Help! Computer won't Start completely!

Someone please help me. When I turn on my computer the "Windows XP" loading screen comes on…while its loading I notice the lights on my keyboard flicker then go blank…then after the loading screen finishes (not sure if it does) the screen is just blank. My desktop screen won't show up! Anybody know a reason why and how to debug? Please help…I have term papers due and tests to take online.

Will it boot in Safe Mode?

Restart your computer in Safe Mode.

Press F8 after the Power-On Self Test (POST) is done. If the Windows Advanced Options Menu does not appear, try restarting and then pressing F8 several times after the POST screen.
Choose the Safe Mode option from the Windows Advanced Options Menu then press Enter.

Be sure to give it plenty of time.

It starts in safe mode (w/networking, etc…) but if you try to boot up in last known config, normal, or any other…it will just stop loading XP and my windows screenname login won't come on. I was suggested to switch from XP home to XP pro….what do you guys think? I've already copied most of my important stuff to an external hd. The only thing is that I'll lose all the programs that originally came with my comp..like MS office. Thanks for the help

Do you have your XP CD? If so, try this.

I think this will run in Safe Mode:

You can use windows sfc (system file checker) You'd need your XP CD to make this work.
Click Start> Run> type sfc /scannow Note the space.
(Note that there is a space between sfc and /scannow)


If that doesn't work, try to restore your system back to a prior date that it ran OK.

At the time, my XP CD was lost so I had to wait for Dell to ship a new one. Didn't catch your response till today, after I re-installed XP and partitioned my whole drive. Sad about that…lost all the programs that came installed w/ comp. Now it's working fine. Thanks for the help though. I did try the last known good config and restore to 2 weeks ago, but w/o luck, thats why I just wiped it all clean. A fresh start!

If you dont have these three programs I would recommend that you get them. Spywareblaster, Spywareguard and IESPY AD. They will add 1000's of sites to your resticted zone and block some hijacks from happening. I also have a FREE FIREWALL and FREE ANTI VIRUS if you need one.

It is critical to have both a firewall and anti virus to protect your system.

Keep your system up to date and run Adaware & Spybot, once a week works, and hopefully you will be ok from here on. Both are available below.

Safe Surfing.