Power Button On Laptop Not Workking

[tearinghair]

I have always used the power button on the top right of my Acer laptop to switch to sleep mode. Now when I press it, nothing happens - no option to switch off or hibernate or sleep. I googled 'how to put laptop into sleep mode' and it offered 'Windows icon, power icon' but I can't see a power icon. Am I being particularly stupid? There is a long way round it, but why, when all I've had to do in the past is just press one button for three seconds to put it to sleep or wake it up? And I can't switch it off either.

I've recently changed my wallpaper, but only to put it back to a photo I've used before, so it can't be that? 

[newmodarmy]

Try unplugging it. Also try holding the button down for a minute. I had a similar issue where I had to sometimes repeat the above about 10 times before it would open up - took about 15 minutes each time.

[CrapatCryptics2]

If you have to go that far replacing the button is not a difficult job for your local computer shop. Have you tried holding it down for a longer period this usually starts a reset that may resolve your issue.

[tearinghair]

Did it eventually get back to normal, newmodarmy?

[tearinghair]

I pressed the power button for longer. No Sleepoption, but it switched off completely, which I suppose is a good thing for saving energy. I'd rather not have to take it to a computer shop, as there's a lot of sensitive material (legal stuff) on it at the moment.

[newmodarmy]

Intermittently, then the problem would reappear so I ended up leaving it switched on on low power setting and setting it so it never went to sleep mode. Repair shop said it was the battery and replaced it, but within a few weeks the problem started happening again. I eventually ditched the HP laptop as it was 4 years old and bought a nice new one.

[tearinghair]

Thank you. I'll try to live with it a bit longer, I should be able to delete the sensitive stuff soon.

[youngmafbog]

'Deleting' the sensitive stuff is never enough.  The disk must be destroyed.

[tearinghair]

Delete the whole disk? Not a chance, I'm afraid. 

[tearinghair]

I meant 'destroy', not 'delete'. Thoug it might be cathartic to set about it with a hammer...