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Some of these suggestions might seem silly, but try them anyway if you have not done so yet. The tiniest factor can influence the manner in which our machines work. As laptops age, sometimes the manner in which they respond changes also. Make sure that you hold the power button for a minimum of ten seconds when turning it on.

Check the Connections

Quite often, problems with computers can result from accidental events. A plug becomes loosened or perhaps the keys on the keyboard have been jammed with dirt or crumbs. Check your laptop out thoroughly, even if only for the opportunity to eliminate any possibility of the above.

Booting Up into Safe Mode

Some Toshiba laptops actually use the F8 key to boot up into safe mode. Try using this key instead of F2 or F12.

Other Possibilities

• The transformer or AC adapter has gone bad or is not securely attached.
• The power cord is not properly plugged in.
• The laptop battery has gone bad.
• The electrical outlet that you are using is bad. Try more than one outlet to make sure that this is not the problem.

In general, you can verify that the laptop is getting power by looking at the indicator. If it is glowing, then the computer is getting power. If you haven’t tried to use the power cord yet, do so since the battery might be dead.

Use a Boot Up or Installation Disk

If you have a boot up or installation disk for the laptop, you should be able to use that to get the laptop on. Turn the power on, insert that into the drive, and immediately hit the ESC key and then the F1 key (when check system appears) to change your boot up option from hard drive to CD drive. If you don’t have one, see if you can get someone to make you one to use. Once you are in, you can choose to repair your operating system so that you do not lose any of your data.

Check into Physical Damage

Laptops have known issues resulting from physical damage. If the laptop had inadvertently been dropped, the internal connections could have been damaged. Find out if anyone has recently dropped the laptop or dropped something onto it. If this is the case, you are probably going to want a trained technician to look at it.

Your problem begs the question of whether or not you have this problem with any other online sites or if this is the only site that you browse.

Clear Internet Cache/ History

One of the first steps that you should take in your attempt to resolve this situation is to clear your Internet Cache. Sometimes, errors are the result of past usage issues and clearing the memory out will be sufficient to address the situation. The method you take will depend on the specific browser that you are using. Follow the directions given at this link: Delete-web-history. If this does not resolve your loading issue, move on to the next tip.

Clean up Your Computer

Since the cause of the problem is unknown, taking a few steps to improve the performance of your computer might help. Follow each of these suggestions or as many as you are willing to attempt.

• Defrag the computer to clean up your files.
• Delete any unwanted programs, applications, games, photos, files, and folders to free up memory.
• Run the chkdsk utility.
• Add more memory to your computer. If you have other applications open when you are accessing The Times, try closing all programs before doing so to see if this makes a difference. If it does, you probably need more memory.
• Run an up-to-date anti-spyware/anti-virus application such as ParetoLogic Anti-Virus PLUS. You can learn more about this application by visiting the following link: Anti-Virus Plus.

Online Subscription Issues with “The Times”

“The Times” has issued a statement that indicates that loading issues are a known problem with their online news. You can read more about it here: Times Online Subscriptions-article3034989. Personally, since it has been almost a year since that statement was issued, I would suggest contacting “The Times” directly about your issue.

Contact “The Times”

If none of the above solutions has corrected the problem for you, you can send an email directly to “The Times” using this email address: custserv@timesonline.co.uk. It is possible that they have other online readers who have experienced the same type of problem.

Without more information available, I am going to suggest a few strategies for you to try. See if any of them will fix the problem for you. Otherwise, please contact us again with more information.

Boot Up in Safe Mode

If you boot your computer up in safe mode, you can access the last known good configuration and see if that returns your settings to a visible location. As soon as you turn the computer on, hit the “F8″ key on the keyboard and then select “last known good configuration.” Press enter to put the change through.

Run System Restore

Once you are in safe mode, conduct a system restore to put your computer back to a time when the settings were clearly available. This is a much easier process than completing a full reinstallation of your operating system. Follow these directions:

Start→ All Programs→ Accessories→ System Tools→ System Restore. Select “Restore my computer to an earlier time,” and click on next. Select a date, click next, and follow any additional prompts to complete the process.

Run an Anti-Spyware/ Anti-Virus Application

On the off chance that your computer is infected with some type of spyware or virus, run a reliable Anti-Spyware/ Anti-Virus application. You can use any number of applications, but I can recommend ParetoLogic Anti-Virus PLUS, which you can obtain at the following link: Anti-Virus Plus.

Run the System File Checker

Follow this set of directions to run the system file checker to locate and repair any damaged or missing files.

1. CTRL & ALT & DEL to open the task manager.
2. Click file and select New Task (Run) and click on it.
3. Type SFC/scannow.
4. Follow any prompts that you get.
5. Reboot your computer.

Restore Start Up Menu

To restore a missing start up menu, click CTRL & ESC.

Reset Your Internet Explorer Home Page

Because you mentioned that all you get is an AOL page, I’m wondering if the default home page has been changed. You can change your Internet settings by going into Internet Explorer, clicking Tools> Internet Options. From there, you can reset your home page to any desired Web site.

I’m going to have to make a few assumptions in order to solve your problem. Mp3 files, also called MPEG-1 Audio Layer 3 files, are music files that have been saved in a digital encoding format. You may need to download a specific media player in order to play the specific files you are downloading.

Sound Card Drivers

Let’s check your audio system first. Are you getting any sound at all through your speakers? The first thing to check is that your speakers are working, that the mute is not checked on your audio volume and that there isn’t a problem with your audio drivers. You can find your audio drivers by using a program such as Driver Genius or Driver Detective or find who made your driver, and download an updated driver from the manufacturer’s website. You can find the driver by following these steps:

1. Find My Computer.
2. Choose Properties, then click on Hardware.
3. Click on the Device Manager in order to expand it. This should tell you what sound card you have.

Once you’ve checked you audio system, we can move onto compatibility issues.

Windows Media Player

If you are running Windows, you probably have Windows Media Player installed. If you need to get or update Windows Media Player, click on the link to download what you need. While this program can play many audio and video files, it won’t play mp3 files that have been downloaded on iTunes.

iTunes

By far the most popular way to play mp3 files is by downloading them from iTunes. You can then play them on your PC, burn them to a CD to play in another music device or put them on your iPod or other mp3 player. In order to play your iTunes music on your PC, you need to download the iTunes Jukebox from the Apple website.

Adobe Flash Player

In order to play files with the .swf file extension, you need to get the newest Adobe Flash Player downloaded onto your PC. This is used to play most web-based video and audio on your PC.

Vista Driver Problem

There is a very specific problem for people running Vista on Dell computers. If this is your situation, and you have a Sigmatel Device, there is an error caused by a line in the registry that is bypassing Windows on your sound driver and you need to get into your registry to fix it. Follow these steps:

1. Click Start.
2. Type in regedit into the search box. Press Enter.
3. You may need to click on Continue to open the Registry Editor.
4. On the left side of your screen, go to: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE. Go to Software, then Microsoft. Then go to Windows, CurrentVersion and Audio.
5. Find DisableProtectedAudioDG. Double click on it, and change the number to 0.
6. Close the Registry Editor and restart your computer.

Hopefully, by checking your audio settings and downloading the player that you need, you will be able to sit back and listen to your music in comfort. If you still need additional help, please let us know if you are getting any error messages, what system you are using and how your are downloading the mp3 files. We should be able to take it from there.

What is WEBSHOTS for Screensavers?

WEBSHOTS for Screensavers is a site that allows people to upload and share their personal photos and videos with others on the Web.

Troubleshooting Tips

Quite often, troubleshooting the reason behind error messages involves a bit of sleuthing or trial-and-error methodology.

Clear Temporary Internet Files

Since it is best to start with the simplest solutions, the first step is to clear your temporary Internet files. Open your browser, navigate to the Tools option, select Internet Options, and select Delete Files.

Run Antispyware/Antivirus Program

Whenever this type of error occurs, it always comes to my mind that some form of spyware, virus, or a Trojan has infected my computer. Run your antispyware/antivirus program to get rid of any of these from your computer. If you don’t have a program, consider getting ParetoLogic Anti-VirusPLUS, an excellent application that removes spyware, virus, or a Trojans from the computer. You can download it from Anti-VirusPLUS.

Firewall Issues

Depending on your firewall security, this could be the source of your error issues. Make sure that your security application (for example, Nortons or Zone Alarm) is configured correctly to allow access to Webshots. Specific directions on how to do this can be found in the support section for your security application.

Reinstall the Software for Webshots

It might be necessary to uninstall and reinstall your Webshots software. Before you do so, backup your current collections folder using the directions given below so that you do not lose any of your files. Next, uninstall Webshots using the directions given below. Then, reinstall the application and copy the contents of the saved collections folder to the new collections folder.

To uninstall Webshots:

Select Start→ Select Programs→ Select Webshots Desktop→ Select Uninstall Webshots Desktop. Reboot your computer.

To Save Your Webshots Collection Folder:

Select My Computer→ C: Drive→ Program Files→ Webshots→ save your Collection Folder by right clicking on it, left clicking on copy, right clicking on desktop, and left clicking on paste. This strategy provides you with a backup of your entire collection.

In order to figure out what is wrong with your machine, we’re going to have to play a little computer detective here. See which scenario fits the problem you’re experiencing and then we may be able to get you on the road to a useable computer.

BIOS

When your computer is first powered up, the Basic Input/Output System (BIOS) begins a Power On Self Test (POST). The BIOS goes to the partition table to get the boot record. Are you getting any error messages? Most of the time, if there is a problem with the partition table you will get some kind of error message, most often “Invalid drive or drive specification”. The error message you get will help you find the problem. Do you hear the computer beeping? The beeps can actually tell a computer tech something about the problem, because this is how the POST sends messages.

Monitor Problem

If you’re starting the computer but you are not getting any error messages at all, then we have to look elsewhere for the cause. Because you say that you hear clicks and the lights flash orange the power supply is working - at least to a point, so I’m not going to suggest you check your power supply. Check your monitor connections and plug in another monitor to the computer, or check your monitor on another computer. If your monitor is working, then read on for more solutions.

Known Dell Issues

My last and final question is: Are you using a Dell - a Dell Dimension in particular? There are two known issues with Dell computers that will cause blinking orange lights.

The first issue is with damaged USB ports. If the USB connection becomes damaged, it can cause the symptoms you are describing. Simply straightening the pins often solves the problem.

The second, and most likely, cause is leaky capacitors on the motherboard. Randomfix.com has a great, detailed photo of the corrosion that these leaking capacitors cause so you can take a look to see if this is where your issue lies. If your computer is still under warranty with Dell, I would contact the manufacturer. If not, you can usually get this repaired at a computer repair shop for under $100.

My intuition tells me that you do have a Dell with leaky capacitors. If not, please let us know if you are getting any beeps or error message and we can provide some more detailed assistance.