AboutKevin Expertise I`m familiar with Windows 95/98/XP problems and will try my best to assist you. Feel free to ask any software or hardware related questions.
Experience I started using computers over 10 years ago and have grown to both love and hate it to say the least. I have studied computer programming and graduated with a bachelor's degree in computer science.
Education/Credentials Bachelors in computer information science
Question I have an Acer runnin windows XP. It keeps saying windows failed to start. A recent hardward or softward change might be the cause. It gives me thirty second to choose wheater I want to launch start up repair(recommended) or start windows normally.
My up and down arrows are not working so I can't highlight a choice and after thirty seconds it just flashes the same screen over and over.
Help!! I have lots of paper I don't want to lose by rebooting the whole computer again. What can I do first to try to solve this before resolving to a reboot.
Answer Hi Yeng, did you make any changes to your computer before this problem began? If you installed anything new, try removing them to see if it helps. Otherwise, one thing that comes to mind now is to disconnect all hardware except the essential ones that you need (like keyboard, mouse, video/monitor cable).
Does any of the keys work when you start it up? Try hitting ENTER key and see if it selects the first option there immediately. Or make sure your Number Lock is not on (the light should be off) and then try using the arrow keys on the number pad instead to see if it works that way. Also try re-seating the keyboard cable to see if it helps. You can disconnect it and then reconnect it back. While you are at it, check the cable to make sure it's not damaged (the connector portion).
If your files are very important, I recommend backing up the data immediately. Is this Acer a desktop or laptop? What I'm suggesting is to remove the hard drive from this computer (desktop will be much more easier than a laptop) and put this to another working computer as a slave drive. You can use the cables from the CD drive to do this. Your hard drive should show up as a new drive letter in the other computer. Copy your files over that way.
