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Old October 27th 03, 08:59 AM
Euc1id
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I think the S4020WM is a good deal, but it needs at least 128MB more RAM to
work right. It comes with a 40G Western Digital hard drive, which is slow
but works OK. The Xp 2400+ processor at 2.0GHz is also nice & snappy for my
apps, better & faster than Intel processors in the same price range. Also,
you can't go just by the "GHz" these days, which is deceptive (thanks to
Intel). For gawdsake, don't get a Celeron.

What I particularly like about it is the big roomy case, easy to work
inside. Just push down on the top of the frontispiece (Bezel) and it pops
off (may need a little help to release a couple of levers), so you can
easily insert/remove drives. It also has a no-screwdriver-needed side panel
that's easy to remove. I like my S4020WM, but it's my 2nd one. The 1st one I
got definitely was a dudd, had nothing but problems with it. So be prepared
to test it quickly, and take it back under the Walmart 15 day return policy
on computers if necessary. I guess that's true of any inexpensive
electronics at the lowpriced/discount stores (Walmart, Kmart, Sears,
Biglots, etc).
--
Euc1id

"Ricky Spartacus" wrote in message
om...
The folks at used-pcs dot com didn`t give any Maxtor software with it.
I like the suggestion of running the diagnostics because, during 30
minute of restore, I need not a single click from the hard drive. The
clicks only happen during boot. I`d like to run a diagnostic because I
think it`s broken. I`ll also attempt a formatting using the `windows
startup disk.`

Previously I`d tried using a brand new 130G Maxtor and it did not
work, that`s why I got the old fashioned Maxtor 20G. With the 130G
Maxtor it says, `Your computer serial # does not match, please enter
correct #.`

I am thinking of buying the Presario S4020WM and load up this 20G
Maxtor hard drive since it worked for you. Thanks for the reply.
Rick


It's probably rare, but possible that a new hard drive could be faulty. So
be sure to run all of the PowerMax diagnostics to certify that it is

working
correctly.

Then my suggestion would be to use the Maxtor diagnostic software PowerMax
and do a low-level reformat of the hard drive (takes a LONG time). That
should wipe it clean and remove any proprietary Maxtor BIOS-related junk.
Then perhaps your Compaq recovery software will work(?), but I have no

idea
in that regard. I've heard that some Compaq's may not be friendly to

putting
in new hard drives of a different brand, but I don't know.

I've tried to use the Maxtor installation software in the past and it

didn't
work right for me. So I resorted to the old reliable DOS methods to format

&
partition it as fat32, then it worked fine on my 4 year old HP Pavilion
6545C with W98se. That was a 20G Maxtor UltraATA 7200rpm hard drive which

I
purchased about 1.5 years ago. I don't know about the other ID numbers -
they make it too complicated. I gave that computer away to someone, so

can't
check it now.

As for my current Compaq Presario S4020WM running XP Home, I made a set of

6
recovery CDs as instructed. Then I bought a 120G Maxtor hard drive, stuck

it
in (straight out of the box) as the new master, and then the set of Compaq
recovery CDs did everything automatically - formatted the drive and
installed the recovery partition + op system. I didn't have to do
"anything", and I didn't use the Maxtor installation software (which I

don't
trust). Then the only thing I had to do was apply the Maxtor "quiet"
software utility (Amset), because the drive was extremely noisy otherwise.
--
Euc1id

"NewKillerStar" wrote in message
...
Did you format the drive first?

"Ricky Spartacus" wrote in message
om...
My new used Maxtor 5T020H2 20G HD arrived today and when loading the
Compaq full restore software into this hard drive it says, "Error, out
of memory" halfway into the loading process. The loading process is
halted. I notice the hard drive light in front of the computer rarely
comes on as quick flashes. No flashes or just 2 seconds flash on per 5
min.

It could be my Compaq restore software. But why do other hard drives
work with Compaq restore? I bought the 5T020H2 because it's known to
work with Compaq restore. If that means I may need to get a new
operating system I need to confirm it before I go get one. So what
could be the problem?
Thanks.