My computer crashes :(

[dan-cat]

Spybot

SmitRem

HIjackthis

removing spy/malware from your machine can be a major pain in the neck. The links above can help you towards doing it, sometimes it's easier to re-partition and reinstall.

Good luck!

 

[voidcranium]

I connected everything to a different outlet/circuit...no change.

I rolled back System Restore to two months ago, when I was most definitely not having this problem...didn't change a thing.

I REALLY don't want to spend money to call up some kid from Geek Squad who likely knows less about computers than I do.

I know this is an Access-centric forum (and a great one), but...does anyone know of a good forum where someone might be able to fix my problem? I REALLY don't want to have to buy a new PC over this...but...This is my third time trying to post this, my PC froze on the way the last two times.

This site is amazing. Hope it helps.
PC Perspective Forums
http://forums.pcper.com/index.php

 

[Salient]

RSW this is kind of left field but what sort of connection are you using?

My ISP switched us from ADSL to ADSL 2 a couple of months back and I was having similar issues. Turned out my old ADSL modem was doing something funky.

Other than that really sounds like you may have picked up a virus.

The other thing to try is turn the machine off, take off the covers, and ensure nothing has popped inside the machine. Sometimes a board or memory card will lever itself out when the rig gets hot. Probably isn't the answer since it works fine off the net.

 

[RSW]

OK, now it's just getting bizarre.

My brand new (well, it's refurbished) PC is doing the EXACT same thing. Not nearly as often, but it's just what I've been describing. Click on something and EVERYTHING freezes. Can't move the mouse pointer, CTRL-ALT-DEL does nothing, can only pull the plug.

I have a wireless FIOS connection now--this never happened before.

There's nothing wrong with the connection per se--my Wii has no problems with it--but how can I make sure there isn't a modem (which would be unnecessary, right?) or something else inside this model of computer that screws things up? I bought the exact same PC I had before, Dell Dimension 4700 I believe.

 

[RSW]

OK, now it's just getting bizarre.

My brand new (well, it's refurbished) PC is doing the EXACT same thing. Not nearly as often, but it's just what I've been describing. Click on something and EVERYTHING freezes. Can't move the mouse pointer, CTRL-ALT-DEL does nothing, can only pull the plug.

I have a wireless FIOS connection now--this never happened before.

There's nothing wrong with the connection per se--my Wii has no problems with it--but how can I make sure there isn't a modem (which would be unnecessary, right?) or something else inside this model of computer that screws things up? I bought the exact same PC I had before, Dell Dimension 4700 I believe.

 

[Minkey]

You never said if you tried running the machine without the case on you could have a heat problem being caused by your environment. Where is the PC located ? - are all the fans clear of obstructions, is it near a heater or radiator.

If you do have a hardware fault it would be more likely to reboot or blue screen (if you have the reboot option disabled).

You can also check the CPU temperature via the BIOS.

Can you try this first, in my experience this is the most likely cause.