# Stuck at Windows screen, now what?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuck-at-windows-screen-now-what/317898>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 20, 2005, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuck-at-windows-screen-now-what/317898 "2005-08-20T17:45:57Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![Stuffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f17d59/32.png) [@Stuffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stuffy)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2005, 5:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuck-at-windows-screen-now-what/317898/1 "2005-08-20T17:45:57Z")

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Hey guys,

My brother is running a Dell computer with Window ME. He called to say his computer is stuck on the Windows ME screen. He’s asked me to come over and take a look. Any suggestions on where to start?

He says he hasn’t loaded any new software, or installed any hardware. He uses AOL for web surfing.

Any suggestions appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

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**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2005, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuck-at-windows-screen-now-what/317898/2 "2005-08-20T18:46:54Z")

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> [@Stuffy](#):
>
> Hey guys,
> 
> My brother is running a Dell computer with Window ME.

Hold it, I think I see the problem already… 🙂

> [@](#):
>
> He called to say his computer is stuck on the Windows ME screen. He’s asked me to come over and take a look. Any suggestions on where to start?
> 
> He says he hasn’t loaded any new software, or installed any hardware. He uses AOL for web surfing.
> 
> Any suggestions appreciated.
> 
> Thanks in advance.

From the horse’s mouth regarding boot problems with ME:

> **[Microsoft Support](https://support.microsoft.com/?kbid=273738)**

How to Start Windows Me in Safe Mode

> [@](#):
>
> If Windows Me does not start normally, try to start your computer in Safe mode. When you start Windows Me in Safe mode, many Windows Me device drivers are disabled and the standard VGA display driver is used.
> 
> To start Windows Me in Safe mode, press and hold down the CTRL key while you restart your computer, and then choose Safe Mode on the Windows Me Startup menu.

See if you can go to safe mode to run diagnostics, try to do a clean boot or disable suspicious programs with The System Configuration Utility tool. (Notes on how to use the tool are also in that document)

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**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2005, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuck-at-windows-screen-now-what/317898/3 "2005-08-20T20:07:14Z")

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USB conflicts can also jam ME startups. Remove any USB devices plugged into the PC and see if it starts.

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**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\
**Post date:** [August 20, 2005, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/stuck-at-windows-screen-now-what/317898/4 "2005-08-20T20:11:57Z")

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another thing to try is that while you’re booting up and you get a Windows splash screen, hit the Escape key and it’ll switch to a text screen that lists what it’s actually doing… detecting hardware, loading drivers, etc. If it hangs at a particular thing, that might be the source of your problem.