Gateway FLEXATXSTC BRO Essential

Here is my dilemma... troubleshooting an old Gateway FLEXATXSTC PC...

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Hello,

I was hoping I could find someone who is familiar with Gateway
FLEXATXSTC Essentials computer? I got it from a friend and wanted to see
if I could get it up and running. I changed out some capacitors due to
the inability to show an video...that worked. Now I'm onto getting into
the BIOS since that is the last screen that shows up...

I have a few kbs with a PS2 plug so I went out and got a USB/PS2
adapter to navigate in BIOS, but the computer doesn't recognize the kb.
I read that I could test the usb to see if they're fried using an
optical mouse...all usb ports are working...the light on the optical
mouse went on every time I plugged it in.

If there is anybody that has experience with these computers, please
offer some direction. I would gladly appreciate it!

Mahalo!



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First of all the capacitors you used should be low ESR and rated at 105
deg. C or more (there are 125 and 130 deg. C types about), it would be
wise to avoid using standard 85 deg. C types as they won't last as
long.

You only need to replaced them when they start showing signs of
styress, see Bad caps in mobos, this equally applies to any other
electronic equipment, video cards and power supplies.

The caps I replaced were in fact bulging and/or leaking...Check

Try looking in Device manager under Keyboard see if there is any errors
indicated by a yellow triangular exclamation mark, you will also be able
to check the device and check the drivers by clicking on the + sign in
the tiny square box.

I ended up buying a cheapo usb keyboard. kb is recognized now...Check

Also check the keyboard setting in bios might be another idea,
something like 'Halt on Keyboard error' try it disabled.

You could drop a post in Gateway section, heres the Index, you'll find
it right at bottom under Brand systems in it's subsection....

.... please note do read this FAQ first as we are not responsible for
any post in Usenet sections.

davy

Presently, I think the HD is bad because I switched it with other
"older" HD I have and the other two are recognized, but not the orginal
one...DANG IT! Right now, that's the only thing I can think of...change
out the HD, but in the attempts to keep my budget down, (I spent $20
already on it. I was hoping to top at $20) it looks like I might be
spending a little bit more. I still wanted to upgrade the RAM to 512
MB, maybe put in a better video card and eventually find a better cpu.

Anyone got any suggestions as to what upgrades, if you wanna call it
that, would be sufficient for this old machine ? Thanks to everyone
who has helped me thus far!

Hi!

Here is my dilemma... troubleshooting an old Gateway FLEXATXSTC PC...

If I'm remembering correctly, this is the "little" PC built around the
so-called "Brookings" board. It's a cute little thing but every one I've
seen has serious thermal issues that take their toll over the years. Gateway
just didn't build these with enough airflow!

You probably have more capacitor replacement to do, and you may have to
check the power supply since the caps in there suffer as well. In fact, I'd
recap the whole motherboard if you haven't. In whatever you quoted below, I
saw the suggestion that only capacitors which looked distressed needed to be
replaced. That is incorrect--capacitors can and do fail without visual
indications of the failure.

RAM is the biggest thing. Max it out. Consider a newer and faster hard
drive--anything on the market today will be an improvement. This system does
have a 137GB capacity limit and will hang up at POST if you use a bigger
drive. You can't do much for video, there is no AGP slot. The Intel onboard
graphics aren't too bad for this system.

William

HW_Savvy_WannaBe wrote:
Here is my dilemma... troubleshooting an old Gateway FLEXATXSTC PC...

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Hello,

I was hoping I could find someone who is familiar with Gateway
FLEXATXSTC Essentials computer? I got it from a friend and wanted to see
if I could get it up and running. I changed out some capacitors due to
the inability to show an video...that worked. Now I'm onto getting into
the BIOS since that is the last screen that shows up...

I have a few kbs with a PS2 plug so I went out and got a USB/PS2
adapter to navigate in BIOS, but the computer doesn't recognize the kb.
I read that I could test the usb to see if they're fried using an
optical mouse...all usb ports are working...the light on the optical
mouse went on every time I plugged it in.

If there is anybody that has experience with these computers, please
offer some direction. I would gladly appreciate it!

Mahalo!



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

First of all the capacitors you used should be low ESR and rated at 105
deg. C or more (there are 125 and 130 deg. C types about), it would be
wise to avoid using standard 85 deg. C types as they won't last as
long.

You only need to replaced them when they start showing signs of
styress, see Bad caps in mobos, this equally applies to any other
electronic equipment, video cards and power supplies.

The caps I replaced were in fact bulging and/or leaking...Check

Try looking in Device manager under Keyboard see if there is any errors
indicated by a yellow triangular exclamation mark, you will also be able
to check the device and check the drivers by clicking on the + sign in
the tiny square box.

I ended up buying a cheapo usb keyboard. kb is recognized now...Check

Also check the keyboard setting in bios might be another idea,
something like 'Halt on Keyboard error' try it disabled.

You could drop a post in Gateway section, heres the Index, you'll find
it right at bottom under Brand systems in it's subsection....

... please note do read this FAQ first as we are not responsible for
any post in Usenet sections.

davy

Presently, I think the HD is bad because I switched it with other
"older" HD I have and the other two are recognized, but not the orginal
one...DANG IT! Right now, that's the only thing I can think of...change
out the HD, but in the attempts to keep my budget down, (I spent $20
already on it. I was hoping to top at $20) it looks like I might be
spending a little bit more. I still wanted to upgrade the RAM to 512
MB, maybe put in a better video card and eventually find a better cpu.

Anyone got any suggestions as to what upgrades, if you wanna call it
that, would be sufficient for this old machine ? Thanks to everyone
who has helped me thus far!



Personally, I place little trust in repaired motherboards. Problem with
blown caps is that you never know whether the failed cap(s) caused
some other damage to a chip on the board or to the board itself.

I think I may have even collected one of the FLEXATXSTC micro-ATX
boards, because I liked the small size. But I never did anything with
it. If I still have it, are you interested in it for a small amount of
money, say $10, plus exact cost of shipping? ... Ben Myers