OK... So my laptop sat in the same spot for about 2 weeks. Battery dead... Unmoved. I go to boot up and I get "reboot and select proper boot device"...
I put in the XP disk and I get another error message.
"attempting to load an x64 operating system, however this cpu is not compatable with x64mode. Please install a 32-bit x86 operating system.
setup cannot continue. press any key to exit"
Sony Vaio vgn-a690
Any suggestions?
has the bios battery gone dead as well ?
if so go in your bios and call up the boot order.
select your hard drive as first boot option and save those settings.
restart the laptop and see if it boots in to windows.
the specs i found say intel Centrino as your cpu
its does not say Centrino duo so you may just have a 32 bit chip if thats the case it won't load a 64bit version of windows.
how do i know if the bios battery is dead?
i left it charging last night and the time in bios is off by 2 hours exactly.
i tried changing the boot sequence. that didn' work.
next thought?
if the bios battery is going dead it first starts to loose time when all power is removed from the laptop.
then it will start to loose the saved settings.
go back in your bios and load up its defaults,
then change the boot order and try again.
if you have not managed to format the drive your windows config should still be on it.
while your in your bios just make sure it is listing the hard drive under standard cmos settings.
if its not listing the drive you will need to remove it and reseat it just in case its come adrift from its contacts to the motherboard.
first off, i'd like to thank you for all of your help.
i've gone into bios and set it for default. i've also tried it with the hard drive as 1st to boot. neither have worked. being as it shows in bios, it should still be attached, no?
i'm really at a loss at this point.