Bigtime Crash

[Guest]

My son's computer with XP home has crashed big time! I can't get into safe
mode - Upon startup I see the emachines logo, then the windows xp logo and
then I get a black screen with just a white cursor (which moves around with
the mouse) & that is it. When I attempt to start in any version of safe
mode all I get is a black screen that has safe mode in white in each of the
four corners and across the top overlapping the safe mode is:
Microsoft (R) Windows XP(R)Build 2600.xpsp-sp2-gdr.050301-1519:Service Pack2)
I think we're in trouble. Any help out there?
Thanks.

 

[Jim B]

If possible attempt to retrieve any data from the hard drive by installing
it in another PC as a Slave. If I am correct your E Machine comes with an
Image of your hard drive. So just be aware that using those disks will
format your drive resulting in loss of data and restoration to the factory
condition the operating system was in at time of purchase.

 

[Rick \Nutcase\ Rogers]

Hi Nancy,

If you hit ctrl+shift+escape, does task manager come up? If so, on the
applications tab click "new task" and enter explorer.exe - does this bring
you to the desktop?

--
Best of Luck,

Rick Rogers, aka "Nutcase" - Microsoft MVP

Associate Expert - WindowsXP Expert Zone

Windows help - www.rickrogers.org

 

[Ken Blake]

In

Ask yourself:

1. is there any data on the machine that I REALLY cant lose or
do
without?
2. do I have all the original driver discs that came with the
machine,
still?
3. do I really want to sit here for hours trying to fix it ?

if the answers to the above are NO, YES and NO, then just
reinstall XP
from the original CD. It'll take you an hour tops.

There's no way anybody can know how long it will take someone
else to do something like this. How long it takes depends on many
things: how many and what apps are installed? How much and what
customization has been done? What backups have to be restored,
and what medium and format are they in? And so on. Moreover,
people have different levels of skill and comfort, and work at
different speeds.

The hard drive on my laptop died a little over a month ago, and
had to be rebuilt from scratch. After replacing the drive,
putting everything back the way it was took me a little over 16
hours. And that was my laptop--with much less installed than on
my desktop. If it had been my desktop, it would probably have
taken twice as long.

Nobody else's system is exactly the same as mine, and I'm not
suggesting that it would take everyone 16 hours. But depending on
what your system is like, it may take you less than 16 hours or
it may take you more. Nobody's system is exactly the same as
yours either, which is why I say that a statement like "It'll
take you an hour tops" is never right for everyone.

 

[Guest]

Boot with your WinXP CD and do a repair install.
How to Perform a Windows XP Repair Install
http://www.michaelstevenstech.com/XPrepairinstall.htm

 

[Guest]

I have had the same problem with the XP boot-up as Nancy for YEARS!
When the computer boots up (Dell), it shows the Dell Logo, Windows XP Logo,
then when you have the black screen with white cursor that is suppose to turn
into a timeglass and then blue sign on screen...it doesn't happen. You are
left with a black screen and white cursor that you can move around with your
mouse. When you try to boot up with safe mode, you get the same, except for
the words "safe mode" in each of the corners and your "build info" at the
top.

Like I said, this has happened to me so many times, I seriously cannot count
them. The dreaded black screen. I have become an expert on what a service
tech in India will tell you to do in this case...But the last time which I
called, which was last nite, there only final reccommendation was to
reinstall...

Ok, First, you put in your original XP cd and choose to boot from disk when
you are prompted...this will lead you to the screen that asks you if you want
to install or repair...Choose "R" for repair. This will take you to a DOS
screen where you will probably have only one choice, which is "1"...so type
"1" and press enter. Then when you get the C:Windows> you will type
chkdsk /r

This stands for check disk and repair. This takes a while...so go watch a
TV show, eat dinner, etc. (get your mind off the insane machine).

You will know it is done when you get the C> You will then type exit
This will reboot the machine, and hopefully this will work for you.

My experiences are many. My last was that I did this twice, (the repair)
and it still didn't work last night. Then after turning off and on manually
like 20 times today it still gave me the black screen every time. I then did
the repair again today. It still gave me the black screen. Then I turned off
again, unplugged ev.thing from tower, opened up, vacummed out, reseated all
the cards I could....re-connected all the cords to the back of my
computer....Still, black screen...after 4 more times of manually turning off
and rebooting and getting same failure, I finally got the blue screen, that
is how I am able to type this. I am on a mission to find out what is the
software programming problem that needs to be addressed so that this doesn't
happen anymore. I would appreciate any help. I do all my Windows XP updates
and even wonder if one of those is the cause. I even have the Norton
SystemWorks which has "WinDoctor" that I was hopeful would resove this
issue....help!

 

[Kelly]

<LOL> I appreciate your sense of humor. )

Suggestions:

Computer Stops Responding with a Black Screen When You Start Windows
http://support.microsoft.com/directory/article.asp?ID=KB;EN-US;q314503

Windows XP Stops Responding at the Welcome Screen
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q294/4/27.asp

How to Perform a Clean Boot in Windows XP
How to Use Clean Boot Troubleshooting for Windows XP
How to Troubleshoot By Using the Msconfig Utility in Windows XP
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_conflicts.htm

How to Recover from a Corrupted Registry that Prevents Windows XP from
Starting
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=KB;en-us;q307545

How to Disable a Service that Prevents Windows XP from Booting
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/q244/9/05.asp

Use System Files to Create a Boot Disk to Guard Against Being Unable to
Start Win XP
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com/xp_setup.htm

Resources for Troubleshooting Startup Problems in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308041&Product=winxp
--

All the Best,
Kelly (MS-MVP)

Troubleshooting Windows XP
http://www.kellys-korner-xp.com