my son tried to turn his computer on today and the power button just flashed and wouldn't actually do anything
we rang pc world who suggested unplugging everything ( all the wires from the back etc ) then holding in the power button for 10 seconds then plugging everything back in and it should work
my son thinks he called it a static reboot or something similar
anyway it worked but since then the power button is doing the same flashing thing
any ideas what it could be
the man from pc world said it could be a power supply problem or a mother board problem ( I think a motherboard is expensive am I right ?? )

Can you describe in detail "flashing"?

Do you mean a physical spark? Do you mean the LED?

I doubt that it would be a motherboard issue but they are not that expensive.

The processor and graphics card and in many cases the RAM and hard drives are more expensive.

Anyway if it is a physical spark I would suspect the switch itself or as mentioned the PSU.

What you did with the unplugging was just cleared any residual power from the motherboard.

no its not a physical spark
the actual button that you press to turn the computer on which goes green when theres power to it just flashes

Flashes orange?

Is this a Dell computer?

If not what is the make and model?

yep orange and yep dell computer

This is at least a fairly well documented issue.

While I look up the archives I have can you please post the exact Dell model?

There are also most likely four LEDs on the rear of the tower.

They are diagnostic and should be in some configuration of either: OFF / GREEN / YELLOW

right can't get to look at the computer at the moment
my son has his girlfriend round and I don't think its a good idea for me to go up and disturb them lol
will look at it tomorrow and post the make and look at the led's on the back
is it an easy problem to fix ???
thanks for your help will be in touch tomorrow

The flashing Orange indicates a hardware issue preventing the computer from starting.

The rear LEDs could provide more detail as seen here:

http://support.dell.com/support/edoc...g/problems.htm

Scroll down to: Table 4. Back Panel Diagnostic LED Codes

Here is a thread that covers everything from bad PSU to bad Motherboard to bad USB port and so on:

http://www.randomfix.com/2007/04/19/...e-power-light/

If it were the motherboard you should see the leakage and corrosion as seen in that link.

Check the USB ports for shorted (touching) pins. There are 4 pins inside a USB port.

If all the above has not helped we can then troubleshoot by removing certain parts inside and then seeing the results we get.

Here is a general Google on the Dell flashing Orange power switch:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&n...g+orange+power

bit concerned about taking the computer to bits
I wouldn't know where to start
how on earth do I know where the mother board is ?? to see what it looks like
again thank you so much for your help I really do appreciate it

Once you find the exact model we can look it up at Dell.

They have Service Manuals if you want to do it yourself.

http://support.dell.com/support/topi...=us&l=en&s=gen

It is quite easy but if you're not comfortable with it you can take it to a shop.

Waste of money in my opinion.