Computer help: New laptops keep freezing up...
New laptops keep freezing up...
by RBlack110 - 3/26/09 4:48 PMHello,
In December, I purchased a Gateway T6836 laptop after reading the review here on CNet. It had an Intel Core2Duo processor @2.0ghz, with 4GB of RAM, and Vista 64 bit. I sold it after about a month because it froze up very easily. I then purchased a new Dell Inspiron 1520 laptop for my wife with an Intel Core2Duo @ 2.16ghz and 3GB of RAM and Vista 32 bit and it has the same problem. Finally, about 2 weeks ago, I bought myself another laptop, the Gateway M-6850FX with a Core2Duo @ 1.83ghz and 3GB of RAM with Vista 32 and it too has the same problem. What happens is... when I'm running a program, (usually it occurs while I'm using Internet Explorer but that is the program that I use the most. It has also occurred with Firefox, Open Office Writer, and Rhapsody) the program will just stop responding, it won't close, it won't say "not responding", it just won't do anything and the CPU light comes on and stays on until the program finally starts working again. It usually lasts like 2-4 minutes and seems to always happen randomly. Some days, it won't do it at all, some days it will do it as much as 3 times in one hour. It's getting very annoying. The only extra things that I have installed on these 3 pc's are AVG Anti-Virus and Comodo Firewall (and disabled Windows Firewall). What could be causing this problem? I'm not running multiple programs or anything and don't see how this could be too much load. I had an Acer laptop with Windows XP that only had 1GB of RAM and rarely ever had it freeze, and I had it for 2-3 years. Any help or suggestions would be very much appreciated!
Sounds Like You May Already Know the Problem..
by Grif Thomas
- 3/26/09 5:14 PM
In reply to: New laptops keep freezing up... by RBlack110
I hear a number of folks who have similar issues with Vista. Not all, but quite a few..
First, before abandoning ship, try uninstalling Commodo and AVG and see if they're causing an issue.. Enable the Windows Firewall and use a different free antivirus like Avast or Avira. Avast was one of the first free antivirus programs approved for use on Vista.. Many like it...
Avira (Currently among the best in detection rates, paid or free.)
http://www.free-av.com/en/download/1/download_avira_antivir_personal__free_antivirus.html
Avast
http://www.avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html
See how it goes.
Grif
I'll try that and see how it goes...
by RBlack110 - 3/27/09 1:05 PM In reply to: Sounds Like You May Already Know the Problem.. by Grif Thomas
ok, thanks for the quick response! I'll try both things one at a time and see what happens. I hate to abandon my AVG, it's all I've ever used (once I realized Norton was ripping me off) but, on the other hand, I've never used Avast so maybe I'll like it better! Also, if it turns out to be an issue related to Comodo, what would be an alternative to Windows Firewall? I used Zonealarm a long time ago and just didn't really care much for it and that's when I switched to Comodo. Thanks again for the help, and I'll let you know how it turns out!
Back to Square One...
by RBlack110 - 3/27/09 2:42 PM In reply to: Sounds Like You May Already Know the Problem.. by Grif Thomas
Well, I downloaded Avast, turned off my wi-fi, and uninstalled both AVG Anti-Virus (and restarted pc) and Comodo Firewall (and again, restarted pc). As soon as the computer booted, I went to My Documents (b/c that is where I saved the downloaded Avast setup file) and went to double click on Avast and magically, the computer locked up again! This time when it locked up, I had no anti-virus on, and no firewall on! And this time, it completly locked up, I left it sit for 10 minutes and it still wouldn't do anything, the mouse pointer wouldn't even move. So I pushed the power button and it shut off immediately. I then turned it back on and installed Avast and turned on Windows Firewall. What else could be causing this? I have an old Windows XP boot disk from a previous desktop, if I installed it, would my computer run fine? As in, would it be ready to go with a fresh XP install or would I have to search and find new drivers for all of my hardware? I don't want to go back to XP, but this sucks...
A Couple Of Thoughts..
by Grif Thomas - 3/27/09 5:43 PM
In reply to: Back to Square One... by RBlack110
It's a long shot to think that you've got lemons on three laptops.. So I would start hunting for other programs and services on the computer which could be causing the issue.. Leave the antivirus programs uninstalled for now and visit the internet as little as possible. Try eliminating some of the unnecessary services from Vista by using the link below..
http://www.blackviper.com/WinVista/servicecfg.htm
In addition, try visiting the websites of the various computers and see if there are updated drivers for the machines, especially if you still have the Vista 64 bit. That includes motherboard/chipset drivers, ethernet drivers, vidoe, audio, the works.
Hope this helps.
Grif
Looks like it's another vista tradjety.
by qwaxz - 3/27/09 7:50 PM In reply to: New laptops keep freezing up... by RBlack110Vista has this problem (I have it too on my Vista PC) it likes to make every program you run, take up more RAM than it needs to which in result slows down the program and sometimes your system which can result into system not responding or even crashes. Check exactly how much RAM your "not responding" program is taking up, by... (1.) once windows starts up launch Task Manager (2.) go to the tab in Task Manager called "Processes" (3.) check on the description column and look for (Firefox/firefox.exe, Rhapsody/rhapsody.exe ...etc.) (4.) take a look at the memory column and check on how much "k" of memory it's taking up if the program (I'll describe Firefox)if it falls in between 20,000K - 70,000 that's normal, if it falls over 100,000K and it's being slow or seemingly is being not responsive, then end the process and restart the program (in this case Firefox). If it's still slow or not responding try rebooting and repeat this process. I don't have AVG Anti-Virus nor Comodo Firewall so I don't have any experience there, but sometimes anti-viruses tend to take up a lot of memory too which results in a slower system which can result into system not responding and crashes. For the program doesn't say "not responding" thing, well that could be because the program is already frozen and windows cannot access the strip title to add the not responding line.
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