PC problems
I know that there are countless pc issue threads... but none have helped me... yet.
I haven't been able to play any PC games in a couple of weeks because everytime I try I get random reboots about 3 seconds into it. I have just finished a complete windows reinstall and everything is working great, except when I try to install the latest video card driver for my Asus 9800 Pro I got the reboot again... so am I right in thinking that the vid card is the culprit?
The thing of it is, I have had the card for almost 8 months with no problems until recently... could it be a power supply issue or what? someone please help!
PS... although, judging from the amount of school work I have to finish in 2-3 weeks this could be a blessing in disguise...
edit...
I'm running a P4 2.6 at stock speeds
512 MB PC 3200 Geil Golden Dragon series RAM
Asus-made Ati 9800 Pro w/ 256 MB RAM
MSI Neo2 865Pe board
Creative audigy sound card
Windows Home w/ service pack 2
right now the drivers are all default xp drivers
and I get a negative on spyware and viruses
xbox live: Lester King 17
Post your total system specs including driver versions and we''ll see what we can do from a distance...
Yankees rock, you know it's true...
I concur with SimPilot.
Make sure you are installing the latest version of Catalyst driver as well, there was a new one released about a week ago.
Download and run Ad Aware personal edition, it''s free, and worth the trouble. Do a total system scan. Do a virus scan as well. Probably not the culprit, but it doesn''t hurt to check.
This sounds similar to an overheating issue I had a year ago. Is the fan/heatsink working correctly and powered on both the video card and the CPU? Have you noticed any strange noises or vibrations? Have you tried using a new power supply? Is it possible to swap the video card into another machine to see if there is something wrong with it?
Good luck with this! Mysterious reboots are never fun to track down.
Gamertag: RiverRatMatt Xfire: lockandloadgwj
Halo3 Profile: RiverRatMatt
Are you manually setting anything in the BIOS, or letting everything auto-detect? I have RAM that I can''t run at the ""rated"" timings, but if I let it auto-detect at slower timings, all is well.
I agree with L&L, though. Try a spare video card and see if that''s it. Or try reseating everything - RAM, vid card, etc. If it''s not the video card, maybe install MotherBoard Monitor(MBM) and see if you have any odd temperature or voltage fluctuations. Maybe try running Memtest86+ just to rule out a memory problem.
Wish I could help more, just some suggestions.
"And my son, too, thinks everything is a launchpad, every bug a meal, and every sunny day a reason to take all your clothes off and roll around in the grass." - rabbit
Ok... I reseated everything and found that one of my IDE channels has crapped out... but the random reboots are still continuing... Could this be motherboard related? I''ve installed MBM 5 and all the voltages are rock solid. Luckily, with Christmas around the bend I''ll have a little spare cash, but I can''t seem to diagnose the problem. Does anyone have any ideas?
xbox live: Lester King 17
I had a buddy who''s mobo was shorting out on the case. He''d get a reboot a couple of times a day because the mobo would touch the case, short out and reboot. We ended up shoving something in between the case and mobo to make sure it wouldn''t make contact.
If you''re up for it, we tested it by running the pc with the mobo laying on a towel. All sprawled out and everything. Bad case design can be tricky to catch when they all don''t cut your hands up anymore.
Do you ever walk alone like a drifter in the dark?
I fixed it. The problem was that the MSI auto-updater kept trying to update the INF files and it wasn''t working out well, so I took care of all that. But I do have one more problem now... Because my computer will now play games my poor, dumb ass is going to have to buy WoW and play... so much for graduate school...
xbox live: Lester King 17
Ah! For this ''graduate school'' issue I have a small suggestion: Make friends with a local Linux guru. Make him put together a custom Live CD from one of the friendlier Knoppix distros. Configure your computer to always boot from the CD first. Place the CD in the tray with the stern instructions not to remove it unless you''re passing your classes. Duct tape helps this part. To further aid your self control, create a WAV admonishing yourself for taking the CD out when CLEARLY you''re just slacking off and NOT becoming a successful *insert preferred profession here*. Be as stern, forceful, (and this is key) and loud as necessary!
Then again, odds are you''d enjoy WoW more than this whole ""Constructive Member of Society"" thing. Go where your hear leads you!
Your Pal,
Rezzy.
Politely rude. Briskly vague. Firmly uninformative.
There''s a solution. Switch to video games research.