Julie,

I had a similar issue with my friend's laptop.  This one was a Toshiba, and we did not get the "overcharged" message, just constantly got the low battery message. The problem was not the battery...it was the end of the power cable, where it connected to the PC, was broken inside. I had to take it to an electronics shop, who replaced and soldered the end. We let it recharge for about 12 hours, because it had run down completely, and she has had no problem since. We were advised to be sure that we grasp it by the end, not the cable to unplug it, and to be careful not to strectch the cable, when moving the PC. Total cost was less than 8 bucks!
Hope this helps!
Amy Ledford

Julie <[log in to unmask]> wrote: Hi,

My mother is having a major problem with her laptop computer that I was 
hoping to get some general advice on.

I can't give any specific specs on the machine because she's elderly and 
physically ill so doesn't have the strength to find her specs papers 
herself,she doesn't remember where they are. I'll be making the trip to 
see her and try to fix the problem myself (if possible) sometime this 
week and will know more then. I was just hoping to have some general 
idea of what to do to get her laptop running again when I get there. 
I've never owned nor even worked with a laptop before so I thought I 
could ask some general questions here...

Her laptop is about 2 years old and a HP Pavilion,that's all she could 
tell me over the phone. She said she had plugged it in tonight as usual 
and it ran fine for a few minutes,then suddenly a sign popped up and 
said something about the battery being overcharged and then the computer 
promptly turned itself off and will no longer turn on. When she tried 
turning it back on all that happened was the "low battery" light came on 
then all lights went off as it shut itself back down. She said the 
computer,battery box,cable and plugs all felt normal,no heat or 
anything. It's unplugged now and will remain so until it's fixed of 
course,better to be safe than sorry.

Ok, my questions are....

1) Is it just a dead battery,charger or the computer itself? Should the 
battery AND charger (I assume they are seperate) be replaced or just the 
battery or charger?

2) She doesn't know if the battery can be removed from the charger/wall 
cord assembly at all,she has always left it in even though she runs the 
computer like a regular Desktop,always plugged in when in use. She is 
infirmed so doesn't actually need a battery,it's always plugged into the 
wall outlet anyway,can it be removed and still run?

I'm guessing the battery and/or charger is dead? If so,can the battery 
just be pulled out and the computer run from the wall socket without it?
I have no problems buying a new battery assembly but I'd feel a lot 
better if she wasn't using a battery at all,I worry about fire and all 
and she doesn't need a battery anyway,she got the computer so she could 
use it in bed and not for mobility.

Thanks in advanced for any information anyone can share with me,

Julie Bray

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Thanks,

Amy Ledford

		
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