Try removing the battery again and do a hard reset of the NVRAM by doing this.....

 

With the machine unplugged from the wall remove the battery from the motherboard.  Then with the machine still unplugged press the On button for 30 seconds to dissipate any remaining electrical charge on the motherboard.  Then re-install the battery, plug the machine back into the wall and see if it will boot normally.

 

It's possible the information stored in the NVRAM became corrupted or wasn't totally cleared when the battery was removed previously.  By clearing the NVRAM now will rule out that possibility.

 

As far as the battery alert message, this is frequent problem with some models of the 8000 series.  Some people were able to resolve the problem by replacing the battery while other temporarily disconnected the system from the surge protector or auxilliary power and plugged the system directly into the wall.

 

As of for the USB - wireless keyboard,  try plugging the keyboard receiver into the back of the tower.  Your model has one USB port that is active all the time and that port should be the one on the upper right on the back of the system.   Once you are able to enter the BIOS Setup, check to see that the option for USB Emulation is enabled.  That option can be found in the Integrated Devices sub-menu of the BIOS Setup.   Once enabled, all USB ports should be supported during boot up or during non-Windows keyboard activity.

Whoops..... one more thing....... as for the Checkpoint USB error, there really isn't a master list that explains these Checkpoint errors.  More than likely your error is related to a USB device.  It could be the keyboard or another USB device such as a mouse or printer.  First try clearing the NVRAM and switching the keyboard USB port.  If that doesn't resolve the Checkpoint error then disconnect all USB devices except for the keyboard and reboot the system.  If you still have the Checkpoint error with just the keyboard installed then try another keyboard.

 

As for the standard or default, the clearing of the NVRAM will default all your BIOS settings back to their recommended factory settings.

Majestic,

 

Advice much appreciated. Have gone through all the various steps you suggested and situation appears little changed except that if I press F2 at the Dell splash screen then, after it has changed to the blank screen/flashing cursor, for several minutes, it does eventualy display the setup screen.

 

That really just leaves the issue of the very long delay with the blank screen etc before the Dell will start to load Windows XP.

 

Thanks for taking the time to reply. If you've any other suggestions as to how this oddity might be resolved let me know. The replacement CMOS battery seems to be functioning ok - the Dell is now holding onto the correct time/date.

As for the boot up delay, try disconnecting all USB devices except for the keyboard and mouse.   USB devices especially printers have been known to cause the system to hang at boot.   If the problem is related to the printer or another USB device then recheck the BIOS options and disable anything related to USB Boot.  In checking over the on-line Service Manual for your system, the only place I could see where there maybe an USB Boot option is in the Boot Sequence itself.  Otherwise disable the option for USB Emulation and move the keyboard to the upper right USB port on the back of the tower.  That should allow no USB functions prior to Windows booting while at the same time allow the use of your keyboard since that USB port is supported by the BIOS.

Majestic,

 

Thanks for the additional thoughts. Actually, when I read it it rang a distant bell about some devices like printers causing boot problems.

 

Anyway, I disabled USB emulation in the BIOS setup and hey presto the Dell now boots ok.

 

So take a bow and many thanks for taking the time and trouble. Just goes to show the power of user forums. Also avoids potential indecipherable and very annoying calls to Dell support in India (no personal offence intended I might add, it's just that it's not a practical, intelligible or customer focussed strategy I'm afraid).

Glad to be of assistance and to hear the problem has been resolved.