OK guys help diagnose this problem

ok long story short, i bought this acer laptop without a HD and bought a used 80gig HD from some hole in the wall laptop store here in town. the first HD i bought kept giving me fixed disk failure errors so i went back and got another used HD..... i've installed windows, programs, etc.... it inconsistently will give me either blue screens, system dll error, etc. i've run chkdsk, advanced system care, defragged the computer multiple times, etc.

i've gotten mixed feedback as far as what it is. something i've downloaded, the HD, all kinds of stuff. is there some concrete way to find out exactly what the problem is? not something that will say it is probably this or that, i need something or someone to be able to tell me exactly what needs to be done.

this is the main thing i've been getting -

It goes blue, says...

Windows had to shut down to protect your computer
KERNAL-________-_________
A process or thread....
.................more that I couldn't read...

Beeps

(black screen)
Phoenix Trusted Core NB
Copyright 1985-2005 Phoenix Tech. Ltd
.......
System BIOS Version: V3.13
VGA BIOS Version: ATI UMA V008.050.017.00.18675
CPU0=AMD Turion 64 x2 Mobile Technology TL-50

640k System RAM Passed
23202m Extended RAM Passed
512 KB L2 Cache
System BIOS shadowed
Video BIOS shadowed
Fixed Disk 0: Hitachi 'HTSu4q6x0J9ATp0
Mouse initialized
ERROR
0200: Failure Fixed Disk 0

 

The key is the stuff in red above. With your having issues with TWO different drives, it should make you wonder why the original seller sold you a machine without a hard drive in it. My guess: the HD controller is funked up.

Gary

 

oh great. and what is the solution if the HD controller is messed up?

Fixed Disk 0: Hitachi 'HTSu4q6x0J9ATp0

and what does the bold underlined part mean?

 

There is no solution, the mother board would have to be replaced. What does the bold underline part mean? I means the HD controller is toast, most likely. What SHOULD be there is the model number of the drive. That is part of what tipped me off that the controller might be bad. Or MAYBE you got a second hard drive that was bad. But that is unlikely. I'd go back to the place where you got the drive. Ask them to try it in another machine and see if the BIOS shows a real model number. If so, then the drive is not the issue. Your next stop should be the place where you bought the laptop. They sold you a dud. Were you given ANY explanation as to why it was being sold without a drive? That should always be a red flag.

Gary

 

The underlined part is supposed to be the model number, which is supposed to provide core info about the drive.

The model number of the drive is definitely corrupted. Here's a breakdown of what that number shows, and where it's gone bad:

Code:

Given model number: 'HTSu4q6x0J9ATp0
H - Hitachi
T - Travelstar
S - Standard
u4 - Drive Speed ----\
q6 - Top Capacity ----- These three values appear to be corrupted,
                        as they do not seem to relate to anything in the Hitachi tech data.
x0 - Model Capacity -/
J - "unique code"
9 - 9.5mm height
AT - ATA interface
p - Feature code assigned by Business Unit (no specifications)
0 - "unique code"

The foregoing was derived from the Hitachi Model Number Guide.

I don't know what that single quote mark is doing at the beginning of the number as it was reported to you; however, there are sufficient digits after that quote mark that I have simply ignored it for purposes of putting the above together.

At any rate, the digits "u4q6x0" are clearly corrupted, and the remaining digits may be as well, although I cannot be sure as they seem consistent with the model number guide.

 

so basically, it's very very evident that it is more than likely my HD controller and not the HD itself?

 

More than likely its the controller. As a last ditch effort, have you tried clearing the NVRAM by removing the CMOS battery and then putting it back in so that the settings go to their default configurations? If the error is that the model number recorded in the NVRAM has gotten corrupted, clearing it might fix it. Don't hold your breath, because this is by no means a sure-fire fix, but it's worth a try before you go shelling out for a new mobo.

 

ok so the way i clear my NVRAM is simply removing the battery from the computer? for how long until the NVRAM is completely reset? and how will i know if the problem has been resolved? will it be by looking at the serial number of the HD and seeing if it has changed? or will have just have to wait and see if i get these error messages again? am i going to need to format the drive and start all over with the OS installation?

 

This procedure involves opening up the notebook and finding a small watch-type battery that's set into a socket on the motherboard - that battery should be removed for several minutes (you should google on your particular model to see if there's a specific time listed for it; otherwise, keep it out for at least 5 or 10 minutes).

Just so that we're all clear on what I'm talking about here, this is not about pulling the external battery that feeds power to the computer so it'll run, this is about dismantling the thing to get at its innards, and removing a small, round, disk-like silver battery from its socket on the motherboard, and then reversing that whole procedure.

Now, I'm quite comfy field-dressing my VAIO and could probably do it blind-folded, but I have no idea how comfortable you are with opening your system up, nor if you have the appropriate tools (such as an anti-static wrist guard), nor the appropriate skill level; you've got to evaluate those things carefully for yourself. That being said, if you feel comfortable doing it, I'd give it a try, although I have no idea whether or not it'll work.

 

so you have read that this is a solution-(for some) for this model of laptop?

 

No, I'm making a partly-educated guess here.

 

ok. i'm just going to sell this paperweight and buy another computer. i've put faaaaaarrrrrrr too much time into this thing since i bought it. thank god this isn't my primary computer. thanks for all the help.

and by the way yeah i talked to the guy i bought it (from craigslist), and he pulled the whole "it worked perfectly fine when i had it" and basically told me i'm screwed... so yeah.. not to create bad karma but thing is destined to be someone else's problem.not mine... thank you for all of the advice.

 

So what was his "reason" for selling it without a hard drive in it?

Have you gone back to the folks you got the hard drive from just to be sure the drive is OK? Before you totally give up, I'd do that.

And what are you planning to tell the person YOU sell it to?

Gary

 

i contacted the guy that i bought it from and he tried to say that he was keeping the hard drive because he wanted to keep it for his new laptop he had upgraded to. and then immediately caught himself in a lie because his new laptop has a SATA drive and the HD he was keeping was an IDE. he tried to say that it worked perfectly when he had it... total BS.... i'm just going to try and pawn it and break even as far as what i paid for it. maybe take a small loss. if they inspect it and accept it. so be it. and then anyone who buys it and has problems can deal with the pawn shop about getting their money.
yes i was skeptical about buying it without a HD and meeting him in a wal mart parking lot. so it's kinda my fault for not being more cautious about buying a used laptop before i could see it fully function. but at the same time i'm in no position to suck up this loss. i got this laptop for a friend long story short and now i'm in debt to my friend for tattoo services until i get him another working computer.

 

Can you say fraud? So since you were a victim of fraud, you are now going to perpetrate the same CRIME on someone else? Nice. Real classy.

Gary

 

Fraud? Maybe so, maybe not. It depends on what questions the buyer asks and what answers the OP gives to those questions.

As far as I know, one is not generally obliged to disclose every suspected fault in a used good when selling it off - mere failure to disclose is not generally by itself sufficient to constitute fraud; it takes some more like a failure to truthfully disclose in response to a question on the subject asked by the potential buyer.

So long as the OP answers truthfully any questions the pawn shop might have (e.g., if the person at the counter asks "so, what's wrong with it" I believe that the OP would be obliged to state that it doesn't have a hdd and he couldn't get it to boot properly when he put a new hdd into it), and doesn't engage in the sort of misrepresentation that his seller did - i.e., he should not under any circumstances tell any potential buyer that it worked for him, or it runs ok, or anything of the like. Selling something off to a pawn shop is a legitimate way of lightening one's stock of material goods, and the OP would have no further obligation to anyone who might buy from the pawn shop - at that point, any issues would lie between the pawnshop and its buyer, and wouldn't involve the OP any longer (so long as he himself avoided committing fraud).

 

ok well suprisingly so far, my last desperate attempts so save this computer seem to have sucess - (so far)... i performed windows repair with the installation disc and after that i performed sfc /scannow and the cmputer is working perfectly up to this point. i'm posting this message with the said computer right now.....

and on another note.... i'm sorry and i will admit that i've done A LOT of both online and intrapersonal trading/transactions/etc.. and i know how it feels to get screwed. and i am honestly not one to intentionlly screw another person/buyer in a deal. but this is a funny situation to where i am obligated to get a working laptop ASAP. anyways.. i don;t have time at this moment -(my fiance is btching at me to get off the computer) so i will continue this post in the morning.)
talk to you guys in the morning

 

IF you check acer fourm they issues about hard disk be picked up wrong name

what model is this 5000 5050 serios?

 

it's the 5100

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=256427&goto=newpost

check this post it issues it solder joint or something like that