Hi Jacob,

First off, as a moderator of this list, I want to congratulate you on 
your interest in learning more about how modern PC's work. The best way, 
IMHO, is to dive in and get wet!

I remember getting interested in computers back when I was about your 
age (almost 40 years ago!). So be patient, it takes a lot of time to 
gain good experience, but it will happen!

Now on to your specific problem. The fact that it beeps is probably a 
good sign. The beeps usually mean something and since the processor must 
be running to generate the beeps, it means that at least this much is 
running. Most PC motherboards have their own specific code to indicate 
common problems that cannot be displayed on the screen because part of 
the system is broken to the point that the screen is not functional. The 
number of beeps, and their duration (long or short) form the code. The 
most common codes are for video (graphic) card failure and no valid 
memory present.

Once you have the sequence (which may repeat after a pause), you can go 
to the website fore the computer (like Dell), the motherboard 
manufacturer (Asus for example), or the BIOS if you know it (like AMI, 
Phoenix), and they will usually have a section to tell you what the 
specific codes mean. This will help you troubleshoot the problem further.

If you get stuck, post back to the list with the specific code, the 
computer make, model, etc. and we may be able to help you further.

Russ Poffenberger
[log in to unmask]

On 6/6/2010 6:37 PM, Jacob Smith wrote:
> i am a 13 year old kid interested in computer sciences,
>
> hear is the problem: we have a computer that we think was wrecked by its external power supply, when we turn it on it sends no signal to the monitor but it beeps at regular intervals. what is the most likely failing hardware? thanks
> jp
>
>    

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