Toshiba Laptop Keyboard and Bios

In ,
philo typed:
If I test a drive and it has many bad sectors I do not take a
chance... I replace it. (Even if the sectors can be mapped out.)

I bought an external 2.5 IDE hard drive that connected up to the
parallel port back in '91. The hard drive failed in a week. I called the
company and they went out of business but somebody else was handling
their warrantees. I got a new drive sent out.

When I got it, it had a prototype sticker on the hard drive and all of
the seals were broken. So somebody obviously had this thing apart. When
I fired it up, it also had a bunch of bad sectors on it.

I called the same guy and he asked are any new bad sectors showing up? I
said no. He said then don't worry about it. I didn't like that answer,
but then if the other sectors remained good, I can't really argue with
him. Now it's 23 years old and it is still running just fine.

--
Bill
Gateway M465e ('06 era) - OE-QuoteFix v1.19.2
Centrino Core2 Duo T5600 1.83GHz - 4GB - Windows XP SP2

On 1/31/2014, BillW50 posted:
In ,
Char Jackson typed:
On Sun, 26 Jan 2014 15:57:50 GMT, "The Razor's Edge"
wrote:

I am at a loss to explain why a
perfectly good machine, that worked before the attempted Windows
8.1
install, does not work now especially why the function keys don't
work.

I'm with philo. It seems pretty clear that the hard drive is
damaged.
As for the F keys, they don't all typically have predefined
functions. You either have to map them yourself (such as from
within
Windows) or load some kind of driver program that maps them to
specific actions.

Yes, but that doesn't explain why the function key doesn't work for
the OP to get into the BIOS setup. As Windows hasn't even started to
load yet.

Maybe his BIOS requires the delete key. Not all BIOSes use the same
key, which for me is unfortunate, since I never remember what this box
needs :-)

It's further complicated here by the fact that my Logitech wireless
keyboard doesn't seem to be recognized during POST, and I always forget
to plug in a wired KB...

--
Gene E. Bloch (Stumbling Bloch)

On Fri, 31 Jan 2014 11:16:28 -0800, Gene E. Bloch
wrote:


Maybe his BIOS requires the delete key. Not all BIOSes use the same
key, which for me is unfortunate, since I never remember what this box
needs :-)



Write it down and tape it to the box. g

Hi, Gene.

SOME BIOSes have a setting that will cause it to recognize a non-PS/2 mouse
and keyboard during POST - but they are all different, of course.

MY mobo is from MSI, model 990FXA-GD80, that I got in 2012. Once I got into
BIOS Setup the first time (pressing DEL, maybe using a wired keyboard, but
I've forgotten), the Advanced page let me Enable Legacy USB Support. Then I
plugged in the transceiver for my Microsoft wireless desktop, rebooted, and
I was in business. ;)

YMMV, of course.

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX

Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
Windows Live Mail 2012 (Build 16.4.3508.0205) in Win8.1 Pro


"Gene E. Bloch" wrote in message ...

On 1/31/2014, BillW50 posted:
In ,
Char Jackson typed:
On Sun, 26 Jan 2014 15:57:50 GMT, "The Razor's Edge"
wrote:

I am at a loss to explain why a
perfectly good machine, that worked before the attempted Windows 8.1
install, does not work now especially why the function keys don't
work.

I'm with philo. It seems pretty clear that the hard drive is damaged.
As for the F keys, they don't all typically have predefined
functions. You either have to map them yourself (such as from within
Windows) or load some kind of driver program that maps them to
specific actions.

Yes, but that doesn't explain why the function key doesn't work for the OP
to get into the BIOS setup. As Windows hasn't even started to load yet.

Maybe his BIOS requires the delete key. Not all BIOSes use the same
key, which for me is unfortunate, since I never remember what this box
needs :-)

It's further complicated here by the fact that my Logitech wireless
keyboard doesn't seem to be recognized during POST, and I always forget
to plug in a wired KB...

--
Gene E. Bloch (Stumbling Bloch)

On 1/31/2014, Ken Blake, MVP posted:
On Fri, 31 Jan 2014 11:16:28 -0800, Gene E. Bloch
wrote:


Maybe his BIOS requires the delete key. Not all BIOSes use the same
key, which for me is unfortunate, since I never remember what this
box needs :-)



Write it down and tape it to the box. g

But then anyone can see it!

My reply seems way too silly, but I'm going to post it anyway :-)

--
Gene E. Bloch (Stumbling Bloch)

On 1/31/2014, R. C. White posted:
Hi, Gene.

SOME BIOSes have a setting that will cause it to recognize a non-PS/2
mouse and keyboard during POST - but they are all different, of
course.

It's 2014. My MB (from 2011) recognizes a USB keyboard just fine. There
is a PS/2 jack, but it has never been used.

MY mobo is from MSI, model 990FXA-GD80, that I got in 2012. Once I
got into BIOS Setup the first time (pressing DEL, maybe using a wired
keyboard, but I've forgotten), the Advanced page let me Enable Legacy
USB Support. Then I plugged in the transceiver for my Microsoft
wireless desktop, rebooted, and I was in business. ;)

YMMV, of course.

RC
--
R. C. White, CPA
San Marcos, TX

Microsoft Windows MVP (2002-2010)
Windows Live Mail 2012 (Build 16.4.3508.0205) in Win8.1 Pro


"Gene E. Bloch" wrote in message
...

On 1/31/2014, BillW50 posted:
In ,
Char Jackson typed:
On Sun, 26 Jan 2014 15:57:50 GMT, "The Razor's Edge"
wrote:

I am at a loss to explain why a
perfectly good machine, that worked before the attempted Windows
8.1
install, does not work now especially why the function keys don't
work.

I'm with philo. It seems pretty clear that the hard drive is
damaged.
As for the F keys, they don't all typically have predefined
functions. You either have to map them yourself (such as from
within
Windows) or load some kind of driver program that maps them to
specific actions.

Yes, but that doesn't explain why the function key doesn't work for
the OP to get into the BIOS setup. As Windows hasn't even started
to load yet.

Maybe his BIOS requires the delete key. Not all BIOSes use the same
key, which for me is unfortunate, since I never remember what this
box
needs :-)

It's further complicated here by the fact that my Logitech wireless
keyboard doesn't seem to be recognized during POST, and I always
forget
to plug in a wired KB...

--
Gene E. Bloch (Stumbling Bloch)

On 01/31/2014 03:31 AM, BillW50 wrote:
In ,
Char Jackson typed:
On Sun, 26 Jan 2014 15:57:50 GMT, "The Razor's Edge"
wrote:

I am at a loss to explain why a
perfectly good machine, that worked before the attempted Windows 8.1
install, does not work now especially why the function keys don't
work.

I'm with philo. It seems pretty clear that the hard drive is damaged.
As for the F keys, they don't all typically have predefined
functions. You either have to map them yourself (such as from within
Windows) or load some kind of driver program that maps them to
specific actions.

Yes, but that doesn't explain why the function key doesn't work for the
OP to get into the BIOS setup. As Windows hasn't even started to load
yet.




Yes it does. I've seen a defective HD "hang" the machine and could not
get to the bios. I was kind of amazed that the OP never took the 30
seconds it would have taken to remove the HD and try again to confirm.

On 31/01/2014 3:51 PM, philo wrote:

Yes it does. I've seen a defective HD "hang" the machine and could not
get to the bios. I was kind of amazed that the OP never took the 30
seconds it would have taken to remove the HD and try again to confirm.

My wife's old Dell laptop refused to boot at all because the HD was
defective. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE faulty component but
Dell's laptops are pure garbage anyway.
--
Silver Slimer
GNU/Linux is Communism

On 1/31/2014, Silver Slimer posted:
On 31/01/2014 3:51 PM, philo wrote:

Yes it does. I've seen a defective HD "hang" the machine and could
not get to the bios. I was kind of amazed that the OP never took the
30 seconds it would have taken to remove the HD and try again to
confirm.

My wife's old Dell laptop refused to boot at all because the HD was
defective. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE faulty component
but Dell's laptops are pure garbage anyway.

Booting requires reading the OS from the hard drive.

Without further information, I'd analogize your remark to "That guy's
heart failed and he died. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE
faulty component to make him to die" :-)

--
Gene E. Bloch (Stumbling Bloch)

On 31/01/2014 5:37 PM, Gene E. Bloch wrote:
On 1/31/2014, Silver Slimer posted:
On 31/01/2014 3:51 PM, philo wrote:

Yes it does. I've seen a defective HD "hang" the machine and could
not get to the bios. I was kind of amazed that the OP never took the
30 seconds it would have taken to remove the HD and try again to
confirm.

My wife's old Dell laptop refused to boot at all because the HD was
defective. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE faulty component
but Dell's laptops are pure garbage anyway.

Booting requires reading the OS from the hard drive.

Without further information, I'd analogize your remark to "That guy's
heart failed and he died. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE
faulty component to make him to die" :-)

I shoot have been more clear. I meant to say that it would turn on but
present nothing but a blank screen. No booting whatsoever, not even the
standard memory test.
--
Silver Slimer
GNU/Linux is Communism

On 01/31/2014 04:26 PM, Silver Slimer wrote:
On 31/01/2014 3:51 PM, philo wrote:

Yes it does. I've seen a defective HD "hang" the machine and could not
get to the bios. I was kind of amazed that the OP never took the 30
seconds it would have taken to remove the HD and try again to confirm.

My wife's old Dell laptop refused to boot at all because the HD was
defective. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE faulty component but
Dell's laptops are pure garbage anyway.




I never have much trouble with Dell.

Also, it is not common for a bad HD to "hang" a machine
but I have definitely seen it happen.

In ,
Gene E. Bloch typed:
On 1/31/2014, BillW50 posted:
In ,
Char Jackson typed:
On Sun, 26 Jan 2014 15:57:50 GMT, "The Razor's Edge"
wrote:

I am at a loss to explain why a
perfectly good machine, that worked before the attempted Windows
8.1
install, does not work now especially why the function keys don't
work.

I'm with philo. It seems pretty clear that the hard drive is
damaged.
As for the F keys, they don't all typically have predefined
functions. You either have to map them yourself (such as from
within
Windows) or load some kind of driver program that maps them to
specific actions.

Yes, but that doesn't explain why the function key doesn't work for
the OP to get into the BIOS setup. As Windows hasn't even started to
load yet.

Maybe his BIOS requires the delete key. Not all BIOSes use the same
key, which for me is unfortunate, since I never remember what this box
needs :-)

Yes so true. Another handy key is the ESC key. That one works on a lot
of BIOS to pop up the boot device menu. This allows you to use another
boot device just for this time only. Otherwise it defaults to what is
set in the Setup.

Another thing I don't see on desktop/laptops, but just on tablets is a
system menu. While tablets also has the same setups as desktop/laptops,
but they usually have this extra menu too. Some of them are just telling
you what hardware is installed more so than what the BIOS setup tells
you. While some others include a hardware testing utility.

It's further complicated here by the fact that my Logitech wireless
keyboard doesn't seem to be recognized during POST, and I always
forget to plug in a wired KB...

Really, which model do you have? I have two wireless Logitech K400r
Keyboard/touchpad, they seem to work fine to access the BIOS setup on
any computer I have tried.

--
Bill
Gateway M465e ('06 era) - OE-QuoteFix v1.19.2
Centrino Core2 Duo T5600 1.83GHz - 4GB - Windows XP SP2

On 31/01/2014 5:45 PM, Silver Slimer wrote:
On 31/01/2014 5:37 PM, Gene E. Bloch wrote:
On 1/31/2014, Silver Slimer posted:
On 31/01/2014 3:51 PM, philo wrote:

Yes it does. I've seen a defective HD "hang" the machine and could
not get to the bios. I was kind of amazed that the OP never took the
30 seconds it would have taken to remove the HD and try again to
confirm.

My wife's old Dell laptop refused to boot at all because the HD was
defective. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE faulty component
but Dell's laptops are pure garbage anyway.

Booting requires reading the OS from the hard drive.

Without further information, I'd analogize your remark to "That guy's
heart failed and he died. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE
faulty component to make him to die" :-)

I shoot have been more clear. I meant to say that it would turn on but
present nothing but a blank screen. No booting whatsoever, not even the
standard memory test.

I can't believe I wrote 'shoot' there. I meant 'should' obviously.

--
Silver Slimer
GNU/Linux is Communism

On 1/31/2014, Silver Slimer posted:
On 31/01/2014 5:37 PM, Gene E. Bloch wrote:
On 1/31/2014, Silver Slimer posted:
On 31/01/2014 3:51 PM, philo wrote:
Yes it does. I've seen a defective HD "hang" the machine and could
not get to the bios. I was kind of amazed that the OP never took
the 30 seconds it would have taken to remove the HD and try again
to confirm.

My wife's old Dell laptop refused to boot at all because the HD was
defective. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE faulty
component but Dell's laptops are pure garbage anyway.

Booting requires reading the OS from the hard drive.

Without further information, I'd analogize your remark to "That
guy's heart failed and he died. It seemed like strange behaviour for
ONE faulty component to make him to die" :-)

I shoot have been more clear. I meant to say that it would turn on
but present nothing but a blank screen. No booting whatsoever, not
even the standard memory test.

But then I couldn't have pulled your chain :-)

Anyway, thanks for the clarification, it makes better sense now.

I can't say I understand what transpired with the drive, since I've
only had the kind of experience I think you were expecting, where the
BIOS says something like "This disk is useless". There must be
something about the behavior of the drive that locks up the BIOS before
you even see the BIOS screen, like a huge current draw or something
equally mysterious (my speculation, of course). I wouldn't expect the
BIOS to be trying to read from the drive before the POST, but I don't
remember those things, since it's been a very long time since I had any
occasion to look into a BIOS.

--
Gene E. Bloch (Stumbling Bloch)

On 1/31/2014, Silver Slimer posted:
On 31/01/2014 5:45 PM, Silver Slimer wrote:
On 31/01/2014 5:37 PM, Gene E. Bloch wrote:
On 1/31/2014, Silver Slimer posted:
On 31/01/2014 3:51 PM, philo wrote:
Yes it does. I've seen a defective HD "hang" the machine and
could not get to the bios. I was kind of amazed that the OP never
took the 30 seconds it would have taken to remove the HD and try
again to confirm.

My wife's old Dell laptop refused to boot at all because the HD
was defective. It seemed like strange behaviour for ONE faulty
component but Dell's laptops are pure garbage anyway.

Booting requires reading the OS from the hard drive.

Without further information, I'd analogize your remark to "That
guy's heart failed and he died. It seemed like strange behaviour
for ONE faulty component to make him to die" :-)

I shoot have been more clear. I meant to say that it would turn on
but present nothing but a blank screen. No booting whatsoever, not
even the standard memory test.

I can't believe I wrote 'shoot' there. I meant 'should' obviously.

And I can't believe I didn't notice that :-)

--
Gene E. Bloch (Stumbling Bloch)