I have a Compaq NX9010 laptop, that only the caps lock, num lock, keypad lock, power light and wireless light, flash then go out, when I press the power button. The drive never makes a sound. The laptop is locked up at this time and I have to press the reset button on the bottom, to recycle these lights again. I reseated the ram and the hard drive. If I leave the Hard drive out and power it up the lights stay on longer but still go out. Does this sound like a bad hard drive? It's only a 40gig drive and does not cost alot, but would like another opinion before I order one. Thanks for the help.
Jimbo :-)
PS: The battery charges fine and when I press the battery check button it shows full power, so I don't believe this is the problem. Also, I never hear a fan start as well.

Your symptoms indicate issues long before a hard drive enters the equation.

Do you get anything on the screen?

Can you enter the BIOS?