NO VIDEO!

[Todd Von Schulze]

I just wanted to share this little "problem" I had with a service call the other night. This customer's pc would turn on, but there was no video to be seen! I could not decipher the beep code either as it was just one long continuous beep after long continuous beep. I tested my own monitor with her pc and still had the same problem! The best way I can describe this situation would be to compare it to a blind guy trying to navigate a long, winding, mountainous road! No joke......so I finally decide to try resetting the CMOS, and like magic, I was able to SEE that baby boot up! I was also able to see a little POST message telling me that "the system battery is low".....WOW!!!

 

After sharing with the customer what the problem was, and that she would need to replace the CMOS battery, she tells me that she had another technician about a year ago tell her that this message was "no big deal.....the system battery never needs to be replaced"......WHAT?! I guess the lesson to be learned here is to NEVER underestimate what a previous tech has done, or in this case, NOT done with a customers' pc.

 

I also hope that this might help some of you out in the future!   

 

-Todd

[John-Paul Damico]

Great tip!