PC freezes and says "not responding"

1. 0

   Baileybearposted 14 years ago

   Often after trying to open Outlook or Explorer; often on net.  Sometimes freezes without warning (can't do anything).  Sometimes crashes completely and get the blue screen.
   
   what is wrong with my computer?  Is HP with Vista, 3 years old.
   
   Is it bugs in incompatible software, like some people say? What kinds of things are incompatible?
   
   Do we try reinstalling our OS and Office (or is that a major?). 
   
   Husband frequently wants to toss the computer out the window!
   
   Any help/advice appreciated (as long as not too technical!)

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   1. 0

      Baileybearposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      forgot to mention that a error message comes up quite frequently - something about spybot detecting an important something-or-rather that has been changed - deny change/allow change - no idea what that means

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   2. 0

      khmohsinposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      You have a virus in your computer. It is symbol of virus. The performance of a windows slow down after a certain passage of time, because in very start there's no chance of virus, but with the passage of time and according to the usage, computer may get infected with malwares, worms or viruses.
      Those things cause to slow down and finally computer is unable to handle the process, that is why it shows that You Application is not responding.. Close it or wait....
      Best thing is to try any top rated anti-virus and update it on regular basis, then you could be able to fix your computer properly.
      hope this gonna work

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   3. 67

      waynetposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      Whoa! That's more than mine does, My pc doesn't say a word!

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         khmohsinposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         

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   4. 47

      SofiaBrownposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      The cause of the freezing, or locking up, of your computer, is due to some either corrupted or missing files. And more specifically, missing or corrupted registry files. These are the files which tell everything on your how it is suppose to work. Basically, they are configuration files. And if these files get corrupted, or messed up, it can wreck havoc.
      
      Sometimes the registry files end up missing. This can happen when you uninstall software from your computer. The software being uninstalled may remove registry files also associated with another program. There should be a message asking you whether or not you want to delete the files as they are associated with another program. Your best bet is to say NO to this and leave the files. If the files end up missing, then the program which needs them will stall, hang, or freeze the next time it tries to run. But there is a simple way to fix this.
      
      By just running registry scan software on your computer, you can find these problems and fix them right away. It will let you know which files are bad, and will fix them to its original state. And it is this simple step which will show you how to fix your computer freezing.

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   5. 52

      Eudorawhiteposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      It is good to clean your registry to make your computer function smoothly. It may not be an easy task but you are fortunate to have the solution. There are a number of convenient ways to clean the registry. This will help you solve the problem easily. It is not easy to clean the dirt in your registry and you can ask an expert to help. Do not try to clean the registry on your own to avoid causing more problems to the system. You can enjoy using a clean computer. The registry cleaning software is a solution to a computer that keeps freezing.

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2. 83

   CMHypnoposted 14 years ago

   Have you:
   
   deleted all your temporary internet files
   de-fragmented your hard drive
   downloaded all the updates available
   deleted any software programmes that you don't need?
   
   If you haven't, give it a go and it may help.  I was having a similar problem with IE freezing and crashing the whole laptop, that has improved since I de-fragged
   
   Also have you scanned to see if you have picked up a virus?

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3. 72

   ddsurfscaposted 14 years ago

   sounds like you either need to do housekeeping (run scan that empties temp. internet files and cookies and history) and defrag. or you need to get a program like adaware-se which you can get for free at downloads.com  and this software will get rid of all the spyware that could be clogging up your memory.  I was shocked the first time I ran mine, for I had over 1600 spyware programs running in my computer without me knowing.

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4. 61

   joaniembposted 14 years ago

   I agree with everyone above. I had trouble with IE, computer freezing. I cleaned the temp files, cookies and history. I still had trouble then I downloaded firefox and my computer ran like new. Good luck hope this helps.

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   1. 0

      Baileybearposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      hubby says he runs a program called CCleaner each week which is supposed to do the defrag and cleanup?  Have Norton antivirus.
      Noticed things were worse when we used Farmtown on Facebook (something to do with Flash?) and also when I used WinZip or something similar to open pdf files from work

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      1. 73

         earnestshubposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Have you checked to see the fan is clear of dust?
         Farmland thrashes your CPI and causes some computers to overheat if the fan is working too hard. All sorts of errors then total failure.

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5. 62

   Lisa HWposted 14 years ago

   I have HP with Vista, and it always fixes itself; so if your husband thinking Vista means it "has" to have problems, that's not necessarily true at all.  Just last night I had a thing with Adobe updating and causing the machine to be unresponsive.  I panicked, but after it was on for awhile it fixed itself.  Normally, nothing happens to it anyway.  I have maintenance scheduled and usually update.  This time, I had dragged my feet on updating Adobe. 
   
   My point is I love my PC.  I'm not the "technical type", so the fact that is takes care of itself is great.  Vista's been out long enough that I don't run into compatibility problems with software.  Sometimes you have to make sure you click on the right OS.  These days, it seems like most software if compatible without having to click "for Vista".  (Doesn't it "check for problems"?  If you can get it running enough to go to the control panel and go to System and Maintenance you should be able to go to Problems and Solutions or Problem Reports and Solutions, and first see what's there.   You can also go to System (still in that System and Maintenance window) and check your Window's Index base score.  That will show you a few things that might be tip-offs to how you can improve your system's performance.  (Of course, do the stuff other people have said to do first - then look and see what you get in those places I mentioned.)
   
   If you've replaced old anti-virus software with new and/or different ones, and if you didn't completely remove the old ones, that can throw things off.  So can it throw things off if you didn't notice that if you don't "uncheck" McAfee with an Adobe update, you end up getting McAfee installed (which can throw things off too).  If you're uninstalling any programs don't do it from the window that says "Ad/Remove programs" (if at all possible).  Instead, go to "Programs", find the one you want to remove it, expand it if you have to, right click on it, and see if there's an "Uninstall" to click on.  Doing it the other way can leave "bits and pieces" behind and sometimes throw things off.  Think about going through your whole list of programs, considering if any can go, and trying to remove them that way first.   
   
   Also, make sure you check for any available updates in that System and Maintenance window.   Some will say they're important.  Others will say recommended - that type of thing.  Go for the important ones first, because if you have several to do it can take a little time.
   
   (Unsolicited tip:  If your husband is "that type" maybe tell him to stay away  from the computer, and you deal what there is to be dealt with.  The window-throwing-out type usually doesn't go well with effectively sorting these things out.      )   (Mine is about three years old too, by the way.)

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   1. 0

      Baileybearposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      theres a shortcut to avg on our desktop (which I've heard clashes with Norton), but hubby said he uninstalled the avg.  Why would the icon still be there?

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         Lisa HWposted 13 years agoin reply to this

         Baileybear, I know this reply is 2 weeks late.  I must have "disappeared" before seeing it last  time.,  Anyway, just in case you're at all still interested..
         
         Ask your husband if he uninstalled it by going to add/remove programs, or if he found it in the list of programs, right-clicked, and uninstalled that way.  (That can be the most complete way.)  If software isn't completely removed (every little "bit and piece - files-wise") you'll still see it in places. 
         
         You could do a search of your whole computer (C drive) if  you have any idea what the files may be named (in this case, look for AVG).  If they're left behind they will show up and where they are will show up too.  I once had some anti-virus bits and and pieces left behind and had to find them in Windows/System32, go in as an administrator, and remove them that way. 
         Click that if you do.
         
         Usually, uninstalling will get rid of shortcuts; but if, by any chance, there were extra shortcuts created and move; I suppose it's feasible that one could have been left behind.   If the shortcut is there it does sound like there wasn't a complete "uninstall", though.  (Which is why it may be good to do that search and see what else may be left behind.)

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   2. 0

      Baileybearposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      It does seem to be Adobe stuff it doesn't like much

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   3. 0

      Baileybearposted 13 years agoin reply to this

      have been doing the defrag etc (takes ages).  Also using a shorter cord to phone jack since moved house (maybe problem with using longer one?) and already computer is behaving much better

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6. 70

   Csanadposted 14 years ago

   I wrote a quick hub on how to solve it.
   Please visit it at:
   http://hubpages.com/hub/How-to-Fix-Unre … r-Computer

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   1. 0

      Baileybearposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      yes, hubby has the CCleaner, but will need to check the settings

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7. 51

   ocbillposted 14 years ago

   uh-oh, an HP and the OS is Vista. not my preferences although I like HP design and printers but hear about many breakdowns\freezes and such. Always keep back-ups and reinstall windows if you can. Or better yet, upgrade to Windows 7 after all that.
   
   best of luck

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   1. 0

      Baileybearposted 14 years agoin reply to this

      Is upgrading to Win7 straight forward?  Is it like starting again, or does it keep our files like bookmarks in Explorer and emails in Outlook.  Or does everything need to be set up again?

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      1. 38

         17inchlaptopposted 14 years agoin reply to this

         I never recommend upgrading Microsoft operating system unless you are buying a new computer. All software issues can be fixed by, well, fixing software.

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8. 60

   richardmacarthyposted 13 years ago

   Baileybear,
   
   Upgrading is not recommended.  I would recommend a full wipe and re-installation of windows.
   
   You can backup your outlook .pst file and and any other files on a usb stick, or external hard drive....as well as any other files you need (Drivers for hardware etc..).
   
   Then you can re-install windows, and restore your stuff.
   
   This is the best method, but you need to know what you are doing a little.

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9. 61

   triosolposted 13 years ago

   You should clean temp files, cookies and history and  you will be fine.

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10. 61

    Savva Pelouposted 13 years ago

    what we must all realise is that when our computers get the blue screen of death, its not because our machine is dieing, but because our machine is trying to protect itself.  The easiest thing to do is to try and restore your computer back to a point in time where it worked using "system restore"

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11. 71

    howlermunkeyposted 12 years ago

    You most likely have malware. Get Malwarebytes. Try to install (if it allows you) and update it. Then restart your PC in safe mode (hit the F8 key on bootup)and run a full malwarebytes scan.
    
    You can also open task manager (ctrl+alt+delete), and look at the running processes, make sure you select "show processes from all users" in the bottom left. See anything running high (30-90 percent?) -- thats your problem. You most likely have a process that's taking all of your cpu resources. Could be a spambot, could be anything.
    
    
    The very best thing to do in this situation would be to pull the hard drive out, hook it up as usb device and scan from another computer.If you have a malware infection  that will only get worse.
    
    Malwarebytes first, in safe mode. Then run ccleaner. Please feel free to hit me up if you have questions  howlermunkey@ymail.com.

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12. 61

    LindaSmith1posted 12 years ago

    I did same with Dell, Vista and IE.  I also went to Computer- c disk and program files. I deleted every file that I knew should not be in computer. Here you will find folders, etc of programs that you uninstalled but are still in your computer.  Don't touch any program that you are not sure of.  I also went to AVG for Internet security. I now use Google chrome which works well now, and Firefox.  I have no problems until I use IE.

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