david@fluke.tc.fluke.com (David L. Epperson) (11/07/90)
I Would like to here from anyone who might be able to help me
with a problem I am having with my AST Premium 286 computer. I
recently purchased the BIOS and keyboard upgrade pn 500529-001.
After installing the upgrade my computer will not boot-up
correctly at power on. I get a 'keyboard error or no keyboard
present' message or a continuous beep from the speaker. If I hit
the reset key the computer will boot-up correctly. When I run the
diagnostic software it tells me I have an 84 key keyboard most of
the time, I have a 101 key keyboard. Also I told the system to
boot with the keyboard enabled.
I have spoken with the tech support people at AST and received
from them two more BIOS kits and managed to achieve the same
results. AST's tech support people were unaware of the BIOS
upgrade having problems with any of their machines. The only
thing AST's tech support people could tell me was that I have
something wrong with my motherboard, it needs an update of some
kind, but the tech support people did not have any idea of what
updates have been done. They told me to send my system in,
through an authorized service center, and have my motherboard
updated at my expense. My system was purchased on April 1987 and
the motherboard has an assembly rev of X20.
Has anybody heard of this problem or know of any motherboard
revisions that I could do to solve this problem? Is anybody from
AST on this network?
Thanks in advance John Fluke Mfg. Co. Inc.
David Epperson P.O. Box 90990 MS 166H
david@fluke.tc.COM Everett, Wa. 98206
Work (206) 256-5928v087mxgb@ubvmsa.cc.buffalo.edu (Shawn E Thompson) (11/07/90)
In article <1990Nov6.163434.11600@tc.fluke.COM>, david@fluke.tc.fluke.com (David L. Epperson) writes... >correctly at power on. I get a 'keyboard error or no keyboard >present' message or a continuous beep from the speaker. If I hit <deleted> crazy idea, BUT....try the keyboard. I had a problem at boot up with a 286 not recognizing the keyboard correctly. Then I found the keyboard was defective (the constant beeping I heard was the keyboard buffer overflowing). Besides, it seems like you already tried everything else... Shawn E. Thompson "..my sig file was so long, I'm not even allowed a quote..." v087mxgb@ubvms.cc.buffalo.edu | set@autarch.acsu.buffalo.edu University @ Buffalo|Graduate School of Mechanical Engineering CAD Engineering|Leica, Inc.|PO Box 123|Buffalo, NY 14240-0123|(716)891-3375
jc58+@andrew.cmu.edu (Johnny J. Chin) (11/07/90)
First, what was wrong with the keyboard and BIOS you originally had? When you
purchased the new BIOS and keyboard did you also get a new keyboard scanner
chip? Sometimes if you upgrade the BIOS, and don't upgrade the scanner chip,
you will get errors as you described. The AST Premium 286 has gone through
several revisions, of which each had a different BIOS. The original (from day
one) had a Pheonix BIOS. Later, AST acquired rights to a version of the code
for the Award BIOS. Since then, AST has been using this code for their BIOS
with lots (and mean lots) of enhancements added to it. From my experience,
if you had a Pheonix BIOS (AST's version, of course), you are basically stuck.
AST's newer BIOSes all use their "Award" code and there were changes in
hardware to match. If not, they I recommend that you call up several AST
authorized service centers and ask them for assistance. It might had been a
good idea to have purchased the BIOS from an authorized service center and have
them install it; thus, there is some warranty that it will work. If not, they
should take it back.
I am sorry, I can't give a straight forward solution, but this is all I can
say for now. Let me know what happens.
__________ ___
/ \ / / /_/ / /\/
_/ / / / __/. /__ / / / / /
/ / / "Happy Computing ..."
/ / Internet: Johnny.J.Chin@andrew.cmu.edu
/ ------- / 4730 Centre Ave. #412 BITnet: jc58@andrew
\__________/ Pittsburgh, PA 15213 UUCP: ...!uunet!andrew.cmu.edu!jc58
Computer Dr.
Carnegie Mellon University
"If you don't like having backups ... try driving without your spare tire."
______________________________________________________________________________
Disclaimer: The views expressed herein are STRICTLY my own, and not CMU's.