EVERYONE IN HERE!!

[FBM!]

Right peeps, here's a good one for ya.

Recently my computer has been a bit pants (specs are ok though) so I thought I'd fiddle with drivers, firstly when I installed the detonator drivers for my GeForce DDR I cound't connect to any UT games and the sound quality in it was crackly (although HL was fine, perhaps because it was installed before the changes?). Anyway I looked over the boards and somebody suggested using the 4in1 VIA mobo drivers. So I downloaded these... installed them... and now whenever I load up my PC eg turn on the power I am created by a blank screen. I can here everything load in the background so it seems to be a display problem (rather than a complete pooter b0rk up.) I am also greeted by the double beep of doom as it's now known (my mobo beeps at me to let me know the monito is offline for some reason, in case I didn't notice :E) To solve this I have so far tried the following:

1) Swap over monitors
2) Changed gfx cards (GeForce out, Voodoo Banshee in)
3) "Loading the BIOS defaults" in BIOS (using the "down 1 down 1 etc method)
4) "Loading Setup Defaults" using the same method.
5) Taking out the CMOS battery for 20 minutes to clear the BIOS (and back to it's factory settings)
6) Load from a Win '98 startup disk
7) Load from a DOS boot disk

Looking at the possible problems I think I can rule out the following fairly safely: Monitor damaged, gfx damaged, BIOS changed (although CMOS battery may need to be taken out for longer I dunno)and mobo damage (all of these may still be the cause but looking at what I've done so far it seems unlikey). One thing I haven't tried yet is formatting my C: (my only drive) I am thinking that this may be containing the naughty BIOS drivers that are causing me the hassle. I am now running out of ideas so any help you could give would be greatly appreciated. :)

Specs: AMD K6-2 400, 128MB SDRAM, GeForce DDR, SB 128, Win Doze '98, Mobo = VA-503+ VIA chipset.

Thanks in advance peeps, first winning answer gets a special prize :E

[[HLnC]Jay-Dee]

hold control at boot and see if u can load up safe mode
if u can then change the gfx driver to standard vga
reboot back to normal windows wif a rubbish display
then try and update your proper drivers :)

[Boycee]

Um that sounds pretty bad m8

u didn't by chance do a bios update...(is that part of the 4 in 1?) coz i'd say u need a new mobo coz the bios update has facked it....

the other thingy i'd say would be find ur manual and short the clear bios jumper....or remove the battery for longer.....

[UsediLLusioN]

So you turn your computer on and get no display at all? or just when you try and load windows /dos?
if so:

try rebuilding it.
make sure everything is connected securely.

Has your motherboard got onboard graphics?
if so, try using that then disabling it in bios, then use your geforce

[FBM!]

When I load up my computer all I get is a blank screen, nothing shows on the screen at any stage. I was chatting to various people today and they think that my mobo has been flashed, and I should look foir a jumper setting to clear it

/me prays

[UsediLLusioN]

if your bios has been flashed, there is no jumper setting to clear it im afraid, what u could do is make a boot disk that boots into dos.
go round to a mates house, do the same, get everything you need to flash your bios onto that disk (bios flasher, bios image)
go through it on your mates machine,
IMPORTANT BIT
WRITE DOWN EVERY SINGLE KEYPRESS.

if you go through it and do this, you know what to do on your machine, even though u can't see.
thats probably your best bet m8,
but thats if your bios has been flashed.

IMO though, i think your motherboards just knackered

[PADDYBOY]

The beeps of death ... r u sure you have pushed the cards far enough into the AGP slot ... normally thats all it takes to sort this out ...

If this isnt the problem it is something with the mobo - btw - you do have a VIA chipset in the mobo dont you?

[FBM!]

Yep I do indeed have a VIA chipset, and I have checked and doube checked all the leads and cards

Defo looks like the BIOS has somehow been flashed from Windows, so like Usedillusion said I gotta do it without the screen.

Oh joy oh joy :(

[Davvo]

Have you loaded the AGP bus drivers for your mb?
Davvo

[[CGF] Novadose]

ummmmm.........sorry to break this to you but the 4 in 1 DO NOT flash your bios and you cannot flash your BIOS from windows, so IMO this isn't what has happened.

Flashing your BIOS requires a dedicated DOS mode to do it, otherwise Windows would just hang while doing it.

I'm afraid I don't know exactly what the problem is, but I am tending to lean towards a BIOS problem so flashing could be the best solution, since you can't easily fiddle with your settings.

Before you do that though, could you let us know what motherboard you have got? There may be a simpler solution!

[[HLnC]Jay-Dee]

you cannot flash your BIOS from windows
Flashing your BIOS requires a dedicated DOS mode to do it, otherwise Windows would just hang while doing it

i have a microstar mobo which supports a thing called live bios
what u do is dl the bios and then get the program to load it
wait about a minute for it to reach 100% and then it reboots with your new bios :)

solves the windows me boot disk problem :D

i was just thinking
the cih virus can wipe your mobo flash chip making it impossible to use the mobo again :cry:

[UsediLLusioN]

oops double post

[Edited by -=SAT=-UsediLLusioN on 22-11-2000 at 08:52 PM]

[UsediLLusioN]

Originally posted by [CGF] Novadose
ummmmm.........sorry to break this to you but the 4 in 1 DO NOT flash your bios and you cannot flash your BIOS from windows, so IMO this isn't what has happened.

Flashing your BIOS requires a dedicated DOS mode to do it, otherwise Windows would just hang while doing it.



sorry to break this to you, but u can flash your bios from windows, i've done it and it works

[FBM!]

Right, bo**ox to it, new mobo for me :(

Thanks for your help peeps

[arian]

Woo hang on m8, if you have been tinkering in your case just take your memory out and re sett it. If memory is not in 100% you will get very similar pattern. Try it and see might be worth a go.