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View Full Version : Not a problem but just a gripe


Stilgar
8th July 2001, 03:03
POS Compaq's #@*%$#*&@!^(&
One of the little darlings I just got to work on was a old Compaq which had been updated from win95 to win98. (Stoopid idea) It was brought to me after the update. No system printout nothing. (And oh very important we don't lose anything on it. We have all our banking and other stuff on here we can't lose.) Remove default hardware 98 had installed try to install the right drivers. Win98 does not like them. (Even the updates from the Compaq site, supposedly for win 98.) Remove and re-install several times. Boy this sounds just like the last gripe I had on another system. Compaq spared no expense with one ram slot. Got a whole 32 megs of ram. (Did I say they installed win98, Why yes I did. And win98 just loves having that little ram. And they don't want anything taken out of the startup. ) Hi, do you by any chance have any documentation on what type video card does this have? "Why no. BTW what is a video driver?" Okay open up to look what type vid chip it has. And then the case @#!%$&*%$# little case. Have to remove the back plate and pull it out just to get to it. Finally down to the adapter chip. Ah, now a hunt for the driver. Compaq does not list a video driver for it. Got the monitor driver from their site. More hunting, finally success. Installed video driver. What!! now it does not like the monitor driver. remove and re-install. Anyways finally works.

zhotfire
8th July 2001, 03:35
I know how you feel, i'm still having problems with my laptop's battery controller... done the updates and it still doesn't work right! I doubt i will ever buy another compaq.... :(

dnar
8th July 2001, 04:48
The new Compaq rack servers are quite nice though. Redundant PSU, hot swap SCSI Raid - nice. Forget the POS onboard NIC though!

verT
8th July 2001, 09:31
I haven't had the pleasure of working on a Compaq, but I have heard all the horror stories about Compaq. I sort of have the same feeling about all major OEMs (IBM, Dell, HP and many many more). They all suck the BIG wazoo!

Rick_Deadly
8th July 2001, 23:31
There's only one word I hate to hear more than Compaq and that's Presario :)

Those one piece nightmares... Ahhhh!

Stilgar
9th July 2001, 14:33
Originally posted by Rick_Deadly
There's only one word I hate to hear more than Compaq and that's Presario :)

Those one piece nightmares... Ahhhh!

Gee, how did you know what I worked on.:D At least it did not have one of those off the board modems.

geekboy
9th July 2001, 17:46
Ugh... Presarios. Those bring back memories. The person that decided shared video memory was a good idea should be shot repeatedly in the groin. Nothing like trying to explain to a friend why he can't play a game that requires 32MB of RAM, even when he has that much. :confused:

papeniglio
10th July 2001, 07:34
Hey, I have an old CumpaQ Presario on the floor besides my desk@home..... The toy's arrived three weeks ago with no sort of manual, no sort of CDs, no sort of ANYTHING!!!! :mad:
Currently it runs Win95, but I'd like to change that ridiculous Quantum BigFoot 5"1/4 HD (I couldn't believe my eyes when I opened the case and faced that heavy armored disk ..... :eek: ) and install a fresh copy of Win98. What frightens me is that f@_^ing Phone Center that controls the modem/audio hw.....
Oh, well.... No matter if the re-installation doesn't work.... I will start from scratch with a Mandrake Linux and use the pet as a gateway to my ISP!!!! :D :D :D

GeeK!

Virus
10th July 2001, 09:06
Compaq's desktops are pieces of crap, but they have top notch servers. I guess that's what happens when you buy companies like Digital.

siggy
19th July 2001, 19:22
My 386 that I am going to try and bring back to life is a Compaq. Are you saying I am wasting my time? I wanted something to put Linux on so a can play.

Stilgar
19th July 2001, 23:18
Originally posted by siggy
My 386 that I am going to try and bring back to life is a Compaq. Are you saying I am wasting my time? I wanted something to put Linux on so a can play.

Main thing is to check hard ware compliance on it. If supported or a working substitute gets installed it should be okay for that. Worst thing if you get all the information on video, modem, soundcard if any, would be having to re-install win 3.1 and dos on it after a fdisk. My main problem with compaq's are the use of compaq special equipment. Some of the older machines had a off the board modem and a pain to put a real modem in. Having to use compaq compatable ram on cost. They are just tough to upgrade. Room inside the cases. Just doing a software upgrade is not bad if drivers are available.