Hi, The first indication of a "Bad" CMOS setup battery is usually loss of the Time and Date if the comp left off and unplugged for 3 to 4 hours. Probably by design. Later it will lose all of the CMOS setup. Replace it if you lose the time and date. If you just want to reset the CMOS setup and can't find the reset jumpers. Take the bat out for 2-3 hours with AC disconnected to reset. Bat is as already mentioned, about 1" in diameter and about 3/32" thick. Bat # is CR2032 at Radio Shack. Hope this helps a bit. Good luck, Jim

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Rimfire, before I posted my question about the CMOS battery, I just stumbled onto this http and read some suggestions to other people that seemed to have a problem that sounded alot like my problem. One "solution" was to check the CMOS bat. I have a Compaq Presario 55030 that does not boot up. I get a blue sq with the message "Please check signal" that stays on the screen for about 15 sec. and disapears. then nothing. If you knew as little as I do, what would you do next? Thanks, Up a Stump, Charlie

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JimPIM, Thanks for the info on CMOS bat. and RadioShack lead, but I seem to have been looking/barking up the wrong (un)tree according to Rimfire. I sure havn't "been experimenting with radical overclocking". I don't even know what that is. The computer I have used for about 7 years just wouldn't wake up one morning. All I can get is a blue box with "please check signal" If I can get it going again I may need to try to move seven years of stuff to a newer machine. It would be great if my computer problem can be fixed so that it lasts as long as I do. Up a Stump, Charlie

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The most usual cause of that message is the monitor is unplugged (ie it's getting no signal). Unplug the multi-way signal lead at the computer then re-insert it making sure its fixings are tight. Could be monitor, monitor lead or video card. Try the monitor on another machine if possible (or someone else's on yours). DerekW

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DerekW Monitor and printer seem to be pluged into the edge of the motherboard so I am uncertain how to locate "multi-way signal lead" or a video card. I have unpluged the regular monitor conection from the computer case and re attached it with no improvment. Can't try monitor on another machine and hate to buy a replacement monitor if the problem is on the (motherboard?) video card. Sorry I am so dumb and take up your time. Charlie

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Sorry, by "multi-way signal lead" I meant the one that plugs into the computer. I was just trying to differentiate between that and the monitor power lead. You could try waggling this lead and it's connector while the message is on the screen to see if it suddenly starts working. If it does then it would narrow the problem down. The monitor connector plugs into the video card or module. They are either "onboard" (attached to motherboard) or a separate circuit card which plugs into it. Not easy to prove except by replacement, which is why checking out the monitor is the best first step. Maybe someone will have some other ideas. DerekW

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Let's ascertain whether or not the computer is booting. First, remove the mains power cable from the computer for around 30 seconds, then plug it back in. When you press the power button, you should hear fans spinning and see lights on the front panel. After a short delay you should hear one beep. This single beep indicates that the motherboard seems to be OK. If there is more than one, you will need to count them keeping in mind there can be short and long ones.

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Rimfire, there is no beep but a click (only one) after a short time. Fan IS running and there is a light that comes on the front. Charlie

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If that's the case, then the CMOS battery is the last thing you should be worried about (PIMpost notwithstanding) "Please check signal" is a message from the monitor itself, telling you that the computer is not putting out any video - which is unsurprising if you cannot even get a startup 'beep' Starting to sound FUBAR'd, and given your level of inexperience, maybe a job for the repair shop Diplomacy is the art of saying 'Nice doggie!'... till you can find a rock

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I Was able to hook up another monitar and got a "no signal input" message. ????? Charlie

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That gets the monitor out of the equation and as jboy explained it looks deeper rooted than the video module/card because you get no bleep. Motherboard sounds favorite off the top of my head. DerekW

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The click you heard was probably just the hard drive spinning up. This means you have a problem with the motherboard, processor or RAM. You could try reseating the RAM (Small cards on the motherboard). Make sure the mains power is disconnected before working inside the case. Remove the ram by pushing the white clips outward. Reinsert it by pushing it into the slot until the clips are back in place. Repeat this a few times for each stick of RAM. There still is the remote possibility that the POST hascorrupted. In which case locating the CMOS battery and removing it for about 30 minutes might help. At this stage, it can't do any harm. Since the Presario 5030 is a Pentium II, getting replacement parts will either be overly costly or next to impossible. I would be inclined to replace it rather than repair it.

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I tried removing and reseating the RAM several times but no help. I still havn't located the batery so I can't try that. IF the problem MIGHT be in the video module on the mother board, might I buy inexpensive video card at Fry's and put it in an open slot? If this might work, would it be a PCI or ADT card? What do you think? Charlie

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Even a cheap video card may well be a waste of money. The absence of any beep codes (one short beep means everything checked out) usually means the computer is not getting far enough before it encounters a problem it cannot resolve. I should also mention that there is the capability in many bioses to disable the single beep. You would probably know whether or not it used to make the beep. The beep codes were introduced in order to identify problems that occur before the video card is enabled. After this happens, bios can report an error on the screen. The choice between PCI and AGP depends on which slots you have. PCI slots are usually white. AGP slots are normally brown and set a little further into the motherboard. Many motherboards with onboard graphics did not include AGP slots.

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I think I will try to locate an old Compaq on the "used" market that I can get a motherboard off of, so it may be a while before I tackel my computer problem again. I didn't want to fall silent without thanking everyone that has taken the time to send me information and advise. A big THANK YOU! THANK YOU! Charlie

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Thx for taking the trouble to pop back (not everyone does that). Hope you get it sorted. DerekW

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