e1705 xpMCE wont play dvd if not in windows

my laptop wont play dvds if i dont start windows first. once i start windows everything is fine. when not in windows i am able to insert the disk and the dvd controls light up as if its going to play. the screen flashes on for a second but then goes black and then nothing. so i start windows. then i can play the disk.

this problem happened like a couple months after i got the notebook. it used to play dvds without starting windows. just oneday i tried to play a movie and basically .. black screen. other then that the notebook works fine.

this is not a huge problem but i was wondering if anyone knows of a fix for it?

ty

 

I have the same problem. I have an HP entertainment laptop and the DVDs will only play if windows is loaded, but not by using HP Quickplay Direct. This problewm has just arised out of the blue. I've done a windows restore to a previous date and this didn't work.

I've also contacted HP support by email, they are very knowledgable and promt to reply but haven't yet solved the problem. They advised me to reinstall quickplay but this didn't work.

Have you solved the problem yet?

 

Mento, I think you have to start MediaDirect first before you can play a DVD outside of Windows.

 

HP support have now advised me to completely reformat the hard drive and reinstall absolutely everything from scratch.....surely this can't be the only way....

 

sorry i guess i explained it wrong..

i push the media direct button.. the screen flashes something that says media direct then goes black. the indicator light that says power is on, lights up.. bottom right of the screen next to hard drive light. i can insert a dvd. but the screen just stays dark. well mostly dark because it has light leakage so its kinda gray at the bottom and black near the top. the dvd doesnt play. so i have to push the power button to shut down media direct. the black screen then goes to a media direct screen for 1 second then shuts down.

 

Did you do any changes to the system like reinstall the OS or install a new OS etc.? If so, then you need to repair it. If you have MD2 then there is a repair tool available at support.dell.com

 

no i didnt install a new OS or anything major like that. i dont know when it started to not work because i dont play dvds on my notebook that often when not in windows. hmmm i wonder if i did something to it when i was looking for things to disable. you know..to have your comp boot faster. i dont remember what i turned off or if i turned off anything. i just remember looking at it. something ill look into later. thanks