Forums > Social Chat > A golden tip for PC owners.

Login/Join to Participate

onewheeldaveGOLD Member
Carpal \'Tunnel
3,252 posts
Location: sheffield, United Kingdom


Posted:
Many of you may know this already, but for those who don't this could be as useful to you as it was for me today.

Switching on my PC I got a black screen with the words: -

'Data error reading drive C
Abort, Retry, Ignore, fail'

Switching off and on again several times, and trying the four options didn't help; niether could I boot into safe mode- it looked like my hard drive was finished.

Next I rang the shop where I bought it and told them the message; their conclusion was that my hard drive had given out and that there was nothing that could be done.

Luckily I remembered that, following the advice in a PC book, I had made a 'Startup' disk on a floppy some months ago, also I had taken brief notes about how to use it.

This is meant to be used in situations where the PC won't boot from the hard drive, by putting the start up disk in the floppy drive the PC boots from that instead; from here you can run some basic tools like scandisk.

Running scandisk revealed errors on the C drive, it repaired them, but the hard drive still wouldn't work.

Running scan disk again and doing a full surface scan twice enabled me to get it working again.

I know that this is a temporary state of affairs- once bad sectors appear on the hard drive it is only a matter of time before it fails completely.

However, making a startup floppy gives you a chance to get the hard drive running a bit longer, and enables you to get important data backed up.

Without a startup disk today I would have been left with a non functioning PC and no way of accessing the data on my hard drive.

An easy way of creating a startup disk in Windows 98 is to go to 'HELP', click the 'contents' tab and type in 'Startup'. Follow the instructions, you will need a floppy disk. It's probably worth making two in case one fails.

Then put them somewhere safe.

It's also worth getting a book or help file which tells you how to use it.

"You can't outrun Death forever.
But you can make the Bastard work for it."

--MAJOR KORGO KORGAR,
"Last of The Lancers"
AFC 32


Educate your self in the Hazards of Fire Breathing STAY SAFE!


pkBRONZE Member
Lambretta Fanatic
4,997 posts
Location: United Kingdom


Posted:
windows and microsoft = fun!


i had to format my drive today just to install my adsl modem!

hugs mate you aint alone.

good job i never keep any files on drice c:

every thing is on other partitions.

EeraBRONZE Member
old hand
1,107 posts
Location: In a test pit, Mackay, Australia


Posted:
The machine that runs my shearboxes did exactly the same, but suffered from a completely terminal failure and couldn't be booted up from the floppy, losing me all my consultancy and student data. Ironically I had been planning to replace the machine for a while but the lab upstairs had such huge problems with program compatability (it was designed to run on a 3.1 machine, will grudgingly run on Win95, anything later than that, forget it) that I was putting it off until I had finished the workload. It died with one set to run.

When they go wrong computers suck but it's becoming progressively harder to do our everyday jobs without them. We just have to pray to the Keyboard God that nothing bad will happen

There is a slight possibility that I am not actually right all of the time.


Raymund Phule (Fireproof)Enter a "Title" here:
2,905 posts
Location: San Diego California


Posted:
Umm Norton is a wonderful program expensive but wonderful. Get the Works, not just the virus protection and you wont have to worry about your HD anymore. Ohh and it usually isnt windows that causes your HD to poo itself... it is usually a crappy HD.

Some Jarhead last night: "this dumb a$$ thinks hes fireproof"


shadow steppinofficial hop irken
401 posts
Location: Tucson USA


Posted:
somtimes computers just get a little over heated too. try locateing the little vents on it and pour a glass of water in there
that should help!

thank you drive through

In my hands I hold your smile and in my heart it runs so wild You are the one you are unique I'm so in love you make me weak And the reason that I feel is like a shadow from a light so if you have the chance to be with me be my shadow in the night


pounceSILVER Member
All the neurotic makings of America's lesser known sweetheart
9,831 posts
Location: body in Las Vegas, heart all around the world, USA


Posted:
hey shadow...can you take a look at my cup holder? i think there's something wrong with it. you know, that little thingy that when you press the button, it pushes the cup holder out and there's the hole in the middle? that's a cup holder right?

LMAO....i stand at my original statement....switch to crack-lite! love ya shuga!

I was always scared with my mother's obsession with the good scissors. It made me wonder if there were evil scissors lurking in the house somewhere.

Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons for you are crunchy and good with ketchup.

**giggles**


telicI don't want a title.
940 posts

Posted:
I have a powerbook g4 (a/k/a the TiBook). No software problems, no virii. But hardware is another story.... I must bash it around an awful lot. Luckily, AppleCare has paid to replace my screen, my airport card, my battery, my AC adapter (somehow I ripped it open)... to fix a RAM slot.... yay, AppleCare.

E pluribus unum, baby.


Matthew B-MLemon-Aware Devilstick-wielding Operative
605 posts
Location: East London Wilds


Posted:
Argh:
The plural of virus is "virus" or "viruses", certainly not "virii"...

Hardware is a pain. All software sucks, all hardware sucks.

Spot the person who's been working with computers for far too long...

Luckily, I don't have to deal with Windows (or M$) either. I'd go insane if I did.

Luv 'n' Lemons
purity :: clarity :: balance


telicI don't want a title.
940 posts

Posted:
quote:
Originally posted by Matthew B-M:
Argh:
The plural of virus is "virus" or "viruses", certainly not "virii"...

What?! Next you're going to tell me that the plural of Taurus isn't Tauri, or that the plural of penis isn't penes! Don't do this to me, man!

E pluribus unum, baby.


MikeGinnyGOLD Member
HOP Mad Doctor
13,925 posts
Location: San Francisco, CA, USA


Posted:
Simple tip for PC owners:

Buy a Mac.

-Mike

Certified Mad Doctor and HoP High Priest of Nutella



A buckuht n a hooze! -Valura


Matthew B-MLemon-Aware Devilstick-wielding Operative
605 posts
Location: East London Wilds


Posted:
sorry, triggered a pet peeve.

runs away and hides

Luv 'n' Lemons
purity :: clarity :: balance


PrometheusDiamond In The Rough
459 posts
Location: Richmond, Virginia


Posted:
I use a PC personally, and a Mac professionally, and in my opinion, on-screen technology peaked with the Etch-A-Sketch...

Dance like it hurts; Love like you need money; Work like someone is watching.

Never criticize someone until you've walked a mile in their shoes. That way, when you DO criticize them, you are a mile away, and you have their shoes.



Similar Topics No similar topics were found
      Show more..

HOP Newsletter

Sign up to get the latest on sales, new releases and more...