gabevanlelyveld

Hi,

Briefly, the fan stopped working after I transported the laptop in standby mode in its case. Since then I ordered a new fan and installed it but to no avail. The connection is proprietary so I can't test either fan, although I'd be really surprised if the new one was DOA.

My guess is that the problem resulted from the transport (just a few hours, no drops, etc.), during which time the laptop kicked on and overheated. Just a guess.

Based on this information, does anyone have any suggestions other than throwing in the towel. Thanks in advance, Gabe

TheMatt

Hi Gabe,

What are the CPU temps? Download MobileMeter from my sig below and check the temps.

gabevanlelyveld

Hi,

thanks for the advice. I tried the mobile meter. Initial reading was 25.0 C. It stayed there for a bit then began climbing all the way up to 38.0 C after about a half an hour.

Also, I got the 32 point diagnostic software from dell's website, made sure it was the correct version for my laptop, but I cant' for the life of me figure out how to run it. I've tried running straight from windows as well as from the boot menu. I even tried putting it on multiple floppies but this didn't work either. It is currently on CD (approx. 5.6 MB) and is comprised mostly of MDM files (about 85), two DOS Applications as well as one plain 'Application.'

So, I'm stuck. Any help is greatly appreciated. And yes, I will definitely consider making a donation if I am able to make any progress.

Thanks in advance, Gabe

TheMatt

If those are your temperatures, then you are fine. You might want to double-check the temps with SensorsView. http://www.techsupportforum.com/arti...rsviewpro.html

Run a quick Prime95 torture test for about 30 seconds on your laptop and see how high the temperatures go. The max temperature on laptop CPUs (the max temperature before the possibility of damage occurs) is 70 degrees, so as long as your temperatures under full load are below that, you are all set.

gabevanlelyveld

Hello again, thanks for the advice. I tried out SensorView on my laptop as well as another computer but apparently it doesn't have the sensors for temps or for the fans. It works for CPU and memory usage and all that. Anyway, I don't feel like I learned anything new.

About the rising temps, You said anything below 70 is okay but it starts getting hot to the touch and slows down considerably around 37 so I feel like that is the point at which temps are negatively affecting its performance and am hesitant to let it go any higher.

I looked at the Prime 95 site and couldn't figure out what it was you were talking about. I saw nothing to do with a torture test, just a bunch of stuff about searching for new prime numbers.

I feel at this point like my only hope lies in some kind of diagnostic software such as the 32 point test I downloaded from dell's website. If you had any advice about how to get that to run on my laptop (CD or floppy?, from in windows or through BIOS? I'm clueless.), I would be very grateful. If I could isolate the problem I might be able to fix it myself, which, frankly, is the only way that is financially logical--I could buy another laptop for the prices I've been quoted to have it looked at by the local computer store. Don't get me wrong, I love my laptop and want it to work very badly, but at this point, if it's toast I'm basically gonna part it out and look into getting a new one.

Thanks again. I look forward to hearing from you, Gabe

TheMatt

You have to download the program:
http://mersenne.org/gimps/p95v2414.exe

Then run a balanced torture test with the program for around 30 seconds. If you don't see the temperatures go above 70 degrees, you are all set.

gabevanlelyveld

Hello, good news, I was running some stuff in photoshop and suddenly the fan kicked on. I think I just never let it got hot enough after I installed the new fan. I guess I was too worried about something going terribly wrong (knock on wood) after the day I started smelling hot plastic when the old fan was still in.

So it seems to be working fine. I appreciate your help very much. It kept me busy enough that I didn't just throw my hands up and sell the thing for parts or something. I have made a small donation via paypal as a way of saying thanks. I also want to say that I appreciate the relaxed way you handle the financial side of things--never pushy about it, very refreshing.

Thanks again, Gabe

TheMatt

You're welcome. It was probably a loose connection somewhere.