HELP!!! (for noob)

Dear kind readers,

I recently purchast a E1505 from Dell and it is wonderful. The only problem that I had was due to WindowXP MCE. I added a user password to my profile and then Window started to messed up. It would show me my destop, by the icon and start menu would would not appear. It was just just my wallpaper. By using task manager, I tried to run system.exe, but it didn't do anything. So, as a last resort, I use my System recovery CD that came with my package. It wiped everything off my lappy and now i am left with a blank version of Window. All of the Dell goodies and such were gone and most of my drivers were missing. The Driver disk dell that came with the system did have everything. Wifi wouldn't work, grafic driver is missing, and all the powersaving things are gone.

Also, I was stupid and didn't make any system recovery disks...

So my question, is there anyway to get my system back to factory setting? I mean, if I called Dell, would they send me a disk or something? Or should I have to hunt down every drivers and programs? If you guys can help, that would be great.
Thx,
PM

 

If you have system restore on in XP, you could turn it back. Also, if you have not formatted yet, Dell has software on the laptop that will format the drive back to factory conditions. To do this, reboot your laptop and press Ctrl+F11 at the Dell logo screen. You might have to reboot a few times cause it takes perfect timing.

The only other option i can think of is to format. You can call Dell and request the XP discs if you do not have them already. Then you can reformat your laptop with no junkware and you can set your laptop to the way you want.

 

****, I already formatted the HDD... I have the XP disc, which I used to reinstall the OS, but it didn't have all the drivers needed.

 

You can download the drivers from support.dell.com .

 

Wow...thats alot of drivers...but they won't really get me back to factory setting...Is there anyway to get back to factory setting after you accidently reformate the HDD?

BTW, thanks for showing me that support site...it kind of gave me a light at the end of my tunnel.

 

If you have formatted the HDD then you lost the image of the original system and there is no way to return to the "factory settings".

However, the "factory settings" included a lot of bloatware.
So, installing from XP disc and then loading all of the drivers is actually much better (but more difficult) than using system restore from the Dell partition on the HDD.

As a matter of fact, that's the first thing that I and many others have done as soon as we got our systems from Dell.

 

Depending on your warranty, call and try them to get an imaged hard drive sent out. They did that for me after I accidentally deleted mediadirect.

 

Well, my main concern is the program that regulates battery(it turns off my ehternet card or something like that and gave me 5hr instead of the 3hr that I have now). Also, Wifi isn't working eventhough I installed the driver...these are the only thing that I need.

BTW, I got the regular one year warantee...does this inclue the image hard drive?

 

You can download the QuickSet application from Dell support site. That will give you your power saving features back, including the turning off of ethernet port on battery etc.

 

Aw...quickset app...thats what i need...
Well, i guess my problem is mostly solved.
Thanks for all the help from the people of this wonderful forum. Probably the best laptop form on the net.


Anyways, I wish you all a good night since its getting very late

 

Just one recommendation, if you have Norton Ghost, make an image of your HDD once you get it set back to the way you want it. This way if your HDD crashes or something happens and you need to get a new HDD or reformat, all you have to do is copy the image to the HDD.