My 1996 nissan almera wont start?

hi, I have owned my almera since new and I have never had any trouble. A few days ago it wouldn't start and the light on the dash which says "check" stayed on as the engine turned. I thought the distributer might be at fault so I replaced it with one I knew was working properly. The "check" light now goes out normally but the engine still with not start. I have checked and the plugs are sparking. I thought the new distributer would go "straight on" in place of the old one and now I'm wondering if there are any timing marks or such like as there were on the old points system. The fuel pump is also okay and I even tried pouring a drop of pertol down the carb' but got no response. The engine is a 1.4, anyhelp would be much appreciated.