I was trying to start this HP pc and as the startup progs in win98 were starting it just shut down. Then all the attempts to turn it on seem to fail. What do you guys think might be the problem? I'm thinking worst case scenario might be power supply.

Check the power cords first, but yes it could be the power supply if power is getting to the computer. Any lights or anything?

<<<<< Check the power cords first, but yes it could be the power supply if power is getting to the computer. Any lights or anything? >>>>>

Thank you for the reply. It's not the power cords (I tried others) and there's no light on at all.

If you have another power supply, you can hook it up temporarily for testing, if the computer boots up, you've found the problem. If not, I would check for loose cards and damaged CPU.

If you don't have a power supply, you can check for voltage if you know how to use a multimeter, or pull the power supply and let a computer shop check it. Often you can turn the computer on and watch the fan at the back of the power supply, usually if the power supply is not working, neither will the fan. ALso take the side cover off and watch to see if the CPU fan is spinning.

There may be a problem with the ram. When you attempt to turn on your computer does the video turn on? Does the computer just turn right off within a minute or so?

Nope there's no power at all... I'm gonna follow Pete's suggestion and try another power supply.

OK so far I believe it's the power supply and I wanna replace it... Can I go out there and buy any latest power supply to replace it?

The one it had was a Lite-On Model PS-6161-2H1 DC OUTPUT= 188W...

I think you want one with more wattage. Someone here may have saved the links for power supply wattage for specific drives and such.

PrntRhd is right, a higher wattage power supply would be a good idea, 188 watts is not enough for contemporary systems, especially if you want to run dual CD/DVD drives, newer AGP video, multiple case fans etc. I like to run no less than 300 watts for an average system, 400 watts for a machine that will be expected to handle heavy usage like gaming and graphics or video editing.

Most reputable brands will work fine, Antec and LiteOn for example, and some of the lesser known brands should do well too, but make sure you get one with a good warranty if you go with a less common manufacturer.