I have a Dell Dimension 8200 with WinXP, is there some sort of software you can download and install (like just a small file) letting you configure a button of choice that, when the computer is turned off, doubles as an On-button?
I know, it sounds lazy but Macintosh has had this for ages and in my current desk config (after I moved in again) the computer front is facing away from the desk in a very inopportune way, so...
Pretty please with shredded Rohypnol on top?
Posted by TheWoozle (Member # 929) on :
On mine, it's a BIOS option... I think.
Posted by Cartman (Member # 256) on :
Well, it'd have to be, since most software doesn't run too good when the computer's turned off... B)
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
I can't see how. If the computer is turned off, surely there is no power to the keyboard. Hence, the buttons don't do anything.
Unless you put the computer into hibernate mode, in which case almost anything can turn it back "on", from moving the mouse to pressing a button.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
But surely software can be downloaded and installed that saves data to BIOS-chips, where space is reserved on the motherboard for just this kind of feature?
Posted by Cartman (Member # 256) on :
"If the computer is turned off, surely there is no power to the keyboard. Hence, the buttons don't do anything."
Depends on how you turn it off. If you let Windows shut TEH COMPUTAR down for you but don't manually flip TEH POWAR switch (or unplug TEH POWAR chord), the motherboard will still draw power from the grid, and the keyboard will still draw power from it as well.
Nim: yes, but that software is BIOS-specific, and wouldn't work with all motherboards. Anyway, as Woozle says, you probably already have an option buried somewhere in the depths of your BIOS that enables you to bind a key to an electronic wake-up call, so I'd dig into that first.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Right.
Checked the setup, there are only two paragraphs remotely connected to startup-features;
#Auto Power on : On/Off (you can set a time every day when it automatically switches on, but the idea is to preset, which is not my goal unless I start living my life as a chronological citrus fruit.
#Remote Wakeup: On/On with boot to NIC/Off This thing gave me pause. Anyone?
Posted by deadcujo (Member # 13) on :
If your BIOS has no options to power on from peripheral activity, I'm afraid you won't be able to do this. For example, mine has a Power Up Control section for modem/mouse/keyboard activity, among other sources. You could check for a BIOS update, but I doubt a simple update would add such a feature.
Posted by Cartman (Member # 256) on :
Hmm... remote wakeup is there so you can boot the computer, erh, remotely (ie. over a LAN), but that's not quite what you want, I think. Can't you use a suspend mode instead?
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Yes, I used that feature just six hours ago, but then it's not completely shut down, a few fans and stuff is still running. I can't leave it over the weekend like that without feeling a bit nervous.
I do have a "sleepmode"-button on my black Dell-keyboard, it looks like a small moon crescent. It's not what I want though...
Posted by Mucus (Member # 24) on :
Perhaps you need to invent a fing-longer.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
It is unlikely, but have you checked for a BIOS update? What motherboard are you using?
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Yeah, checked Dell's homepage. I really was hoping they had released a new FlashBIOS-file, but they're still on A-09, same since 2002.
I checked every page regarding my computer's config, nothing about the motherboard, only about the BIOS. I'm 99% sure it's an Intel-motherboard though, and it's for a 1600MHz Dell, so there aren't THAT many to choose from.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
Download Sandra. Use it. Tell me what motherboard it says that you have.
Posted by Nim (Member # 205) on :
Let's see.I clicked the "Mainboard Information" button, here's a cutout of some of the results.
Posted by Cartman (Member # 256) on :
Well, that's an Intel 850E chipset, which supports both the Willamette and the Northwood family of P4's (internally clocked at 4*100 and 4*133MHz respectively) and can take to either PC800 or PC1066 (16-bit, 184 pins) Rambus RIMM's, but that doesn't mean the motherboard itself is also built by Intel. Chances are it's a custom Dell design (the manufacturer line being a dead giveaway...) intuitively named 7G535 or something, so you'll have to ask Mike.
Posted by PsyLiam (Member # 73) on :
I myself was banking on the line "Model: xxxxxx" being in there. Oh well.
