laptop making dinging noise

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Sand · #1 Post by **Sand** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 3:00 pm

I called IBM as someone suggested to ask about this noise and I was told that my interface, or copy of Windows was dying and that I needed to make a CD and backup of all my files and then wipe the drive and Re-Image, or put fresh copy of Windows on my laptop. He called it Ghosting.Besides the dinging noise, the Access IBM application doesn't work anymore. It will come up on the monitor when I press the button, but it is frozen and unusable.

I have no idea what he means, I have never heard of Windows 'running out' and it would be a big deal for me to make a Backup CD of my entire drive. But if this is true than I will have to do it.

Is this true and if so, can I just download and install a new version of it without wiping my drive and starting over?

Thanks,
Sand

T42 2379DXU About 3 years old. Windows XP Pro

#2 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 6:06 pm

Sand, lets explore this dinging noise a bit. I'm sure you've heard the laptop beep, like when it boots it usually beeps once. Assuming that is not the noise, try this. Boot to BIOS (press f1 at boot screen) and leave it there for the same amount of time you'd normally hear the dinging. Do you still hear it? If yes, remove your hard drive and try the same test. If it still fails, remove the keyboard and leave it plugged to the systemboard. You'll see the fan underneath, is the dinging coming from the fan?

Sand · #3 Post by **Sand** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 8:20 pm

Harry, I opened it in Bios and there was no dinging noise, only a low buzzing sound.

Sand

#4 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 8:24 pm

OK, so lets assume that it is not the fan or hard drive. Boot into safe mode in XP. Still hear the noise?

Sand · #5 Post by **Sand** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 9:25 pm

Could you please tell me how to do that?

Sand

#6 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 9:32 pm

* Restart the computer.
o Some computers have a progress bar that refers to the word BIOS. Others may not let you know what is happening.
* As soon as the BIOS loads, begin tapping the F8 key on your keyboard. Do so until the Windows Advanced Options menu appears.
* If you begin tapping the F8 key too soon, some computers display a "keyboard error" message. If this happens, restart the computer and try again.
* Using the arrow keys on the keyboard, select Safe mode and then press Enter.

Sand · #7 Post by **Sand** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 9:47 pm

I did that and there was still only the low buzzing. What does this show, that it is not the hard drive? What is the buzzing sound? The fan?

The dinging noise only happens when the computer has been on for awhile and I'm wondering if it could be that it is heating up.The adapter gets, not hot, but quite warm.

It hasn't been dinging since I started these procedures; could they somehow have changed anything?

Do you understand what the IBM tech was referring to when he talked about my computer dying and needing to do the ghosting procedure? I never heard anyone talk about doing that.

Sand

#8 Post by **Harryc** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 9:52 pm

Well, now you're talking about 'buzzing' and 'dinging'.

Again, lets assume that the dinging has something to do with a problem in XP when it loads normally...true? The buzzing could be the fan or the hard drive. I'd pull the hard drive out as a first step to see if it goes away. If it does not it is most likely the fan. Just make sure it is not the AC adapter that is buzzing. Put your ear next to it.

Tim M · #9 Post by **Tim M** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 11:02 pm

I wonder if it would be possible for Sand to record the sounds and put them on the web somehow so that we can hear them.

RobbieThe1st · #10 Post by **RobbieThe1st** » Thu Jun 19, 2008 11:24 pm

Hm.... Is it a high-pitched whine/buzz that is especially noticeable when hot and changes when you plug in or remove the AC adapter? I ask because mine does this - I think the internal power-supply is slowly failing. I think this whine is being generated by the high-frequency vibration of the inductors.

------------------------------------------
The noise you have described so far sounds like it could be either A. Hard-disk, B. fan, C. CD-rom drive, or D. power-supply trouble.

Other than that, I can't really help you.

-RobbieThe1st

Sand · #11 Post by **Sand** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 11:05 am

What does that mean, 'the internal power-supply is failing'? That sounds a little like what the IBM tech was saying. What is power-supply trouble?

There is no sound coming from the adapter, someone asked about.

I don't know anything, but the buzzing sound just seems like a sound coming from something working, not a bad sound, I even tune it out and stop hearing it. The dinging noise seems more unnatural . It's not happening right now and I haven't noticed any particular pattern when it does. It just seems to start after the computer is on a few hours so I thought it was related to heat, although it hasn't been that way for the 3 years prior.

I don't know how to remove the hard disk. I can't access the application ACCESS IBM to learn how to do anything. That is concerning me too, that this application does not work. So something is wrong here. I don't know if there's any connection.

Thanks,
Sand

mgo · #12 Post by **mgo** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 11:25 am

Sand wrote:I called IBM as someone suggested to ask about this noiseSand

T42 2379DXU About 3 years old. Windows XP Pro

The dinging sound can sometimes be caused by the pulsing of the computer's cooling fan, as it runs at slow speed. It is a mechanical quirk found in may of the T series computers.

There are software solutions for this annoyance, but they require some care in downloading and setting up.

This may not be what you are talking about, but I'm just tossing in my two bits worth here in the interest of helping.

#13 Post by **Harryc** » Fri Jun 20, 2008 12:20 pm

Sand - T43 Hard Drive Removal Procedure

Sand · #14 Post by **Sand** » Sat Jun 21, 2008 6:36 pm

That alleviates some worry that it's a serious problem, if it is just the cooling fan. But it still doesn't explain the ACCESS IBM failure to work.

Thanks for the site for hard drive removal. I haven't been able to do that yet, but I will study the instructions and try it.

Thanks to everyone that offered their help.

The IBM tech kind of scared the bejeebers out of me. Hope he was wrong and you all are right.

Thanks,
Sand