I have a question: Why does my laptop suddenly stop? I have a Dell Inspiron 1501 running Windows XP with 2GB ram memory and 80GB hard disc and 40 percent free space. Without notice, while running programs or simply surfing the Internet, it sometimes just stops, it doesnt turn off, it just freezes and becomes motionless, and there is no way I can do any thing until I manually turn it off. I have McAfee virus scan installed and PC Tools, and they both tell me the computer is free of viruses. What can I do? Is my hard drive too small? Should I buy an external hard drive? What could it be? Please help me with down to earth English. Thank you in advance!
--Submitted by Jose A.
Here are some featured member answers to get you started, but
please read up on all the advice and suggestions that our
members have contributed to this member's question.
Windows XP randomly freezes or locks up --Submitted by waytron
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6142_102-0.html?forumID=5&threadID=317245&messageID=2917612#2917612
Windows XP freezing --Submitted by darrenforster99
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6142_102-0.html?forumID=5&threadID=317245&messageID=2912443#2912443
Chances are you have hardware failure --Submitted by caskater4
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6142_102-0.html?forumID=5&threadID=317245&messageID=2912985#2912985
Dell has some online resources that might help --Submitted by rlessmue
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6142_102-0.html?forumID=5&threadID=317245&messageID=2914202#2914202
When XP randomly freezes --Submitted by giaimo13
http://forums.cnet.com/5208-6142_102-0.html?forumID=5&threadID=317245&messageID=2912391#2912391
If you have any additional advice for Jose and some recommendation on things he can do to remedy this issue, please click on the reply link and submit your answer. Please be detailed as possible when submitting your answer. Thanks!
Reply 1 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
I found that PCTools has a slight problem working and playing
together with others.My symptom was the computer would reboot and then say Windows has recovered from a serious error.By disabling PCTools I avoided the problem and I've reported it to PCTools who have elevated it to the engineering level. In the meantime I suggest that you disable PCTools and launch it manually when you need it.
Reply 2 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 3 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 4 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 5 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 6 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 7 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 8 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
They are "Advanced System Care" and "Glary Utilities".
Reply 9 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 10 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Scott
Reply 11 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
I am not being a smart a**.
OR it could be low memory resources.
Reply 12 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
I took off symantec from my Powerbook (which doesn't need it anyway) and installed a free anti virus called ClamXav. This one you can set up to run lightly in the background per the folders you choose. I have been running it for over a two weeks and so far it's spot on. I only use it really to check my emails to make sure I don't pass it on to a PC recipient.
Could be driver issues.
How about sticking your Windows install disc into your tower and do a system restore ( be careful not to choose the reformat option) make sure to back up any important personal files at the very least since it sounds like you don't have any idea of when it freezes up.
Do all your necessary maintenance i.e. disk defrag, disk clean up etc.
Good luck.
Again like I said that is Windows for you. I am not an Apple fanboy but I just can't ignore 10+ years of PC nightmares versus 7 months trouble free Mac usage. Proprietary software and hardware has it's pros and cons.
Reply 13 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
There's a reason why the MAC still hasn't broken the double digit mark in market share while the Windows PC holds a 90% share. The world plays on a MAC and works on a PC.
Reply 14 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
The question posted to try and help Jose to solve his problem not for Mac fan boys to come here and tell that the Mac does not have problems.
Stick to the Question in helping.
Early adopters of Apple's latest MacBook Pros and MacBooks (shown here) are reporting glitches with the laptops.
(Credit: CNET)
Problems with Apple's newly redesigned MacBooks are being reported on Apple discussion boards and across the Internet.
The new notebooks, which have already run into problems with the trackpad, are said to have problems with video performance, third-party memory chips, and staying in sleep mode. It's always difficult to get a sense of how widespread such problems are from tracking message board posts--and every computer ever made has had problems--but the volume of such complaints regarding the new systems seems to be increasing.
HERE IS THE FULL STORY.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10119207-37.html?tag=nl.e433
And at the end what is it? Mac related issues with Hardware.
Reply 15 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Also, I would go to windowsupdate.com or Dell's web site and make sure you have every current update for Windows and other products.
I would also download the following programs:
AdAware
Hijack This
Spybot Search and Destroy
Once you download and install those programs, they should be able to tell you if you have spyware, malware, or other bad stuff on your PC.
McAfee is good for detecting viruses.
You should also consider purchasing Diskkeeper for your PC, It is a great product for keeping your PC and defragmented as possible.
The only product out of these 4 you would have to pay for is Diskeeper.
Good luck
Lou Lange
Manchester, CT
Reply 16 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 17 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 18 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
For years, on several computers, I routinely have drives with less than 20% free space, sometimes as low as 5 to 2% free space and it never caused me any problem at all.
The only isue with filled up drives, is a slowdown when accessing SOME files, and the fact that some defragmenters can't work with less than 15% free space, like the one that comes with Windows.
Anytime you have more than 20% free space, disk clutter is NOT the cause of your problems.
In my experience, McAfee is not so great. I used to use it. Then, after some very serious performence degradation and false positives, not resolved by uninstalling, reinsytalling, I switched to another. I then found that it missed a few nasties. A friend had worst experience with Norton AV, that missed about 15 virus. I now use a free AV.
I don't recommend "hijack this" to a novice user. It's very powerfull, and usualy TO powerfull for a great many.
I agree that Diskkeeper is a marvelous application. I've been using it for the last 7 years. One of the best defragmenter you can get. It CAN defragment a drive with only 1% free space, it will only take more time for the job to finish. The only one that could beat it was Norton SpeedDisk for DOS of the late 80' end early 90's that only needed 1 free cluster...
Reply 19 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
First thing: Download Memtest or Memtest86 (memory diagnostics) and run them. This is easy to do and quick and is a good candidate for a possible cause. You want to run quite a few passes (may take hours or even overnight). You MUST get ZERO errors. If memtest freezes up, then you KNOW it's a hardware problem and not a software problem (that is not an insignificant point). Other than new memory, almost all other hardware problems will have to involve the manufacturer or MAJOR new parts (e.g. motherboard).
If that passes (or even if it fails) ... CPU overheating is a common problem in laptops. The cooling systems clog up with dust, hair, etc. These can be cleaned but the procedure varies by model (this happens on desktops also but it's more obvious and easier to deal with). Disassembly of the laptop may be required to do a complete cleaning, but a "good enough" job MAY be possible without disassembly. The primary tool is a can of compressed air.
On a desktop, the power supply would be my next suspect, but on a laptop the supply in question (which is NOT the AC adapter) is part of the motherboard.
At this point, especially on a laptop, the HARDWARE options begin to point to the motherboard. This is, however, usually impossible to deal with if the laptop is out of warranty (it will often cost as much as a new laptop).
That leaves the software causes, of which there are many. The only practical way to attack software causes is to wipe the hard drive and reinstall windows. That is an involved and difficult process, and I actually suggest that you do this on a different hard drive (if necessary, consider buying a small (possibly used) hard drive cheap to do this on). If the new installation doesn't freeze, you can presume that it's a software issue.
Barry Watzman
Reply 20 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
1. Is the computer REALLY locked up? Does control-Alt-Delete work? Does the caps lock key LIGHT go on and off when you press the caps lock key? If either of these works, the computer is not REALLY locked up and it's almost certainly a software problem (fix: reinstall Windows). BUT ...
2. People are too quick to assume it's a software problem, when, often, it IS a hardware problem.
Reply 21 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 22 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
good luck
Reply 23 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 24 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
As we have none of the three at hand, we can't tell you.
But I would start with replacing the hard disk and see if that helps.
Kees
Reply 25 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 26 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 27 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
If this doesn't help, then check the Windows Task Manager (press CTRL-ALT-DEL together, once) and select the "Processes" tab to see if there's something running in the background which is using a lot of your processor power (more than [roughly] 80% of processor is usually a problem if it's doing it for a long time). If so, right-click on it and choose "end process" to kill the offending program.
Also, you can check the programs which are running at startup by choosing "Run" from the start menu and then typing "msconfig" in the box which appears. Go to the "startup" tab and then scroll through the list of programs which are loaded at startup. If there are any which you don't recognise, then try searching for them by Googling the name of the program file. If you find anything which isn't necessary, then disable it.
One more thing which may cause problems is conflicts between programs, eg having 2 lots of antivirus software running simultaneously, or a firewall that doesn't agree with your antivirus. You can try turning off your security software to see if this helps, but always make sure you have scanned your computer for viruses before switching the antivirus program off, AND *ALWAYS* MAKE SURE YOU ARE NOT CONNECTED TO THE INTERNET IF YOU HAVE YOUR FIREWALL OR ANTIVIRUS SOFTWARE SWITCHED OFF!!!
Hope this is of help.
Reply 28 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
Reply 29 : Windows XP system just randomly freezes, whats causing this?
1. Hardware problem related to the CPU on how it executes certain instructions.
2. Software problem in the BIOS.
3. Heat related issue. Internals get too hot and the CPU begins to act flakey, system freezes.
For number 1 you can't really do anything about it. It's just poor quality from the chip manfacturer (Intel/AMD)that the PC manufacturer failed to Identify. Sometimes the CPU manufacturer ship substandard CPU chips to the PC manufacturer that contain errors where these freezes can occur.
For 2 check if your PC manufacturer has an update to the BIOS and see if you can reload the latest version. Most of the time it's just flashing the BIOS. Sometimes this can correct the problem.
For 3, heat. My Toshiba freezes when it doesn't get enough ventilation. So I purchased a little stand with a fan and my laptop not longer freezes. You can aquire these little built-in fan-stands at Best-Buy. Make sure your laptop gets plenty of ventiltion. Determine if there are any fans in the laptop and make sure they are not obstructed.
There could be other issues that could cause the freeze ups but the 3 above seems to be to be the most prevelant based on my experience. I have Windows Vista in my HP laptop and it never freezes. I don't think Vista is the cuprit unless you load it on to an old PC/laptop. Vista requires at leaast 2Gbytes of RAM memory.
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