laptop shut down issue

[Skie]

Ok girl i work with gave me her Compaq laptop. Worked fine just missing charger, went out and bought a charger for it. Plugged it in and everything worked fine. Wiped the OS and did a clean install and sold it to a friend. Two weeks latter she calls my friend (we went in on it together) and tells him that the computer is not working. The problem is that when you push the power button all the lights come on although the screen stays black, then after about 5 seconds the system shuts down. She has tried replacing the battery but that did not help. Going to remove and re-insert the ram when we get it back here but was wondering if anyone has had any experiences with this kind of trouble and know what might be the problem. Thanks

[xerodok]

What kind of Compaq laptop? Model number? Have you tried booting it directly from the AC adapter (without a battery in it)? Did you buy an off-brand/universal AC adapter?

[Skie]

Bought a hp laptop charger (universal), although it worked fine with the adapter when we sold it. Wont do anything without the battery in it. its a Compaq Presairo F500

[xerodok]

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf/wc/d...name=c00372748

There are many reasons that a computer does not startup or boot into the Windows operating system. If your computer will not start or boot, you will see or hear symptom to indicate the general area of the problem. If you are not sure what the problem is, see Overview of How to Troubleshoot Problems When a Computer Does Not Start Up or Boot Properly .
Startup Symptom: LED lights do not glow, display is black, computer does not start
Use this document if the notebook does not start, none of the LEDs glow, there are no beeping sounds, no operating sounds such as fan noise or the hard drive spinning, and there are no other indications of power to the computer when the notebook power button is pressed.
The cause of this no power problem may be a failed AC adapter or power cord, a discharged or damaged battery, or a failed notebook system board component. Damaged components may require an HP certified repair. You can use this document to identify the cause of the startup no boot problem.

DO THIS FIRST - Perform a hard reset

If a PC suddenly fails to boot properly, you should perform a hard reset as the first procedure.

1. Disconnect all peripheral devices and remove all USB devices and media cards. You want to test the computer not the accessories!
2. Disconnect the AC power adapter, remove the battery, and then press and hold the power button for at least 15 seconds .
3. Reconnect the AC power adapter (but do not connect the battery), Press the Power button, Look for glowing LEDs near caps lock and num lock keys, and Listen for sounds of a disk drive and fan turning.

Actions to take after performing hard resetIf the LEDs glow but the computer does not start, see Troubleshooting Black Screen Displays with No Error Messages During Startup or Boot .

If no LEDs glow, power is not being applied to the computer.

* Examine the AC adapter and power cord for physical damage
* Test the AC power adapter .
* Try starting computer on Battery power only
* Check operation of lid switch


http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf-JAVA.../c01772162.gif

Figure 1: Typical Location of LEDs


The existence and location of LEDs is different on all computers.

http://h10025.www1.hp.com/ewfrf-JAVA.../c01492488.jpg

Figure 2: Power indicator light.

When the AC adapter is connected, the power LED, located near the power icon (displayed as a lightening bolt on most PCs) , will glow to indicate the battery is charging. See the User Guide for the exact location of LEDs on your computer. Every notebook has specific power requirements. If the adapter does not provide enough power or the power plug does not connect firmly, the computer will not operate properly.
Common actions to resolve no power issues

If the computer does not start, the LED lights do not glow, and the display is black, you can perform one or more of the following actions to resolve the no power issue.

[Skie]

Ok some more information. Got the computer and messed around with it same problems. More details:

A) The light is blue around where the adapter connects to the computer showing that is getting power.

B) I took out both memory sticks and tried both of them separately to no avail.

C) When 0 memory sticks are in place the computer does the exact same as when 1-2 sticks are in it.

D) Took out and re-inserted the HDD to no effect.

E) Connected to an external monitor, black screen on the monitor as well.

F) When i try to start it the charge light will light up as well as the display screen button on the mouse pad. Other times the power and disk button will light up. Sometimes the computer will stay on about 10 seconds then shut down and restart, before shutting down again and staying off, other times it will stay off after the first time.

G) Hard reset did nothing

H) Just tried again and eveything looked good, fans were going lights were on just black screen. Then turned off after about 15 sec

[Skie]

anyone have any ideas?

[Icari]

have you tried another power cord? Did you make sure the new power cord gives the correct power to the laptop? does the cable connect tightly to the laptop? have you checked to see that the power connection is tightly connected to the laptop/motherboard?

[Skie]

Yes to all looked around couldn't find any lose connections... pushed gently on all to double check, same results. Bought new cord, tried with same results (returned cord). Also does the same thing with the battery now, used a new one and it will boot without the cord but shuts down 5 sec later, again with black screen

[Artemicon]

Sounds like either power or MB issue I doubt your cpus is getting too hot to trip a thermal so with all you've done to it, its probably power or MB.