From: Ray Bay (canyonlands_at_theriver.com)
Date: Wed Apr 10 2002 - 13:47:36 EDT
A known problem in some A21m's... call the IBM number in the back of
your manual that came with the unit... They will walk you through a
procedure then send you a box to ship it to EZServe... IF YOU ARE USING
THE OFFICIAL IBM WINDOWS 2000 PRO that came with the unit.
If you are using your own install of Windows 2000 Pro, prepare for some
aggravation... as they want you to use the version that is authorized
from IBM... Yet they cannot really do that.
Send a complete written description when you ship it to EZServe, or they
will have some lady call you with the need to spend a lot of time going
over it again... I had one fail, and they couldn't make it fail, so
they sent it back so it could fail for me again... but they accepted my
notes upon second return.
james.ritterbusch_at_prudential.com wrote:
>
> I have an A21m that behaves erratically -- it crashes more often than it
> starts. It has Win 2000 Pro installed as an after-market upgrade.
>
> Here's what I know.
>
> Many times, it will go to the Windows splash screen. The gas gauge goes
> about 2/3 the way across, then I get a Blue Screen of Death that reads:
> STOP: 0x000000E0, (0x00000002, 0x90000002, 0x00000000, 0x00000000)
> Your computer (BIOS) has reported that a component in your system is faulty
> and has prevented Windows from operating blah blah blah
>
> At this point, the only option that works is to power down and try again.
> Sometimes, the 2nd time is the charm.
> Sometimes, the nth works.
> Sometimes, I just run out of patience.
>
> Other times, it will hang on the IBM splash screen before it ever gets to
> Windows. No messages here, it just stays on that screen.
> Sometimes, pressing F1 will take me to the BIOS setup.
> Sometimes, pressing F1 will display Entering IBM BIOS Setup, but it just
> hangs there.
> Sometimes, pressing F1 does nothing at all.
> Sometimes, F1 doesn't display as an option, and pressing it does nothing.
> Sometimes, pressing CTL-ALT-DEL here will cause Windows to start. It then
> may work correctly, or it may exhibit the behavior above.
> Sometimes, pressing CTL-ALT-DEL just reverts to the IBM splash screen.
> Time to power down and try again.
>
> Very occasionally, the screen comes up totally blank. The backlight seems
> to be on, but there are no pixels illuminated. Power down, try again.
>
> BIOS has been updated a couple of times and is current. Windows has had
> critical updates applied a couple of times, and is within a few weeks of
> current. None of the upgrades had any apparent effect, good or bad.
>
> Running on the battery, or the AC adapter or both does not seem to have any
> appreciable effect.
>
> I have run DR. DOS diagnostics numerous times. Of course, everything
> checks out perfectly.
>
> At one point, I had a hunch that the problem was related to the diskette
> drive. When I went into BIOS and changed its state to either disabled or
> enabled, the machine seemed to boot correctly after that. However, that no
> longer seems to work. Maybe it was just a fluke, or maybe it was just the
> act of changing the BIOS that temporarily repaired it.
>
> Here's what I was told third-hand. I have no reason to doubt these
> statements, but cannot personally verify them.
> IBM replaced the diskette drive, but they think that it's really a
> "software problem".
> IBM claim that since the machine was not shipped with Win 2000 installed,
> they will not support the software.
>
> Any help from anybody on the list would be hugely appreciated.
>
> Jim Ritterbusch
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