The Dell White Flashing Cursor of Death
November 18th, 2008If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!
Image by javYliz via Flickr
My wife’s Inspiron 1525 has always been a bit possessed. It looks nice on the outside and does the job, but it is a bit clunky. We couldn’t beat the price though.
Tonight, it just wouldn’t turn. It would start up. The white timer bar would go across the bottom of the screen. But then only a white flashing cursor on the black screen would show. Okay.
Using the beat with a hammer method, I tried rebooting it a few more times. About 7 or 8 times. Then I tried the Media Direct button. What the hell. If it worked, then at least something did. And it did. I could get to pictures and videos also. So the hard drive was still in there somewhere.
So I searched for “Dell flashing cursor”. And came up with this, which didn’t apply. Though before I went back and read it more thoroughly, I found out how to create a bootable DOS USB Stick and how to flash the BIOS from it. And here is where to find Dell drivers.
Hey, it needed an updated BIOS anyway. And now it has one. I even took picture, which I am not posting to further prove my idiocy. It also still had the flashing cursor.
I happen to run into this 160 GB hard drive/BIOS issue here which I just stepped back from. Did not even want to read it.
So I ran into this post over a Yahoo Answers that gave me a “Duh” moment. And when you do insert the disk to reinstall the Dell’s operating system, realize that there also is a repair function. I found this after backing out of reinstalling Windows. I thought it would be best to ask my wife about files she may need. I could get them off now.
And I saw the repair link, which worked like a charm and took less than five minutes, with no lost files files or other issues. In the words of Napoleon Dynamite, “Idiot!”
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I’m telling you bro, what is the world coming to when folks have to go through all that trouble?
You’re right, her Dell looks slick.
Also, I wanted to say thanks again for dropping by the other day. It’s crazy, I get charged about something only to post about it and see the most interaction to date on my site. The comments keep pouring in! Good times.
Any time. I try to get around to as many blogs as I can. Some days it just doesn’t happen. It does help to get charged and congrats on the traffic.
And I went through that trouble because I was an idiot and the last time I ran one of those Dell fix disks, the only option was reinstalling and not fixing. I was lucky this time.
Hi baby!Thanks for fixing this up for me.
Love you!
xoxox
I don’t do Dell; too many issues, but happy you got yours fixed!
Any time. I try to get around to as many blogs as I can. Some days it just doesn’t happen. It does help to get charged and congrats on the traffic.And I went through that trouble because I was an idiot and the last time I ran one of those Dell fix disks, the only option was reinstalling and not fixing.