Toshiba Satellite U405D not booting

A while ago I was doing a software upgrade on my little brother's laptop (which runs Win. 7) and, of course, it had to reboot. However, it would not reboot and instead just stuck at a black screen. Suspecting a software issue I decided to pull out a handy flash drive, with Ubuntu installed, and plugged it into the laptop and attempted to boot from the flash drive. It didn't boot at all and instead just stayed at a black screen. This "black screen" was the same thing as before, it didn't even behave as if an OS was being booted. I later decided to try booting from a Windows 7 installation disk to no avail, same problem. I'm suspecting it to be a hardware problem (which is why I posted it in the "hardware" section of the forum) but it could be, though unlikely, hardware based. Does anybody know what may be wrong?
(if it helps, the laptop is a Toshiba Satellite U405D-S2852)
Thanks!

 

If it makes any sounds, like it is really booting and all you see is a black screen, something might be wrong with the video chip.
Attach an external monitor and see if you can get an image. (My laptop uses the F5 key to toggle the display). Check the icons on the function keys to see what key might turn the internal display off and on.

 

Actually, I know that the screen works. I forgot to add in the original post that the bios/logo displays but nothing is able to boot. My bad, sorry.

 

Are you sure you set the satellite to boot from the USB in the BIOS?
Have you tested the Ubuntu USB stick in another computer to be sure it is bootable?

Note: I used to use pendrive linux to make all my bootable sticks. With the newer linux kernels, Pendrive no longer works. I get black screens. I have switched to LinuxLive http://www.linuxliveusb.com/ to create my newer sticks. I have had little success with Ubuntu therefore I tend to avoid it.

 

I have tried it in other computers and it boots.

 

If you set the satellite to boot from the USB in the BIOS by moving USB up to the top position and it still refuses to boot, I don't know what else to have you try.

 

That worked! Thanks! Also, after having done this, as long as I have a flash drive plugged in (that is recognized as bootable) the laptop is somehow able to boot from the CD drive and the Hard Drive... Weird.

 

If that is true, you might be able to fix the installed version of windows since you can get to the hard drive.
Maybe the wrong partition is set as active or maybe there is something wrong with the MBR. I know it is no longer called MBR but I can't remember the correct term.

Start a new thread asking for help on editing/fixing the boot on a Win 7 Toshiba laptop and some geek here who is good at that, should be along to help.

 

I know that the MBR and everything else is completely intact and working. I'm actually going to the boot menu in the BIOS and booting from the hard drive, I'm not even using the flash drive but for some reason with your trick of setting a flash drive (which must be plugged into the laptop) I can get it to boot where it otherwise wouldn't, so I'm actually not using the boot loader on the flash drive. Anyway, thanks a ton for the help it's working to a point that I can live with.