task bar freeze

[Param R.]

Hi all, i have a Windows XP PRO SP2 machine fully patched. Yet very
frequently my task bar below tends to freeze for about a minute. during that
time i cannot click on any of the icons or program windows below on the
taskbar. I can alt-tab between them. None of the windows keys will work
either i.e. windows-d etc.. Any ideas? This is frustrating.. i am running on
a amd athlon 2.8 ghz with 1 gb ram.

thanks!

 

[Malke]

Hi all, i have a Windows XP PRO SP2 machine fully patched. Yet very
frequently my task bar below tends to freeze for about a minute.
during that time i cannot click on any of the icons or program windows
below on the taskbar. I can alt-tab between them. None of the windows
keys will work either i.e. windows-d etc.. Any ideas? This is
frustrating.. i am running on a amd athlon 2.8 ghz with 1 gb ram.

thanks!

What programs are you running when this happens? Do you have a current
version antivirus (not earlier than 2003) with updated definitions? Do
you routinely scan for spyware? With what applications?

Malke

 

[Param R.]

I have Adaware & Spybot search and destroy. I have Trend Micro A/V upto
date. Just browsing websites in IE and it happens.

thanks!

 

[Malke]

I have Adaware & Spybot search and destroy. I have Trend Micro A/V
upto date. Just browsing websites in IE and it happens.

thanks!

Perhaps you have a hardware problem then. If it only happens with
Internet activity, then a) try updating the drivers for the Internet
device (modem or network adapter - you didn't say how you connect); b)
replacing the device with a known-working one. In addition, here are
some general hardware troubleshooting steps:

1) Open the computer and run it open, cleaning out all dust bunnies and
observing all fans (overheating will cause system freezing). Obviously
you can't do this with a laptop, but you can hear if the fan is running
and feel if the laptop is getting too hot.

2) Test the RAM - I like Memtest86+ from www.memtest.org - let the test
run for an extended (like overnight) period of time - unless errors are
seen immediately.

3) Test the hard drive with a diagnostic utility from the mftr.

4) The power supply may be going bad or be inadequate for the devices
you have in the system - this isn't applicable to a laptop, of course.

5) Test the motherboard with something like TuffTest from
www.tufftest.com.

Testing hardware failures often involves swapping out suspected parts
with known-good parts. If you can't do the testing yourself and/or are
uncomfortable opening your computer, take the machine to a good local
computer repair shop (not a CompUSA or Best Buy type of store).

Malke

 

[Guest]

I have a similar problem, however, there's a difference in my case: my
taskbar gets frozen for about 5 to 10 minutes only when I establish a dial-up
connection (either to the Internet or to our corporate LAN through RAS). So
far, I've tried everything (except throwing my box away...): drivers' and
firmware upgrades, uninstalling many programs, etc. I really do not believe
that this is a H/W problem - the computer works fine for hours or even days
if I do not attempt to make any connection.