I am having problems with my windows 95.

I got this computer from this place that repairs and sells used computers, well, they had some old computeris in the back. so I went with the staff manager in the back of the building, he gave me this computer that said windows 95 on it. and i got all this other stuff for only 30 bucks. I brang it home, and i started it up. And it senses everything, like, the mouse and keyboard. But after it said that, it was supposed to go the screen where it tells you that windows 95 is loading. just one problem. it says, "cannot find operating system ", instead. I went into the set up and everything, as in, I went to the start up, told it to run windows 95 with hard disk. it still didnt work. then i tried a windows 98 installation disk. it wouldn't even read it. Does anyone know how to deal with this kind of problem? Thanks.

 

First, check the hardware. With the computer turned off and unplugged, open the case and make sure all the cables and wires are plugged into where they should be and all plugs are firmly seated.

Then leave the case open, plug it in and start it up. See if the light on the front of the CD drive flashes and, if it has a hard drive activity light, watch to see if it flashes, too. Listen to the hard drive to make sure it's spinning up. Look inside and make sure whatever fans are present are turning.

If you think the drives actually work, it's possible the hard drive was wiped before the computer was put into storage and you'll need to install an operating system.

 

If the hard drive is wiped you may well have to prepare the hard drive.
Fdisk to set up disk and format the drive.
This is done with a Windows 98 setup diskette.
If you do not have one you can obtain the tools at
www.bootdisk.com
If it was a Windows 95 computer you may have to upgrade the computer with older ram - it is of little use to anyone else now . Ask around someone may give it to you as a gift.
Check in the google news groups in your area.
You should be able to find a newer computer through such sources too.
$ 30 is a lot to spend for a throwaway windows 95 computer .

 

here are the URL's for pics of it.

i beleive one of these is the video card.

http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q244/sdv6/card.jpg

this is the heat sink

http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q244/sdv6/heatsink.jpg

motherboard

http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q244/sdv6/motherboard.jpg

here is the video card pic at a different angle

http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q244/sdv6/motherboard.jpg

it only came with these 2 drives

http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q244/sdv6/the_only_drives_it_came_with.jpg

this is a picture of everything. you can't see the hard drive because it is tucked in a little compartment under everything. i checked it though, it seems everything is hooked up.

http://i138.photobucket.com/albums/q244/sdv6/see_that_wire.jpg

the whole computer was 30 dollars for everyhting, like the mouse, keyboard, and monitor. the computer itself was only 20$. thanks again.

 

oh by the way.

I dont think the computer knows it has a floppy drive. I am not entirely sure. It said it is not istalled.

 

Hi
It is a Hewlett Packard, so go to www.hp.com/support, identify the computer's model and you will find information about it.

That card with a large ribbon cable connected appears to be a SCSI card. The connector for the cable will only fit into a SCSI connector on a SCSI CDrom drive or SCSI harddrive. If the OS is on the SCSI drive, you may have to set the BIOS to "boot from SCSI ".

If you want a computer that you wish to find out how it works, this would be a start. You will need to search a lot on the internet.

I doubt there is much you can do to upgrade it. If you remove the current install (the HP version) of Win 95, if you do not have the original "restore disk" you may not be able to make it work. I think you will find you need to purchase a Win 98 restore disk from HP to upgrade the OS.

Your graphics is the chip that has "S3" on the motherboard.

It could be a problem with booting to a SCSI HDD rather than an IDE HDD. It has sat in the back of the retailer's shop for X amount of time. Replace the CMOS battery for a start (it looks like a silver coin on the motherboard), then look for the boot options in the BIOS (startup) configuration.

Do some research if you are interested, I have found you cannot take apart and rebuild one of those type of HPs, you can only do what they allow you to do. Finding out will provide you with a lot of information about how to build your own computer

Matt

 

Thanks.

Ok, Thanks Matt. I will get back if I need more help.
Thanks,
Sdv6

 

well...

I went to Hp support and typed in "vectra vl" and got 20 results. all the computers are Vectra VLs, but they all have numbers included in the name. and I cant find out the numerical name of this ( I mean like "Vectra VL600" and "vectra 486VL ") computer. All it says on the Front is Vectra VL, but no numbers. or is there a way by looking in the BIOS menu? Thanks again.

Sdv6

 

I went to HP USA support and in the first section it has

Click on the link "How do I find my product name/number ".

Matt

 

For the name - hunt around for labels - front , inside , on the case ?
If you get closer often you can match it by looking at google images for similar pictures of your model.
Often the components are not HP but others - for example you have a s3 based video card.
You can often find drivers ( the programs that are necessary to run the peripheals that are newer than when windows was made or are not included in the windows version to save hard drive space) - anyways go to www.driverguide.com which is a library of drivers and you may find drivers for or that work with your computer. ( or google the hardware item - for example if you can spot the video card or the chip that is built in the board for video and its says s3 virge .
All i can this is the best way to learn about how to set up computers and solve standard computer problems.
You can join the lucrative field of computer hardware repairs and diagnosis.