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t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

T40/T41/T42/T43 Series
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Crazybasenji
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t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#1 Post by Crazybasenji » Fri Jun 15, 2012 6:54 am

I finally decided to try and upgrade the extended memory on this laptop, since it's been slowing down on the Internet, but after I installed the new DIMM it would 1) not do anything but whir, 2) get as far as the IBM screen and lock up, or 3) get as far as the Ubuntu start screen and lock up. I took the chip out and it works fine. Tried re-seating the chip a couple of times with no change in results. Any suggestions?

ajkula66
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Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#2 Post by ajkula66 » Fri Jun 15, 2012 7:01 am

Most likely a defective DIMM.

Try using the one that is under the keyboard right now in the "spare" slot.

If the machine locks up, that's a bad slot.

If it doesn't, your "new" RAM stick is faulty.
...Knowledge is a deadly friend when no one sets the rules...(King Crimson)

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Crazybasenji
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Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#3 Post by Crazybasenji » Fri Jun 15, 2012 9:38 am

Well, I got your suggestion a little backwards, and put the new DIMM under the keyboard. No problems on start-up. So then I experimented and put the original chip in the spare slot, and that worked, too. So, now I have the 1.5GB RAM that I wanted, after all. Thanks for the help. :D

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Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#4 Post by ajkula66 » Fri Jun 15, 2012 9:45 am

If I were you I'd test that DIMM with memtest86 regardless...
...Knowledge is a deadly friend when no one sets the rules...(King Crimson)

Cheers,

George (your grouchy retired FlexView farmer)

One FlexView to rule them all: A31p

Abused daily: T520, X200s


PMs requesting personal tech support will be ignored.

Crazybasenji
Posts: 8
Joined: Wed Jun 13, 2012 11:30 am
Location: Bryan, Texas

Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#5 Post by Crazybasenji » Sat Jun 16, 2012 6:44 am

Is there a baby steps version for how to do that? I downloaded the ISO for Linux version, but I'm not sure it's burned to the CD correctly and I don't know how to verify that. Should I extract the files from the zip file on the CD? Or what? And then what do I do? The instructions on the Memtest86 web site seemed to assume a level of competence far above where I am.

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Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#6 Post by Neil » Sat Jun 16, 2012 7:42 am

Sounds like you've burned a data disk when you should have burned an ISO. Here is a guide for burning an ISO file to a CD/DVD:

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/toolsofth ... sofile.htm
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Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#7 Post by RealBlackStuff » Sat Jun 16, 2012 8:11 am

Get the free program ImgBurn, which can ONLY burn ISOs.
http://www.imgburn.com/index.php?
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Crazybasenji
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Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#8 Post by Crazybasenji » Sat Jun 16, 2012 5:16 pm

Okay, so, after I went through the process of installing Wine so I could use Windows programs, and figuring out how to change the file permissions so I could start an .exe file, I got ImgBurn to write the Memtest86 to the CD and then I started the computer with the disc in the drive. I got a screen with the Memtest86 at the top, and some other writing -- white on blue screen -- and a white bar at the bottom with (ESC)exit, (c)Configure, etc. But nothing else much happened. Does that mean my memory card passed?

Y'all do realize I'm a complete noob at this, yes? Plus, old, really old. Plz explain what I'm supposed to be seeing/doing.

Johan
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Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#9 Post by Johan » Sat Jun 16, 2012 5:44 pm

... try have a look in the Guide to using Memtest86+ and see if that won't get you going. Scroll down through the first post, the one by "rev_olie" (Posted 21 July 2009, 12:57 PM) - there you will find an in-depth explanation about how to use the program.

Johan
IBM T42p's (2373-Q1U & -Q2U): 2.1 GHz, 15" UXGA FlexView, 2 GB RAM, 128 MB FireGL T2, 128 GB 1.8" SATA SSD, IBM a/b/g, BT, Win 7 Ultimate
IBM T42 (2373-N1G): 1.8 GHz, 15" SXGA+ FlexView, 2 GB RAM, 64 MB Radeon 9600, 64 GB 1.8" SATA SSD, IBM a/b/g, BT, Win 7 Ultimate

Crazybasenji
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Re: t42 Tried to upgrade RAM, had problems on start up

#10 Post by Crazybasenji » Sat Jun 16, 2012 5:59 pm

Thanks, Johan, I'll try this. I didn't realize I had to take out one of the memory sticks first. I think I'll print that guide before I start, too. :)

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