Do not
start frantically clicking things or changing settings you will inevitably
make things worse. Sit down with a cup of tea and a note pad. Make sure you
write down exactly what you were doing before the crash. Record carefully
any error messages you have been getting. Write down when you last updated
your anti virus and when you last scanned for viruses and spies. Write down
the type of crash, is it a case of frequent repeated crashes or rare
crashes, or has the machine died completely.
If you need to call in a technician
and he thinks the problem is hardware, he can swap bits such as memory
modules, hard drive, or the power supply unit until the cause is tracked
down. He can remove the dust from the main chip and motherboard if he
suspects over-heating.
Do not run System Restore
until all the possible causes have been investigated. If all hardware causes
have been eliminated then run a System Restore.
Do not format your hard disk and reload Windows
until all possible causes have been investigated. If the most likely cause
appears to be a corrupted Windows file, use your recovery disk to try a
Repair
instead of a full re-installation of Windows, this will leave your data
intact. Corrupted Windows files can also be repaired by running the
scannow
command.
A crash may be a one-off.
Restart the computer and if the crash does not occur again don't worry.
Repeatedly crashing:
This kind of crashing can be due to so many things that it can take several
hours to track down the cause. Have you just installed a new program
or a new piece of equipment? Try un-installing it and see if that cures the
crashing.
A faulty power supply unit (PSU) may be the cause of
repeated crashing.
Try fitting a replacement. PSUs cost from £12 to £20. Your local technician
will have spare second-hand PSUs that he can try in your computer to prove a
point.
Repeated crashes could be due to a faulty memory module,
the computer could be over heating, or you have the wrong drivers for a
particular program or piece of equipment.
If the computer switches itself off
and then restarts itself. You can find clues to the cause by setting Windows
XP so that it will give an error message instead of just shutting down. This
error message should contain a clue to the cause.
Click
Start-->Control Panel. Make sure you are in
Classic
view and not Category view.
Double click the icon labelled
System
.
In the next window, click the
Advanced
tab. Under the heading
Start up and Recovery, click the
Settings
button. Under
t
he heading
System Failure
un-tick the box labelled
Automatic Restart
. Click
OK
and exit the Control Panel.
If opening a particular folder
or program causes the computer to a crash, or causes a
Send to Microsoft
panel to appear, you need to examine the
Event Viewer
to track down the cause.
Click
Start-->Control Panel. Double click the
Administrative tools
icon. Click the
Event Viewer. In the left hand pane click
Application. See if a particular item with red blobs with white
crosses is repeated frequently, if so, write it down. Click the latest red
blob with a white cross and write down the
Faulting application
details. Click the next one and do the same. Repeat this for between 3 and 5
red blobs.
Then access the website www.pcsadvisor/helproom. Register as a member (it is
free). When your membership is accepted, go to the bottom of the help-room
web page and enter your problem together with the details you wrote down.
You will receive an email within one to three days. The email will contain
a link which you must click to see any answers to your problem. The people
in the helproom are real whiz kids and they have helped me many times to
solve unusual and tricky problems.
