Windows Tablet Problem

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top top
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Post by top top » Mon. Apr. 24, 2017 9:06 am

Thought I would post this just as an FYI, that may help someone as computer illiterate as I.

First the background. I have a Dell Venue 8 Pro tablet a little over two years old. It came with 8.1 and I did the free upgrade to 10. A year or so back I dropped it on my ceramic tile kitchen floor and broke the screen, just a small part near the end. It still works fine, other than the touch screen in that area does not work. If I need to do something in that area I just turn the the thing over, which puts the broken part on the other side. I don't use it for much, so it works for me.

Now the issue. Last week it had problems staying connected to my wireless router, so I did a reset. When it reinstalled Windows 10 the touch screen would not work, which meant I could not finish the install. It would get to the screen where it asks for time zone, keyboard style, language, etc, but I could not input any choices or accept the defaults and continue. Looking around the internet that seems to be a common problem, and I did not see any decent answers.

What I did. I went to Radio Shack and bought a cable, $6.00 online $3.00 plus tax in the store.

https://www.radioshack.com/products/radioshack-6-std-rnd-on-the-go-cable

This allowed me to connect EITHER a usb mouse OR usb keyboard, which I already had, to the tablet. I thought about trying my wireless keyboard/mouse which only needs one connection, but did not. Switching a couple times between keyboard and mouse I was able to complete the install, but the touchscreen still did not work. I opened a browser, went to Dell.com/support, used their tool to identify my device and check the drivers. The tool updated a couple drivers and flashed the BIOS. The BIOS change required disconnecting the Radio Shack cable and connecting the AC charger. If the tablet should power down during the BIOS flash it can never be recovered. Anyway, when all this was done everything worked fine.

Thought this might help someone else. Oh yea, I hate touch screens.

 
CapeCoaler
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Post by CapeCoaler » Mon. Apr. 24, 2017 11:40 am

Windows update...
Updated your touch screen drivers to a 'better newer driver'...
Causing the touch screen driver that did work...
to be improved... ;)
Touch screen is really just another input device...
Similar thing happened to a Point of Sale system...
the onscreen keyboard was preventing the credit card reader from picking up the data on the Credit Cards...
Close the onscreen keyboard and the reader works fine...
But it is touch screen without a real keyboard...
So how do you type in information as you sometimes need to do!!!...


 
top top
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Posts: 574
Joined: Sat. Apr. 13, 2013 5:40 am

Post by top top » Mon. Apr. 24, 2017 12:24 pm

CapeCoaler wrote:Windows update...
Updated your touch screen drivers to a 'better newer driver'...
Causing the touch screen driver that did work...
...
FYI, this was not Windows update, but a full reset. The reset has three options.

1- Retain your data, but remove any software added since it left the factory. You would have to reload the software and repopulate it with the saved data.

2- Remove everything. Restore computer to "fresh out of the box" condition.

3- Remove everything AND wipe the drive clean. (Not like with a cloth.) Then restore the computer to new condition.

The 3 rd option is recommended if you are getting rid of the computer.

The first time I used option one. When the reinstall failed due to the unresponsive touch screen I tried option 2, then option 3.

Losing my data and added on software is just a minor inconvenience to me. The only software I lost was Opera, which for the tablet I like better than Firefox, and the only data was bookmarks, log in for some websites, and my wifi router info. All easily replaced.

BTW, I have done this a couple times with this tablet, never had an issue. Not sure if I have reset it since the Win 10 conversion though.

 
CapeCoaler
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Post by CapeCoaler » Tue. Apr. 25, 2017 9:06 pm

Yes I understand you did a reset...
the win 10 install did not have the drivers for your tablet natively...
It was born with 8.1 and those drivers happen to work with 10...
the reset did not carry over the old win 8.1 drivers...
you had to add them back in from the dell website...

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