Strange startup bug?

[karrotjuce]

When I turn on my computer, the HP logo flashes appears as normal, but instead of saying: "Windows is starting up" as normal, a strange series of colored dots appear at the top of the screen. The computer refuses to start up 2 times out of 3, and I have to force the computer to shut down, and then start it back up again. I've updated my graphics drivers, I've ran virus checks, but the problem still persists! Can someone please help me?

 

[Lemur]

Please look at your Event Viewer and post errors.
While you're doing that, of course check your video card for latest driver. Check your refresh rate and see if it's too high. Also bring your resolution rate down a notch. For testing purposes...

 

[whs]

If I read this right, this error apparently appears when the system is still in the BIOS phase. Updating drivers will not help in this case because the OS is not yet loaded. You may try to flash your BIOS.
One other possibility is that it happens when the BIOS is trying to pull in the boot record which could be defunct.. Maybe a repair install can fix it. BCDEDIT is another option.
A third possibility is a problem on your HDD. CHKDSK /F in cmd might fix that.

 

[Lemur]

Can you pull your video card and try another one from a friend?