter entries. -- Mike Maltby MS-MVP KenP wrote: I forgot to include that if I boot up in the SAFE MODE, the PC does come up. Where do I change the monitor refresh mode, bios or ??? |
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sometimes monitors can be a bit tricky.
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