Random freezing

[Differently Sane]

On the demise of my old computer, I've bought a shiny new one, complete with
Windows Vista. I've had it four days, and so far it's only crashed twice.
Is this... normal?

The other thing it does is randomly stop for 15-20 seconds, and then start
working again, as if nothing has happened. I've not even been doing anything
particularly strenuous; just browsing the internet and playing music, when
suddenly the music stops, and the computer does nothing for 20 seconds, and
then it's back.

Anyone know what the problem might be with this, and if there's anything I
can do about it?

 

[Malke]

On the demise of my old computer, I've bought a shiny new one, complete with
Windows Vista. I've had it four days, and so far it's only crashed twice.
Is this... normal?

The other thing it does is randomly stop for 15-20 seconds, and then start
working again, as if nothing has happened. I've not even been doing anything
particularly strenuous; just browsing the internet and playing music, when
suddenly the music stops, and the computer does nothing for 20 seconds, and
then it's back.

Anyone know what the problem might be with this, and if there's anything I
can do about it?

No, it is not normal. Unfortunately, we know nothing about your new
computer so focused troubleshooting is difficult. Make/model, hardware
specs, version of Vista?

Normally new computers come with all sorts of OEM cr*p preinstalled,
including trial versions and security programs that are bloated and
invasive (Norton, McAfee). Did you clear out all this unnecessary stuff?
If not, streamlining what runs in the background and installing a better
antivirus can help.

Post back with more details if you want more help.


Malke

 

[Differently Sane]

No, it is not normal. Unfortunately, we know nothing about your new
computer so focused troubleshooting is difficult. Make/model, hardware
specs, version of Vista?

Normally new computers come with all sorts of OEM cr*p preinstalled,
including trial versions and security programs that are bloated and
invasive (Norton, McAfee). Did you clear out all this unnecessary stuff?
If not, streamlining what runs in the background and installing a better
antivirus can help.

Post back with more details if you want more help.


Malke
--
Elephant Boy Computers
www.elephantboycomputers.com
"Don't Panic!"
MS-MVP Windows - Shell/User

New computer's an Acer Aspire T180, running Vista Home Premium. Processor
is AMD 64 x2 Dual Core Processor 5000+, 2Gb RAM.

Yes, I've got a load of misc preinstalled stuff; a trial version of Office
2007 (I've installed a full version of 2003, which I prefer, having tried
2007 before) and a 90day subscription to Norton. My old computer had AVG
free on it, I was going to go back to that once Norton AV expired.

I've checked the task manager; there's lots of things running along in the
background, but since I've not much idea what any of them are, I'm loathe to
start shutting them down, in case they're useful or important

 

[Malke]

New computer's an Acer Aspire T180, running Vista Home Premium. Processor
is AMD 64 x2 Dual Core Processor 5000+, 2Gb RAM.

Yes, I've got a load of misc preinstalled stuff; a trial version of Office
2007 (I've installed a full version of 2003, which I prefer, having tried
2007 before) and a 90day subscription to Norton. My old computer had AVG
free on it, I was going to go back to that once Norton AV expired.

I've checked the task manager; there's lots of things running along in the
background, but since I've not much idea what any of them are, I'm loathe to
start shutting them down, in case they're useful or important

OK, that's probably the cause then because you certainly have a machine
that should be speedy. Here are some suggestions:

1. Uninstall the trial version of Office. Hopefully you won't need to
reinstall Office 2003.

2. Uninstall Norton. Recommended antivirus programs are NOD32,
Kaspersky, and Avast (free). The built-in Windows Firewall is adequate
for most people.

3. Use msconfig or AutoRuns to determine what is running at startup. To
find out what an item is, plug its name into Google.

http://www.microsoft.com/technet/sysinternals/default.mspx (for AutoRuns)


Malke

 

[DGray]

I was having the same problem on my new computer. Dell XPS420, Quad Q6600, 3 Gig
ram. I removed all the junk Dell installs, removed the anti-virus program, and
installed AVG. It would still hang for 20 - 40 seconds for no apparent reason.
As a last resort before locating drivers for and installing XP, I installed
Vista Service Pack RC1 three days ago. My new computer is now acting like a new
computer. Vista is now stable, fast, and enjoyable to use.

Installing RC1 may not solve the issue with your computer, but it sure helped
mine.

 

[Malke]

I was having the same problem on my new computer. Dell XPS420, Quad Q6600, 3 Gig
ram. I removed all the junk Dell installs, removed the anti-virus program, and
installed AVG. It would still hang for 20 - 40 seconds for no apparent reason.
As a last resort before locating drivers for and installing XP, I installed
Vista Service Pack RC1 three days ago. My new computer is now acting like a new
computer. Vista is now stable, fast, and enjoyable to use.

Installing RC1 may not solve the issue with your computer, but it sure helped
mine.

I'm glad this worked for you but it isn't a solution I'd feel
comfortable recommending to the OP. One of the prime rules of computing
is Thou Shalt Not Install Beta Software Upon A Production Machine
(Unless Thou Art Prepared To Clean-Install). While a Release Candidate
is pretty close to gold (Release To Manufacturers), it is still not
properly out of beta.

But thank you for sharing your experience with us.


Malke