Computer Dying....

**suebeehoney** · 07-13-2008, 02:01 PM

Well....I think the Murphy Fairy must be lurking around my house somewhere lately.

My computer crashed 3 times last week, within 24 hours. The last time it crashed, it wouldn't boot back up without going into recovery mode. I finally took it into safe mode and took it back to the last known 'workable' settings, which allowed it to come back up, but it's still acting up. Settings keep getting changed, without anyone changing them. I thoroughly checked it for viruses, etc. Nothing. Clean as a whistle. Then I noticed the monitor starting to flake out on me. I'll be sitting here working, and all of a sudden, everything on the monitor goes ever-so-slightly fuzzy. I'm thinking "what the heck is wrong with my EYES?!?!" - but DS16 has seen it too and it's not our eyes. Called in the big guns (I almost typed "big buns" there...ROFL) - turns out things are starting to go bad in the computer - more things than are worth repairing. Of course.

So....Monday I'm bringing home a new computer to try out. I get to try it for 2 weeks and keep it if I like it, but that means another debt to pay that I was hoping not to have to do.

Unfortunately, the computer is a necessary evil for me - Ebay sales are picking up and have become a very welcome addition to our income, since child support is cut in half for the summer while DS10 is with his dad.

**Gabe** · 07-13-2008, 02:24 PM

You might want to check if your computer is overheating.

Sometimes a new power supply will do the trick. (If the power supply is not giving enough juice to the fan inside your computer)

To test this out...
My suggestion for a frugal tip.

Take the hood off put a fan next to it at Medium or high. Turn it on and check to see if it doesn't crash. If it stops crashing its an overheating issue inside the box.

Hope this helps!

-Gabe

**Gabe** · 07-13-2008, 02:48 PM

If its an overheating issue, you can buy a replacement fan for inside the computer. They run between $5 to $20.

Fans lose their efficiency because they collect dust.

Buying a good can of Blow off duster and cleaning the inside might help also.

**frugalnana** · 07-13-2008, 03:38 PM

Having same issues. Ours are about 5 years old.
Gabe we did as you mentioned and dh also added memory for his.
But we think its because of our softball site and forum that it so slow and stalls. So we are going to get a bigger one for him and all the extras he needs to run the site. We just switched to V Bullitin, but don't have it completely up yet. We are still using Yabb.
If anyone wants to take a look around its called Ohio Fastpitch Connection (forum) not the one with all the tournaments listed.
http://www.game-ex.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl

**YankeeMom** · 07-13-2008, 03:46 PM

I would have a computer shop check it out before investing in a whole new computer. Both mine & dh's computers started acting wonky. Scans showed no viruses, etc. Took it in and sure enough, each of our computers (two months apart) had gotten infected w/ different viruses (mine with multiple, his with one big nasty one) that killed the hard drive.

For $50 the computer shop diagnosed the problem and for $40 they replaced the hard drive completely. Waaaay cheaper than a whole new computer

Now the kids' computer was too far gone for saving. It was 10 yrs old, had overheating issues from the time it was brand new, and it wasn't upgradeable anymore. We kept the screen & keyboard & bought a new CPU and speakers for half the cost of a whole new computer.

**chettasmom** · 07-13-2008, 05:33 PM

definately have the battery on the mother board checked as well..sometimes those do go bad and need replacing..and everyone is right about the power supply too..have it checked. Have you noticed by chance if the time setting on your toolbar isn't keep accurate track of time? If not, that's a sure fire example of a battery in need of changing..

**suebeehoney** · 07-13-2008, 10:43 PM

Thanks everyone for the tips!! I really wish it WERE one of those things so I could just fix it simply, and cheaply.

Overheating - nope - I have a temp. monitor on it, and keep it cooled by an external fan. Temp. monitor shows a consistently "ok" temp.

I also clean it out every month or so to keep it dust free.

Battery issues - clock is keeping accurate time according to the friendly lady on the phone at the time and temp recording. ;-)

Virus - I did have a computer pro check it out for me (that was the 'big guns' I mentioned in my post) - with all the symptoms it's showing, he thinks it's on the way out. He checked it even more thoroughly than I did for viruses, malware, etc. Nothing. He said my 'freebie' spyware/malware remover, firewall and virus scanner were doing a top-notch job of protecting me from problems.

He said it could be a while before it goes, or it could go completely dead tomorrow - there's no way to know. I can't remember all the things he named off that were going bad, but his recommendation was to be prepared to buy a new computer sooner rather than later, since there's no way to predict when this one will actually die.

So I think DS16 is going to get this one (until it dies at least) for his room. I wish I could just baby this one until it dies and then wait until my next tax refund to get a new one....but I have to have a computer to do my Ebay sales.

**suebeehoney** · 07-16-2008, 01:01 PM

Hi everyone!

Well, the computer is hanging on by a thread for a while longer. After doing a thorough cleanup of files, etc. on it, and then defragging the hard drive, running virus check on it several times, eliminating any malware or spyware (there was none), taking it apart and thoroughly blowing it out for any dust (very little, as I dust it out every month), it was still acting up - shutting down immediately upon boot-up, right after I logged in with my password, or not booting up at all.

About 48 hours later, it's running fine.

Go figure.

So, for the time being, I'm saved from having to put out money for a computer, which is the one time I will have to break my "cash only, no debt" rule, as I don't yet have enough in my EF to afford a new computer. After joining this site, I'm ALL ABOUT saving the bucks for things, not spending!

yay frugalvillage!!