Error Message on Startup Screen

[jennyg14]

I was installing a USB adapter on a friends computer. I installed the driver and everything went fine. The adapter is compatible with 2.0 and 1.1 but I didn't check what was on her computer (it's a compaq presario 5000 series-5bw160). I shut down the computer and then inserted the usb adapter into the usb slot. I restarted the computer and it started up just fine. Then after a few minutes, the screen did some crazy jumbled thing and just froze there. I restarted the computer and after the Compaq screen, a screen came up that said "Operating System not foudn on any devices. Press any key to continue". From what I've read elsewhere, this is pretty bad. I restarted the computer again and after pressing the button after prompted a few times, windows 2000 was able to reboot. When the computer started up again, it did the same thing as before -- crazy jumbled screen that just froze. I restarted again and I got the same error message as before. This time, though, it won't do anything but give me this screen. I can't start it in safe mode and get it past this error message. I've tried looking at different options on the BIOS screen, but when I looked at the boot order, it only listed the CD-ROM drive. So here it is:
1. Is there any way to repair this problem
2. By installing this driver software (for a D-Link DWL-G122 adapter), is there any way that this caused this problem to occur or was this just waiting to happen?
Please please please help me.
Thanks.

[Spider]

Originally Posted by jennyg14

or was this just waiting to happen?

USB cards need juice (lots of power). USB devices get their power from the USB port
and the port is fed from the power supply. Compaqs (especially that older type) have
barely enough power to run the way they are shipped, adding the USB card is asking
too much from that wimpy power supply. You need a higher WATT power supply.

Compaqs also have their own sized power supplies. It's not impossible but you can
match it with one that's not from Compaq. Phone stores and ask if they can sell you
a power supply to fit a Compaq. If someone says "yes" then make sure you have the
old one in your hand to match the dimensions and screw holes.

Another note:
When you kept rebooting the machine (I counted 5 times from your post) when it was
in an obvious problem state you most likely corrupted the data on the hard drive and
may also have drained the last bit of juice left in the BIOS battery.

You need a new BIOS (CMOS) battery and a new power supply. Power supply should
be 300watts or more.

[jennyg14]

Is there any way to just get that program off of there without the power supply? I was figuring that if a USB adapter was going to give her computer problems that I could just get a wireless desktop PCI card. Which kind would you recommend for this type of computer?? Can you recommend a good site to purchase a power supply if I have to get it?

[jtdoom]

Hi

true, Compaq have barely any room for powerhungry extra hardware, but a USB expansion card should be using no more than 5 Watts?

I wonder wether you get the system going again after you...
- pull the USB card out
- Check wether there are no loose connections to motherboard, hard disks, cdrom drives, floppy drive, etc
They could have wiggled themselves loose while you was in there, and finally lost connection by the slight vibration once the box was running.
(you can easily reseat connectors)
- check wether no other card got displaced/wiggled loose (reseat it)
- leave the box open
after doing this, put power on the powercord, and try to power up.
with the USB adaptor out, it might start up again.
if it does, and the system comes up good, shut and restart, then shut again.

if it doesn't come up good, kill power, replace both IDE ribbons with new ones, and try again

once it comes up good, shut and restart, then shut again
kill power
put that USB adaptor in same slot you pulled it from, and let it power up.
if that freezes the system again, you could try that card in another slot, or pull it and use another brand.

if another brand also freezes the system, then this could be it was the last straw.

(Hmmmm, WHAT IF... one can check all drives in another box, for ONE faulty drive can make the other dissapear )

[jtdoom]

and yes, DO replace that CMOS battery

[Spider]

Can you recommend a good site to purchase a power supply

http://www.affordablesurplus.com

get a wireless desktop PCI card. Which kind would you recommend for this type of computer

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16833127145

[jtdoom]

I just reread all this, and I have a question

did you put a new card inside the computer (what goes into a PCI slot, which is not a USB port), or did you simply want to connect some USB device (what you called an adaptor) to an existing USB port?

[jennyg14]

No, I didn't put a new card in the computer. I simply installed a program and then entered a usb adapter to an existing USB port.

[jtdoom]

hmmm,
I should have googled for this adaptor you spoke about
http://www.dlink.com/products/?pid=334

that way, I'd not have been misleading myself.

a dead CMOS battery can do strange things to you, and a 3 dollar expense is a fair deal to exclude that possibility.

That a system dies while running is usually a bad sign.
You can test the hard drive(s) in another box.
I would try find out if all drives from that compaq still run.

for the hard drive(s) you can also run an antivirus scan, then do scandisk.

[jennyg14]

Is there a difference between the DL2032 and CR2032?? The computer has a CR2032 BIOS battery. I purchased a Duracell DL2032. Will this battery work in there as well?? Thanks!

[Spider]

Originally Posted by jennyg14

Is there a difference between the DL2032 and CR2032??

Nope, same battery.