laptop with no soaund card ever ?

Hi, could you please run the command " lspci | grep Audio " in a terminal window and then post here the output?
If it returns nothing, just run "lspci" .

william@laforest1:~$ spci grep Audio
bash: spci: command not found
william@laforest1:~$ lspci grep Audio
Usage: lspci [<switches>]

-v Be verbose
-n Show numeric ID's
-nn Show both textual and numeric ID's (names & numbers)
-b Bus-centric view (PCI addresses and IRQ's instead of those
seen by the CPU)
-x Show hex-dump of the standard portion of config space
-xxx Show hex-dump of the whole config space (dangerous; root
only)
-xxxx Show hex-dump of the 4096-byte extended config space (root
only)
-s [[[[<domain>]:]<bus>]:][<slot>][.[<func>]] Show only devices in
selected slots
-d [<vendor>]:[<device>] Show only selected devices
-t Show bus tree
-m Produce machine-readable output
-i <file> Use specified ID database instead of
/usr/share/misc/pci.ids.gz
-D Always show domain numbers
-M Enable `bus mapping' mode (dangerous; root only)
-P <dir> Use specified directory instead of /proc/bus/pci
-H <mode> Use direct hardware access (<mode> = 1 or 2)
-F <file> Read configuration data from given file
-G Enable PCI access debugging
william@laforest1:~$
william@laforest1:~$
william@laforest1:~$

Mara- I believe I input the command incorrectly the first time. Perhaps
the second time it was correct? BL

On Dec 12, 2007 9:00 AM, Mara Sorella <email address hidden>
wrote:

> Your question #19876 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> Status: Open => Needs information
>
> Mara Sorella requested for more information:
> Hi, could you please run the command " lspci | grep Audio " in a terminal
> window and then post here the output?
> If it returns nothing, just run "lspci" .
>
> --
> To answer this request for more information, you can either reply to
> this email or enter your reply at the following page:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

Mara- Here is the second command.

william@laforest1:~$ lspci
00:00.0 Host bridge: ALi Corporation M1621 (rev 01)
00:01.0 PCI bridge: ALi Corporation PCI to AGP Controller (rev 01)
00:02.0 USB Controller: ALi Corporation USB 1.1 Controller (rev 03)
00:03.0 CardBus bridge: Texas Instruments PCI1410 PC card Cardbus Controller
(rev 01)
00:06.0 Bridge: ALi Corporation M7101 Power Management Controller [PMU]
00:07.0 ISA bridge: ALi Corporation M1533/M1535 PCI to ISA Bridge [Aladdin
IV/V/V+]
00:08.0 Multimedia audio controller: ALi Corporation M5451 PCI AC-Link
Controller Audio Device (rev 01)
00:0f.0 IDE interface: ALi Corporation M5229 IDE (rev c3)
01:00.0 VGA compatible controller: Trident Microsystems CyberBlade/i1 (rev
5d)
02:00.0 Ethernet controller: Atheros Communications, Inc. AR2413
802.11bgNIC (rev 01)
william@laforest1:~$
william@laforest1:~$

On Dec 12, 2007 9:00 AM, Mara Sorella <email address hidden>
wrote:

> Your question #19876 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> Status: Open => Needs information
>
> Mara Sorella requested for more information:
> Hi, could you please run the command " lspci | grep Audio " in a terminal
> window and then post here the output?
> If it returns nothing, just run "lspci" .
>
> --
> To answer this request for more information, you can either reply to
> this email or enter your reply at the following page:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

Hi again, the command was " lspci | grep Audio" with that 'pipe' in the middle, a character that you can obtain by pressing contemporaneously SHIFT and the backslash ' \ ' key.

Anyway, with lspci we got what we were looking for, your audio device is a "ALi Corporation M5451 PCI AC-Link
Controller Audio Device (rev 01)"

I assume that you are running Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon, and you have GRUB boot loader (if different, tell me)
so I suggest you to try a few steps:

1) Run this command, in a terminal (be sure to write it correctly!) :

cat /proc/interrupts

It will output an horizontal list with lines starting with a number, here is an example:
               CPU
  0: 1188491 IO-APIC-edge timer
  1: 5834 IO-APIC-edge i8042
  8: 3 IO-APIC-edge rtc
  9: 2676 IO-APIC-fasteoi acpi
 11: 0 IO-APIC-edge sonypi
 12: 390 IO-APIC-edge i8042

You need to find which is the number on the left that matches your soundcard, that number will be the one who reports a "ALI 5451" in the fourth column, on the same line.
Maybe for you it will be 10 or 5, but it depends on many things.
Write down the number as we will need in the next step.

(if you report some problems in this step, simply post here the output of cat /proc/interrupts )

2) Open the GRUB configuration file, menu.lst , which can be found in /boot/grub/ , with your favourite text editor (it may be gedit, kate, nano, ... etc.).

 You have to find in that file (CTRL+F if you are using gedit/kate , CTRL+W if nano/pico) a line which starts with # kopt , AT THE END OF THAT LINE append this command, separating it from any previous one with a space:

acpi_irq_isa=NUMBER apm=off

Replacing NUMBER with the number you find before.

3) Save the file end quit the editor

4) In a terminal run " sudo update-grub " (it will ask for your password)

5) Reboot

At the reboot you should be able to hear sounds, try with your favourite music player.

Good Luck!

Mara

Mara- Please take a look at this and tell me if this right to you? I
assume that in the fourth column I would see "ALI or M5451" or am I
incorrect in my assumption?

william@laforest1:~$ cat /proc/interrupts
           CPU0
  0: 29036 XT-PIC-XT timer
  1: 129 XT-PIC-XT i8042
  2: 0 XT-PIC-XT cascade
  6: 6 XT-PIC-XT floppy
  7: 2 XT-PIC-XT parport0
  8: 3 XT-PIC-XT rtc
  9: 2357 XT-PIC-XT acpi
 11: 26920 XT-PIC-XT ohci_hcd:usb1, yenta, wifi0
 12: 1861 XT-PIC-XT i8042
 14: 7198 XT-PIC-XT ide0
 15: 2139 XT-PIC-XT ide1
NMI: 0
LOC: 0
ERR: 0
MIS: 0
william@laforest1:~$

On Dec 14, 2007 7:14 AM, Mara Sorella <email address hidden>
wrote:

> Your question #19876 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> Status: Open => Answered
>
> Mara Sorella proposed the following answer:
> Hi again, the command was " lspci | grep Audio" with that 'pipe' in the
> middle, a character that you can obtain by pressing contemporaneously
> SHIFT and the backslash ' \ ' key.
>
> Anyway, with lspci we got what we were looking for, your audio device is a
> "ALi Corporation M5451 PCI AC-Link
> Controller Audio Device (rev 01)"
>
> I assume that you are running Ubuntu Gutsy Gibbon, and you have GRUB boot
> loader (if different, tell me)
> so I suggest you to try a few steps:
>
> 1) Run this command, in a terminal (be sure to write it correctly!) :
>
> cat /proc/interrupts
>
> It will output an horizontal list with lines starting with a number, here
> is an example:
> CPU
> 0: 1188491 IO-APIC-edge timer
> 1: 5834 IO-APIC-edge i8042
> 8: 3 IO-APIC-edge rtc
> 9: 2676 IO-APIC-fasteoi acpi
> 11: 0 IO-APIC-edge sonypi
> 12: 390 IO-APIC-edge i8042
>
>
> You need to find which is the number on the left that matches your
> soundcard, that number will be the one who reports a "ALI 5451" in the
> fourth column, on the same line.
> Maybe for you it will be 10 or 5, but it depends on many things.
> Write down the number as we will need in the next step.
>
> (if you report some problems in this step, simply post here the output
> of cat /proc/interrupts )
>
> 2) Open the GRUB configuration file, menu.lst , which can be found in
> /boot/grub/ , with your favourite text editor (it may be gedit, kate,
> nano, ... etc.).
>
> You have to find in that file (CTRL+F if you are using gedit/kate ,
> CTRL+W if nano/pico) a line which starts with # kopt , AT THE END OF
> THAT LINE append this command, separating it from any previous one with
> a space:
>
> acpi_irq_isa=NUMBER apm=off
>
> Replacing NUMBER with the number you find before.
>
> 3) Save the file end quit the editor
>
> 4) In a terminal run " sudo update-grub " (it will ask for your
> password)
>
> 5) Reboot
>
> At the reboot you should be able to hear sounds, try with your favourite
> music player.
>
> Good Luck!
>
> Mara
>
> --
> If this answers your question, please go to the following page to let us
> know that it is solved:
>
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876/+confirm?answer_id=3
>
> If you still need help, you can reply to this email or go to the
> following page to enter your feedback:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

Ok, your audio device is not listed in the IRQ list, that's probably because what we have here is an IRQ conflict.
I need to ask you to paste here another command output, the one you get by running:

dmesg | grep 00:08.0

in a terminal (you can cut & paste, so you won't miss the "|" !!)

That number you see there is the physical address of your audio card (listed in lspci), dmesg is a sort of kernel log which displays some events (in particular, errors..) that occured at boot time and after.
So we will probably see if your device can't get an IRQ and, if so, why.

Hold on!

Mara

P.S.
post also the output of (2 separate commands):

aplay -l

lsmod | grep snd

Per your request

william@laforest1:~$ dmesg | grep 00:08.0
[ 64.796322] ACPI: PCI Interrupt 0000:00:08.0[A] -> Link [LNKH] -> GSI 10
(level, low) -> IRQ 10
[ 64.796374] PCI: Unable to reserve I/O region #1:100@1000 for device
0000:00:08.0
[ 64.796392] ACPI: PCI interrupt for device 0000:00:08.0 disabled
[ 64.796437] ALI 5451: probe of 0000:00:08.0 failed with error -16
william@laforest1:~$ aplay -|
> lsmod | grep snd
ALSA lib confmisc.c:769:(parse_card) cannot find card ''
ALSA lib conf.c:3510:(_snd_config_evaluate) function snd_func_card_driver
returned error: No such device
ALSA lib confmisc.c:392:(snd_func_concat) error evaluating strings
ALSA lib conf.c:3510:(_snd_config_evaluate) function snd_func_concat
returned error: No such device
ALSA lib confmisc.c:1251:(snd_func_refer) error evaluating name
ALSA lib conf.c:3510:(_snd_config_evaluate) function snd_func_refer returned
error: No such device
ALSA lib conf.c:3982:(snd_config_expand) Evaluate error: No such device
ALSA lib pcm.c:2144:(snd_pcm_open_noupdate) Unknown PCM default
aplay: main:545: audio open error: No such device
snd_ali5451 24460 0
snd_ac97_codec 100644 1 snd_ali5451
ac97_bus 3200 1 snd_ac97_codec
snd_pcm_oss 44672 0
snd_mixer_oss 17664 1 snd_pcm_oss
snd_pcm 80388 3 snd_ali5451,snd_ac97_codec,snd_pcm_oss
snd_seq_dummy 4740 0
snd_seq_oss 33152 0
snd_seq_midi 9600 0
snd_rawmidi 25728 1 snd_seq_midi
snd_seq_midi_event 8448 2 snd_seq_oss,snd_seq_midi
snd_seq 53232 6
snd_seq_dummy,snd_seq_oss,snd_seq_midi,snd_seq_midi_event
snd_timer 24324 2 snd_pcm,snd_seq
snd_seq_device 9228 5
snd_seq_dummy,snd_seq_oss,snd_seq_midi,snd_rawmidi,snd_seq
snd 54660 10
snd_ali5451,snd_ac97_codec,snd_pcm_oss,snd_mixer_oss,snd_pcm,snd_seq_oss,snd_rawmidi,snd_seq,snd_timer,snd_seq_device
soundcore 8800 1 snd
snd_page_alloc 11400 1 snd_pcm
william@laforest1:~$ play -l
The program 'play' is currently not installed. You can install it by
typing:
sudo apt-get install sox
You will have to enable component called 'universe'
bash: play: command not found
william@laforest1:~$

On Dec 15, 2007 9:13 AM, Mara Sorella <email address hidden>
wrote:

> Your question #19876 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> Status: Open => Answered
>
> Mara Sorella proposed the following answer:
> Ok, your audio device is not listed in the IRQ list, that's probably
> because what we have here is an IRQ conflict.
> I need to ask you to paste here another command output, the one you get by
> running:
>
>
> dmesg | grep 00:08.0
>
> in a terminal (you can cut & paste, so you won't miss the "|" !!)
>
> That number you see there is the physical address of your audio card
> (listed in lspci), dmesg is a sort of kernel log which displays some events
> (in particular, errors..) that occured at boot time and after.
> So we will probably see if your device can't get an IRQ and, if so, why.
>
> Hold on!
>
> Mara
>
> P.S.
> post also the output of (2 separate commands):
>
> aplay -l
>
> lsmod | grep snd
>
> --
> If this answers your question, please go to the following page to let us
> know that it is solved:
>
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876/+confirm?answer_id=5
>
> If you still need help, you can reply to this email or go to the
> following page to enter your feedback:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

OK that's an IRQ conflict, you should resolve disabling acpi:

1) edit the file /boot/grub/menu.lst appending this at the and of the line (but on the same line) which begins with # kopt

noapic nolapic pci=noacpi acpi=off quiet splash

(use cut and paste)

for example, if that line in your file was:

# kopt ro

Now it will become:

# kopt ro noapic nolapic pci=noacpi acpi=off quiet splash

Check it word by word to ensure that you have typed it correctly, then

2) save the file and quit the editor

3) run sudo update-grub in a terminal

4) reboot and I'll keep my fingers crossed for you this time

Mara

Mara- I am sorry.....I feel very helpless here. I have no idea how to open
the grub configuration file. I suppose if you can tell me how- I may be
able to move forward but now i am stuck. Any help would be greatly
appreciated. BL

On Dec 15, 2007 1:33 PM, Mara Sorella <email address hidden>
wrote:

> Your question #19876 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> Status: Open => Answered
>
> Mara Sorella proposed the following answer:
> OK that's an IRQ conflict, you should resolve disabling acpi:
>
> 1) edit the file /boot/grub/menu.lst appending this at the and of the
> line (but on the same line) which begins with # kopt
>
> noapic nolapic pci=noacpi acpi=off quiet splash
>
> (use cut and paste)
>
> for example, if that line in your file was:
>
> # kopt ro
>
> Now it will become:
>
> # kopt ro noapic nolapic pci=noacpi acpi=off quiet splash
>
>
> Check it word by word to ensure that you have typed it correctly, then
>
> 2) save the file and quit the editor
>
> 3) run sudo update-grub in a terminal
>
> 4) reboot and I'll keep my fingers crossed for you this time
>
>
> Mara
>
> --
> If this answers your question, please go to the following page to let us
> know that it is solved:
>
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876/+confirm?answer_id=7
>
> If you still need help, you can reply to this email or go to the
> following page to enter your feedback:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

Thanks Mara Sorella, that solved my question.

Great, glad to have been of help :)

Mara

Sucess! It worked. I don't know how to thank you enough.

On Dec 15, 2007 9:14 PM, Mara Sorella <<email address hidden> >
wrote:

> Your question #19876 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> Status: Open => Answered
>
> Mara Sorella proposed the following answer:
> OK, in a terminal, run:
> sudo gedit /boot/grub/menu.lst
>
> this command will open an editor from which you can visually edit the
> file.
> Now, do the steps listed in the previous message :)
>
> --
> If this answers your question, please go to the following page to let us
> know that it is solved:
>
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876/+confirm?answer_id=9
>
> If you still need help, you can reply to this email or go to the
> following page to enter your feedback:
> https://answers.edge.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

Hello, i have this same problem,
a kds valient laptop with the same card
following this discussion i get to the

ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ cat /proc/interrupts
           CPU0
  0: 1269570 XT-PIC-XT timer
  1: 2193 XT-PIC-XT i8042
  2: 0 XT-PIC-XT cascade
  3: 1 XT-PIC-XT
  4: 3 XT-PIC-XT
  5: 1 XT-PIC-XT
  7: 5 XT-PIC-XT parport0
  8: 2 XT-PIC-XT rtc0
  9: 291360 XT-PIC-XT acpi
 10: 1 XT-PIC-XT eth0
 11: 608174 XT-PIC-XT ohci_hcd:usb1, yenta, wifi0
 12: 222538 XT-PIC-XT i8042
 14: 691 XT-PIC-XT pata_ali
 15: 57059 XT-PIC-XT pata_ali
NMI: 0 Non-maskable interrupts
LOC: 0 Local timer interrupts
RES: 0 Rescheduling interrupts
CAL: 0 function call interrupts
TLB: 0 TLB shootdowns
SPU: 0 Spurious interrupts
ERR: 0
MIS: 0
ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ dmesg | grep 00:08.0
[ 1.280973] PCI: 0000:00:08.0 reg 10 io port: [1000, 10ff]
[ 1.280988] PCI: 0000:00:08.0 reg 14 32bit mmio: [ee801000, ee801fff]
[ 1.281034] pci 0000:00:08.0: supports D1
[ 1.281040] pci 0000:00:08.0: supports D2
[ 1.281047] pci 0000:00:08.0: PME# supported from D2 D3hot D3cold
[ 1.281058] pci 0000:00:08.0: PME# disabled
[ 1.298111] pnp 00:07: io resource (0x1000-0x10ef) overlaps 0000:00:08.0 BAR 0 (0x1000-0x10ff), disabling
[ 1.298131] pnp 00:07: io resource (0x10f0-0x116f) overlaps 0000:00:08.0 BAR 0 (0x1000-0x10ff), disabling
[ 224.659161] ALI 5451 0000:00:08.0: PCI INT A -> Link[LNKH] -> GSI 10 (level, low) -> IRQ 10
[ 224.659210] ALI 5451 0000:00:08.0: BAR 0: can't reserve I/O region [0x1000-0x10ff]
[ 224.659231] ALI 5451 0000:00:08.0: PCI INT A disabled
[ 224.659283] ALI 5451: probe of 0000:00:08.0 failed with error -16

now when i type sudo gedit /boot/grub/menu.lst in it comes up with a blank page

what should i do i have no sound,, if i click the speaker icon it says "No volume control GStreamer plugins and/or devices found"

Sorry it has taken so long to get back to you. I am afraid I do not have
any great help for you. My inquiry was answered by some linux guru who had
a grasp of understanding that far exceeds anything I have seen. She
dictated to me a set of commands and like magic it worked. I have no record
of who I spoke to. I can tell you this- our communication was done via
"posting". somewhere within the Ubuntu help area is a post/help area. This
is where I found her! BL

On Wed, Jan 7, 2009 at 8:27 PM, m-man
<email address hidden>wrote:

> Your question #19876 on Ubuntu changed:
> https://answers.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+question/19876
>
> m-man posted a new comment:
> Hello, i have this same problem,
> a kds valient laptop with the same card
> following this discussion i get to the
>
> ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ cat /proc/interrupts
> CPU0
> 0: 1269570 XT-PIC-XT timer
> 1: 2193 XT-PIC-XT i8042
> 2: 0 XT-PIC-XT cascade
> 3: 1 XT-PIC-XT
> 4: 3 XT-PIC-XT
> 5: 1 XT-PIC-XT
> 7: 5 XT-PIC-XT parport0
> 8: 2 XT-PIC-XT rtc0
> 9: 291360 XT-PIC-XT acpi
> 10: 1 XT-PIC-XT eth0
> 11: 608174 XT-PIC-XT ohci_hcd:usb1, yenta, wifi0
> 12: 222538 XT-PIC-XT i8042
> 14: 691 XT-PIC-XT pata_ali
> 15: 57059 XT-PIC-XT pata_ali
> NMI: 0 Non-maskable interrupts
> LOC: 0 Local timer interrupts
> RES: 0 Rescheduling interrupts
> CAL: 0 function call interrupts
> TLB: 0 TLB shootdowns
> SPU: 0 Spurious interrupts
> ERR: 0
> MIS: 0
> ubuntu@ubuntu:~$ dmesg | grep 00:08.0
> [ 1.280973] PCI: 0000:00:08.0 reg 10 io port: [1000, 10ff]
> [ 1.280988] PCI: 0000:00:08.0 reg 14 32bit mmio: [ee801000, ee801fff]
> [ 1.281034] pci 0000:00:08.0: supports D1
> [ 1.281040] pci 0000:00:08.0: supports D2
> [ 1.281047] pci 0000:00:08.0: PME# supported from D2 D3hot D3cold
> [ 1.281058] pci 0000:00:08.0: PME# disabled
> [ 1.298111] pnp 00:07: io resource (0x1000-0x10ef) overlaps 0000:00:08.0
> BAR 0 (0x1000-0x10ff), disabling
> [ 1.298131] pnp 00:07: io resource (0x10f0-0x116f) overlaps 0000:00:08.0
> BAR 0 (0x1000-0x10ff), disabling
> [ 224.659161] ALI 5451 0000:00:08.0: PCI INT A -> Link[LNKH] -> GSI 10
> (level, low) -> IRQ 10
> [ 224.659210] ALI 5451 0000:00:08.0: BAR 0: can't reserve I/O region
> [0x1000-0x10ff]
> [ 224.659231] ALI 5451 0000:00:08.0: PCI INT A disabled
> [ 224.659283] ALI 5451: probe of 0000:00:08.0 failed with error -16
>
>
> now when i type sudo gedit /boot/grub/menu.lst in it comes up with a
> blank page
>
> what should i do i have no sound,, if i click the speaker icon it says
> "No volume control GStreamer plugins and/or devices found"
>
> --
> You received this question notification because you are a direct
> subscriber of the question.
>

Folks, the problem is that ACPI is walking all over our computers and causing hell. I've got a KDS Valiant 681XH (p3-1GHz). It's just the same as what you're seeing: Look at the messages about 00:08.0 (the Ali M5451 audio) not able to reserve the 1000-10ff I/O range because something else (on my computer its ACPI CPU Throttle) is sticking itself in there at 1010-1015. The problem ain't IRQ's, it's IO Ports. I'm trying to figure out what do to, either there is something malfunctioning in the bios, or the way Linux is reading the information from the bios, or something like that. The M5451 soundcard wants that 1000-10ff range, apparently the pnp bios is what sets up all this stuff at boot. This KDS computer doesn't have an option in the bios for pnp os/ non-pnp os. I don't know why ACPI is so broken in Linux. Anybody having info, please chime in. I've also got a post here on launchpad at :

https://bugs.launchpad.net/ubuntu/+source/linux/+bug/82986

You look at your dmesg and you'll see acpi is wreaking havoc in different places. I'm not ready yet to say the hell with it and enter ACPI=OFF as a boot option.

I've also been reading some disturbing info (found all over the web) about how Microsoft has their own ACPI "DSDT" code compiler which may be purposely out of spec with the Intel ACPI spec. Microsoft have gone to great lenghts to make damn sure you won't run another o/s on computers that have the "designed for Windows XP (etc)" sticker on them. Look at the ACPI: DSDT entry very early on in dmesg, you'll see "MSFT" which indicates this portion of the bios code was compiled with the Microsoft compiler. Hmmmm.......... Sorry to be a bit of a conspiracy theorist, but really, computers "designed for windows xp", are designed for windows xp. Yup. What a load of baloney, but it's the spirit of the free community which will persevere and prevail Just don't give up yet. I'll try to keep the spirits up, too. It ain't easy , but it'll be worth it. I've got a Dell Inspiron 1526 that spontaneously reboots when I try to run some Linux distros on it, and even craps out on XP (I've since figured out how to fix that, ACPI again! - Good luck!

-eviljeff