So this morning, I had to do a reset of my computer, it had got stuck in a continual loop and nothing was properly responding (never leave your computer on overnight, even when defragging). So, I did the reset, and got the dreaded Bios Message. Joy of joys. Just what I need with a deadline.
But, thanks to my smartphone I got to the bottom of it. It’s quite embarrassing, I did study IT in college, and dropped out before we got to the good stuff! Instead they were teaching us how to be a secretary and type letters and send emails. BORING!
But, don’t despair, usually this can be fixed quickly and although a little fiddly, easily. Firstly though, you need to understand that your motherboard acts as a circuit, and each time your computer fires up it does a POST (Power On System Test), and there are several codes programmed into the BIOS to alert the user, or repairer what each one means.
I find that Tom’s Hardware is really good and informative if you ever need to work something out, or if you just fancy gaining a little extra technical knowledge. Though every company works in different ways, normally, BIOS codes are pretty universal. Actually, just taking a look around the forums on a wet Sunday can pass the time pretty quick, and by the time you know it, you’ve spent 4 hours reading and learning.
Unlike a lot of websites, the one mentioned above isn’t a load of fan boys trolling each other, they are a load of like minded geeks who will try and get to the bottom of your problem using a variety of methods, be that certified by the company, or of their own making!
Mine turned out to be a Memory issue, and all I had to do was unplug the entire system from the mains, remove the Keyboard and mouse, remove the RAM, power on, power off, replace the RAM and this process ‘flushed’ the badness out of where ever the problem had arisen and the computer booted twice. Once with the American Mega Trends screen, and then with my usual ASUS screen.
I’ve found that a lot of issues that arise with computers are actually workable (unless there’s water damage), usually it’s corrupted drivers, or an individual device is frazzled on the Motherboard, which is easily sorted by buying a standalone device and installing it as it will automatically override the computers desire to use the built in chip set.
Always be sure to know your exact make and model numbers because some devices are incompatible with others, or it could be too new for your current set up. If this is the case, it’s wise to salvage your hard drive, shove the system on Ebay for Spares and Repairs and get a new rig that you can plug your hard drive in to, to retrieve any files you need. So before you despair, simply google, or use the site above to get your computer up and running.
