Hard drive gone missing?

spazzspazz
edited September 2004 in Hardware
Greetings all, I have kind of an emergency I guess. My daughter needs a computer pretty quick and I can't afford a new one so I dusted a win98 off that's been in the closet for a couple of years and was working fine then, has a ton of ram, nice A/V stuff, etc. The problem is that it starts and says "no fixed drive". I checked and it looks like everything that's supposed to be plugged in is, and nothing seems to be rattling around in the drive. I'm sure the battery is dead, but that shouldnt cause this problem should it?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as she needs it pretty quick for studies and such.
Thanks! :buck:

Comments

  • ketoketo Occupied. Or is it preoccupied? Icrontian
    edited September 2004
    Hard drive *could* have seized up. Most commonly, the arm with the magnets ends up seized to the top platter. Particularly a problem if smoker(s) in the household, this from first hand knowledge :-/

    You could try taking the hard drive out of the old computer, put it on your current computer as second device on a ribbon cable to try it. Jumpers on the back of the drive may have to be changed to either 'Slave' or 'Cable Select' for this to work.
  • edcentricedcentric near Milwaukee, Wisconsin Icrontian
    edited September 2004
    Get a battery and a hdd. A new drive is not expensive and runnig and older drive is asking for trouble. (I know, some last forever, but they fail more than any other part in the system)
    I assume that you still have the original discs to doa reinstall.
  • spazzspazz
    edited September 2004
    I think you all are right, it's probably jammed and the best options is a new drive. Thanks for the input.
  • rykoryko new york
    edited September 2004
    you could always throw the old hdd in the freezer for a couple of hours and then try it as a slave on another computer as keto suggested.....it's been known to work for a quick and dirty method of saving neccessary files.

    Also, Keto
    can you elaborate on how/why smoking causes a hdd to seize?
  • MizugoriMizugori NYC
    edited September 2004
    as for the smoking, cigarette smoke attaches itself to surfaces in the form of a film; this is why houses and cars that have been smoked in will retain the odor forever if not thoroughly cleaned. in smokers' homes you can even find this film built up on the walls; if you don't believe me try cleaning a small area on a wall in a room that is smoked in. you will definately be able to see the difference quickly.

    anyways with ALL pc parts it is reccomended not to smoke around them, as this film can eventually impede heatsinks, clog up fans, and gum up moving parts over time.
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