I got a computer just to tinker with from a friend who couldn't get it to start, and she isn't extremely computer literate. I used the jumper on the mainboard to clear the CMOS settings, and finally got it to the boot up stage. Keyboard is detected, mouse is detected. I get the error saying CMOS settings are wrong (of course), and when I press F9, it doesn't do a thing. I have tried another keyboard already (the one I'm using right now), and was without luck.. Is there anything that I can do to fix this, or is there anything that would prevent me from getting into the CMOS like that? Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance.

joey, What does it say to press, to get into bios(cmos) setup. On the bootup screen. If it goes to fast, press the pause/break key on the keyboard, to freeze it. What is the manufacturer of the motherboard and bios? If it's a name brand computer. What's the manufacturer and model number? What type of keyboard are you using? (usb or ps/2)

It says to press F1 to use setup and F9 to use defaults. I have, of course, tried both, and neither work. It's a somewhat old Gateway, and the keyboard is USB. It is detecting it, because if I unplug the keyboard or mouse, it will give a boot screen saying keyboard not detected, please read the manual for help etc etc. Thanks for the reply.

joey, If you have, or know anyone with a ps/2 keyboard that you could borrow. You might give that a try. You never know :-) With out the model of it. It's kind of hard to narrow things down. Can you get the screen to pause (freeze) with the info on it. Like, cpu, hdd, cd-rom, memory, bios info, ect. Just another question. What happens, if you hold the F1 key down, and then start the computer. Does it start ticking like a time bomb :-), and you get an error. Or does it beep at you? You know, like an angry person behind you in rush hour :-) hehe Or maybe it will do nothing. Most likely, it will do something. Let me know what happens, and the info you get. Thanks P.S. You said it's winme os. Does she have recovery disk(s) for it? Also a startup disk. If she has the recovery disk(s). What version number, and other info, is on the disk?

The keyboard is USB, and there's no ps/2 on it. I've tried this keyboard also and it didn't work, but maybe I can get it to work later. It doesn't give me any of the cpu/hdd/cd-rom etc. It's just an old gateway that as soon as I boot up shows the gateway logo and says press tab for startup info, and I can't press tab because it doesn't let me use the keyboard :/ Also, if I hold the F1 key nothing happens. It's already making a clicking noise the whole time it's booted, but it's coming from the hdd. I'm not sure if she had a recover disk, but I doubt it. :(

Ever solve this? I sometimes believe people just don't hear. I've the same problem. Tried the same solutions. Spent an hour with Gateway only to hear the "help" desk tell me to Press F1 or plug in a P/S2 keyboard! Appreciate a response if you did solve it.