Vista - monitor going to sleep

my kids have a Compaq running vista home basic. we have had this computer for over a year but has not been connected to the internet until two weeks ago. now the monitor went to sleep and we can't wake it. there are no lights on the keyboard and we get no response at all. i have read all kids of posts about this problem but most involve changing settings or updating drivers, we can't do any of that because i can't get any response. any help would be greatly appreciated. thanks

On Sat, 20 Dec 2008 19:53:15 -0600, emanddd <guest@xxxxxx-email.com>
wrote:
The "monitor" is only the screen... it sound from your description as
if the whole computer is shut down and won't power up, i.e., there are
no lights anywhere.

When you push the power button does ANY light come on?

"emanddd" <guest@xxxxxx-email.com> wrote in message
news:377300005f8d9701b9732c3be6d1374f@xxxxxx-gateway.com...
Do the LEDs light up on the front panel of the tower?

Can you hear a 'beep' sound as it boots from cold?

Can you detect any airflow from the power supply fan?

Can you hear any fans at all?


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thanks for the replies. it does power up, there are two fans that run and a few LED's on the back that light up. the power button on the front did light up but not anymore. It will shut down if i hold the power button down for a few seconds and then i push the power button i can hear the fans turn on but no beep.

emanddd wrote:
You have hardware failure. Failing components could be the power supply, the
hard drive, the motherboard. There's no way for anyone who can't see the
machine to tell. If the machine is still under warranty, contact HP's tech
support for repair/replacement. Otherwise take it to a qualified computer
professional. I don't recommend using a BigComputerStore/GeekSquad type of
place.

Malke
--
MS-MVP
Elephant Boy Computers - Don't Panic!
FAQ - http://www.elephantboycomputers.com/#FAQ

Malke <malke@xxxxxx> wrote:
To "emanddd": it's not your hard drive. Your system isn't even
entering the POST and a dead hard drive woudln't cause that.

It could be the power supply, the CPU or the motherboard.

Richie Hardwick

i was hoping it would be something easier to fix myself. thanks for all the help

If the light on the back of the power supply lights up does that mean the power supply is good? how do I test the motherboard and find what motherboard i need? is there a way to look it up online, i have a compaq sr5214x. thanks

emanddd <guest@xxxxxx-email.com> wrote:
Not necessarily, but it's better than it NOT lighting up. Does the PS
fan run?
You're over your head on this, I'm sure of it. Besides, Compaq boards
are proprietary and not easily replaced.

You need to find a local "ma & pa" computer shop and have them check
the power supply and the CPU to determine if those are OK. If they
are, then it's the mobo. Such work is usually billed by the hour and
could run a couple hundred bucks coming out of the chute just to check
everything.

Richie Hardwick

sounds cheaper to buy a new one, less than $350