Greater Cincinnati Computer Repair... Anywhere! (Kent, Milford: house, transfer, buy)

[CarpathianPeasant]

I've got five computers in need of adjustment and/or repair. That's three laptops including a brand new one and two console models I got second hand.

I have been all through Northern Kentucky twice, a few years apart, and to an extent Cincinnati. What I have run into is stuff like: if they answer the telephone at all, I explain what seems to be the problem, they hint at ability to fix it, then either they refuse to try if I get it to them or never show up if I set up a house call. (They have unexpectedly gotten some business easier to fix than mine for which they can charge the same price.) Some never even answer the telephone in spite of repeated calls.

I just ran a "refresh" on this brand new Dell with Windows 8. To my astonishment it wiped out 95% of my start page, which took about three months to set up. That included Windows Live Writer with long weblog postings that were not as yet sent -- about two week's work at minimum. And, it has "renewed" Amazon and ebay for me, neither of which interests me in the least.

This not a small matter. The one console model (in storage) has at least 1,000 copyright free images and XP Pro on it.

Any suggestions appreciated.

[kjbrill]

Originally Posted by CarpathianPeasant

I've got five computers in need of adjustment and/or repair. That's three laptops including a brand new one and two console models I got second hand.

I have been all through Northern Kentucky twice, a few years apart, and to an extent Cincinnati. What I have run into is stuff like: if they answer the telephone at all, I explain what seems to be the problem, they hint at ability to fix it, then either they refuse to try if I get it to them or never show up if I set up a house call. (They have unexpectedly gotten some business easier to fix than mine for which they can charge the same price.) Some never even answer the telephone in spite of repeated calls.

I just ran a "refresh" on this brand new Dell with Windows 8. To my astonishment it wiped out 95% of my start page, which took about three months to set up. That included Windows Live Writer with long weblog postings that were not as yet sent -- about two week's work at minimum. And, it has "renewed" Amazon and ebay for me, neither of which interests me in the least.

This not a small matter. The one console model (in storage) has at least 1,000 copyright free images and XP Pro on it.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Computer repair is tough to find, simply because there is not enough money in it. People will not pay for the time necessary to diagnose and fix problems.

The last PC I bought for my wife, a HP tower system with Windows 7 installed was around $800 at MicroCenter. It has plenty of disk and memory and runs great. When the old CRT monitor went out, I went to Walmart and bought an Acer flat screen monitor which is just fine. The wife ******* because she had Apple systems for many years and loved her Mac with OS 10. But when I compared prices there was no contest. Since all she does is play games, surf the net, and send emails, I stuck her with the PC.

The machine I am doing this on is a Dell tower system, circa 2003. It is a Pentium 4 with Windows XP Pro. I expanded the ram to 2.5 GB so it still runs OK. I recognize at 10 years it is getting ready to puke. I have a bay spot and should install a 2nd disk drive so I can copy files, just never seem to get up the energy. I do have one of those removable storage sticks onto which I frequently copy all of the files I really care about, my income tax returns for the last ten years, all of my various logins and passwords, my email address list, you know the really important stuff. I know it is on borrowed time.

I used to leave it on 24/7. Since my network connection was via a router I was not overly concerned about hackers. But for the past couple of months I began receiving all kinds of error messages, always overnight, about inability to perform this specific disk write or other way too technical information, and always indicating due to a network connection problem. It also has involved my router 99% of the time.

I do know our lovely internet provider, Cincinnati Bell Fioptics, goes out to lunch frequently in the middle of the night. My wife has a TV in our bedroom which plays 24/7. I will suddenly realize it is shut off, having lost the cable signal. The lapse may be 30 seconds, or it may be 30 minutes or more, usually around 2-3 AM in the morning.

Sometimes, it is a mess to get out of all the repetitive error message screens on my PC. I may have to resort to just Power Off.


To get back, I appreciate your situation with multiple PCs which do not work. But I have no good advice to how to make them operable other than your own self diagnosis. It takes a lot of digging, but there is a surprising amount of information available on the web for self-diagnosis of PC problems. And the actual parts are rather inexpensive.

Good luck in your endeavors.

[Ohioan58]

If you're in N. KY - try Action Computer Services in Erlanger. I have a friend that works there. They cater to individuals and small business.

Warning: in line with what Brill posted, don't expect the price of repair/remediation relative to the market value of the PCs to be cheap. You may have a PC that is only worth $200 as a used system and it may cost that much or more for a shop to, say, drag your important files off of it and to copy them to another system. If you don't like the pricing, then either get a friend to do it for you or DIY.

So, don't blow your stack if the prices seem high and don't be cranky with them. This one place seems quite aggressive about getting new customers and word of mouth so they will probably be fair and understanding.

That type of business (computer repair) sucks. Everyone wants you to bust azz all day for $75, and the work gets absolutely no respect.

[maxmodder]

I'm still waiting on a legitimate answer to my issue here:

Re: DV7-4177nr - keyboard and touch pad don't work - HP Support Forum - 2829533

Transferring of non program files from 1 PC to another is easy. The reinstalling of all the programs onto a new PC and going through all the window updates is the time consuming part.

As for PC shops, pressing buttons on a keyboard and clicking a mouse to transfer files, remove a virus, or wipe a PC isn't hard work, just time consuming. Hell, building a PC isn't even hard, and no I'm not in the IT field. Now if we're talking about a shop that is hooking up probes and sensors to a motherboard and detecting say a faulty capacitor based on a thorough diagnostic, and then fixing it, well that's a different story. That is real computer repair.

[kjbrill]

Originally Posted by maxmodder

I'm still waiting on a legitimate answer to my issue here:

Re: DV7-4177nr - keyboard and touch pad don't work - HP Support Forum - 2829533

Transferring of non program files from 1 PC to another is easy. The reinstalling of all the programs onto a new PC and going through all the window updates is the time consuming part.

As for PC shops, pressing buttons on a keyboard and clicking a mouse to transfer files, remove a virus, or wipe a PC isn't hard work, just time consuming. Hell, building a PC isn't even hard, and no I'm not in the IT field. Now if we're talking about a shop that is hooking up probes and sensors to a motherboard and detecting say a faulty capacitor based on a thorough diagnostic, and then fixing it, well that's a different story. That is real computer repair.

It does seem strange the keyboard will work in a raw mode but not under windows. But if a new keyboard is as inexpensive as you state, I would simply buy one and try it. Since the USB keyboard and mouse work fine should eliminate a software issue.

[Misfit Toy]

I use Danielle's PC repairs in Milford. Her prices are fair & she won't try to sell you stuff you don't need. Website is daniellespcrepairs dot com.

[maxmodder]

Originally Posted by kjbrill

It does seem strange the keyboard will work in a raw mode but not under windows. But if a new keyboard is as inexpensive as you state, I would simply buy one and try it. Since the USB keyboard and mouse work fine should eliminate a software issue.

I did replace it with a new one. Still doesn't work. Doesn't make sense that a fresh restore results in no function in Windows but works in the bios. I've done a system restore before on this unit with no issues. External keyboard and mouse work fine.

[kjbrill]

Originally Posted by maxmodder

I did replace it with a new one. Still doesn't work. Doesn't make sense that a fresh restore results in no function in Windows but works in the bios. I've done a system restore before on this unit with no issues. External keyboard and mouse work fine.

In situations like this I rely on some advice I got from one of my Engineering professors years ago. When something which was working suddenly ceases to work, think about what was changed. You commented about changing a fan and putting some fresh thermal grease on the heat sink. Suddenly the keyboard doesn't work. You have installed a new keyboard with the same result. I know you have enough sense to check all of the internal ribbon connections, etc. But take another look. What could you have possibly disturbed while replacing the fan, etc. which could have caused an interference with the keyboard? I know it is a thought which has served me well over the years. Something I did caused this, it did not just miraculously appear.

[maxmodder]

Originally Posted by kjbrill

In situations like this I rely on some advice I got from one of my Engineering professors years ago. When something which was working suddenly ceases to work, think about what was changed. You commented about changing a fan and putting some fresh thermal grease on the heat sink. Suddenly the keyboard doesn't work. You have installed a new keyboard with the same result. I know you have enough sense to check all of the internal ribbon connections, etc. But take another look. What could you have possibly disturbed while replacing the fan, etc. which could have caused an interference with the keyboard? I know it is a thought which has served me well over the years. Something I did caused this, it did not just miraculously appear.

I've taken it apart 4 times and reassembled it, checking all the ribbon connections. I used the guide here:

Complete disassembly instructions for HP Pavilion dv7 laptop. Guide 2. >> Inside my laptop

Natininja suggested I try disconnecting the fan and logging into windows, but only for a short time as we don't want the CPU to burn up. Perhaps the fan is bad causing additional current draw taking away from the mouse/keyboard. Whatever it is, it's not the hardware since it works in the bios before windows starts. It's not the drivers, because it's a fresh factory restore. Both the mouse and keyboard on the laptop don't work, but external ones work just fine.

[kjbrill]

Originally Posted by maxmodder

I've taken it apart 4 times and reassembled it, checking all the ribbon connections. I used the guide here:

Complete disassembly instructions for HP Pavilion dv7 laptop. Guide 2. >> Inside my laptop

Natininja suggested I try disconnecting the fan and logging into windows, but only for a short time as we don't want the CPU to burn up. Perhaps the fan is bad causing additional current draw taking away from the mouse/keyboard. Whatever it is, it's not the hardware since it works in the bios before windows starts. It's not the drivers, because it's a fresh factory restore. Both the mouse and keyboard on the laptop don't work, but external ones work just fine.

You do have a peculiar situation, I don't deny that. But I will still repeat, what changed before this happened? The most innocent and therefore overlooked circumstance may be the cause. This approach saved my ass more than once during my career. Chasing the proverbial needle in the haystack rarely yields a result. Obviously you have tried more than once. But recheck each step with more scrutiny. Could you have dropped some of the thermal grease down onto a contact or ribbon cable causing a current variation? I recognize you are completely frustrated. I did a quick search and saw a HP re-certified (which in my mind means returned) at about $450. I would not consider a sneeze, but if you buy one you have a lot of repair parts available when it also craps.