98SE odd freezes

Hello,

On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just quits
solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's using
his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no pattern to
which game it would appear.

I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the via sysmon
gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I wondered
if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new case with
another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the hard drive
from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed everything
from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went through
the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were happy
with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until the
&^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it with the
full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not fragmented.

SIGH

It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean install and
reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an upgrade to XP
Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying additional
licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't want to
invest that much more cash at this point.

Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to fix it
cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting all his
stuff back on it?

If it happens rarely & only when running certain software, I think it
must be the software at fault. You shouldn't go crazy over it.


--
Thanks or Good Luck,
There may be humor in this post, and,
Naturally, you will not sue,
should things get worse after this,
PCR

"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
| Hello,
|
| On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just
quits
| solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's
using
| his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
pattern to
| which game it would appear.
|
| I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the via
sysmon
| gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I
wondered
| if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new case
with
| another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the hard
drive
| from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed
everything
| from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went
through
| the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were
happy
| with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until
the
| &^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it with
the
| full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not
fragmented.
|
| SIGH
|
| It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean install
and
| reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an upgrade
to XP
| Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying
additional
| licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't want
to
| invest that much more cash at this point.
|
| Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to
fix it
| cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting
all his
| stuff back on it?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

I'm tired and growing senile, and I don't have a Windows 98 system
handy... What you want to do is reduce the video performance. It's a
slider with four settings, and I forget where you find it. But that's
what you want to do.

Big help, eh?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
Hello,

On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just
quits
solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's
using
his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
pattern to
which game it would appear.

I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the via
sysmon
gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I
wondered
if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new case
with
another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the hard
drive
from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed
everything
from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went
through
the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were
happy
with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until
the
&^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it with
the
full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not
fragmented.

SIGH

It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean install
and
reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an upgrade
to XP
Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying
additional
licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't want
to
invest that much more cash at this point.

Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to
fix it
cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting
all his
stuff back on it?

Control Panel, Display, Settings, Advanced, Performance.

Gary S. Terhune wrote:
I'm tired and growing senile, and I don't have a Windows 98 system
handy... What you want to do is reduce the video performance. It's a
slider with four settings, and I forget where you find it. But that's
what you want to do.

Big help, eh?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
Hello,

On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just quits
solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's
using
his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no pattern
to
which game it would appear.

I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the via
sysmon
gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I
wondered
if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new case with
another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the hard
drive
from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed everything
from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went
through
the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were happy
with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until the
&^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it with the
full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not fragmented.

SIGH

It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean install and
reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an upgrade to
XP
Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying additional
licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't want to
invest that much more cash at this point.

Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to fix
it
cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting all
his
stuff back on it?

Figures. I think it's even same in XP--until you install the
"management" software that comes with video cards, sigh.

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Bill in Co." wrote in message
...
Control Panel, Display, Settings, Advanced, Performance.

Gary S. Terhune wrote:
I'm tired and growing senile, and I don't have a Windows 98 system
handy... What you want to do is reduce the video performance. It's a
slider with four settings, and I forget where you find it. But
that's
what you want to do.

Big help, eh?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
Hello,

On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just
quits
solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when
he's
using
his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
pattern
to
which game it would appear.

I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the
via
sysmon
gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I
wondered
if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new
case with
another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the
hard
drive
from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed
everything
from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went
through
the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were
happy
with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until
the
&^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it
with the
full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not
fragmented.

SIGH

It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean
install and
reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an
upgrade to
XP
Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying
additional
licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't
want to
invest that much more cash at this point.

Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to
fix
it
cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting
all
his
stuff back on it?

"Bill in Co." wrote in message
...
Control Panel, Display, Settings, Advanced, Performance.

Right... thank you. Will try.





Gary S. Terhune wrote:
I'm tired and growing senile, and I don't have a Windows 98 system
handy... What you want to do is reduce the video performance. It's a
slider with four settings, and I forget where you find it. But that's
what you want to do.

Big help, eh?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
Hello,

On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just quits
solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's
using
his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
pattern
to
which game it would appear.

I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the via
sysmon
gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I
wondered
if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new case
with
another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the hard
drive
from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed
everything
from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went
through
the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were
happy
with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until the
&^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it with
the
full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not fragmented.

SIGH

It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean install
and
reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an upgrade
to
XP
Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying
additional
licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't want
to
invest that much more cash at this point.

Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to fix
it
cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting all
his
stuff back on it?

"PCR" wrote in message
...
If it happens rarely & only when running certain software, I think it
must be the software at fault. You shouldn't go crazy over it.


That's why I said:

| solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's
using
| his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
pattern to
| which game it would appear.

There is no pattern to only certain software and when it freezes it
invariably seems to bugger something up... n ot to mention getting the wife
and kid ***very*** sore at me :-(



Thanks





--
Thanks or Good Luck,
There may be humor in this post, and,
Naturally, you will not sue,
should things get worse after this,
PCR

"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
| Hello,
|
| On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just
quits
| solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's
using
| his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
pattern to
| which game it would appear.
|
| I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the via
sysmon
| gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I
wondered
| if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new case
with
| another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the hard
drive
| from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed
everything
| from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went
through
| the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were
happy
| with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until
the
| &^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it with
the
| full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not
fragmented.
|
| SIGH
|
| It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean install
and
| reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an upgrade
to XP
| Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying
additional
| licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't want
to
| invest that much more cash at this point.
|
| Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to
fix it
| cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting
all his
| stuff back on it?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|

Hey... not too old to remember it in the first place, eh? I remember when
that used to be the first thing to try for any performance issue...
errrrrrrrr no... I *didn't* remember until you said so, I guess.

Thanks... I'll give that a try.






"Gary S. Terhune" wrote in message
...
I'm tired and growing senile, and I don't have a Windows 98 system
handy... What you want to do is reduce the video performance. It's a
slider with four settings, and I forget where you find it. But that's
what you want to do.

Big help, eh?

--
Gary S. Terhune
MS MVP Shell/User
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/cleanboot.htm
http://www.grystmill.com/articles/security.htm

"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
Hello,

On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just
quits
solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's
using
his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
pattern to
which game it would appear.

I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the via
sysmon
gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I
wondered
if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new case
with
another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the hard
drive
from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed
everything
from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went
through
the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were
happy
with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until
the
&^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it with
the
full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not
fragmented.

SIGH

It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean install
and
reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an upgrade
to XP
Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying
additional
licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't want
to
invest that much more cash at this point.

Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to
fix it
cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting
all his
stuff back on it?

Ran into a similar problem on my PC. And, its still there, but is not a
problem now. Know my hardware is up to snuff both for 98SE and XP.

When I pulled my head out of my $@^, saw that Diskeeper was active per
system tray whenever it got sluggish. Sometimes would lock up the PC solid.
Changed the scheduled defrag time by Diskeeper to my normal non-use time.
Not a problem now.

Look for something similar in nature that coincides with prior to when the
PC normally locks up.
"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
Hello,

On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just quits
solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when he's
using
his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no pattern
to
which game it would appear.

I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the via
sysmon
gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I wondered
if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new case with
another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the hard drive
from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed everything
from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went through
the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were happy
with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had... until the
&^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it with the
full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not fragmented.

SIGH

It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean install and
reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an upgrade to
XP
Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying additional
licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't want to
invest that much more cash at this point.

Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how to fix it
cheap without going through night after night sitting there putting all
his
stuff back on it?

"Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
...
|
| "PCR" wrote in message
| ...
| If it happens rarely & only when running certain software, I think
it
| must be the software at fault. You shouldn't go crazy over it.
|
|
| That's why I said:
|
| | solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when
he's
| using
| | his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
| pattern to
| | which game it would appear.
|
| There is no pattern to only certain software and when it freezes it
| invariably seems to bugger something up... n ot to mention getting the
wife
| and kid ***very*** sore at me :-(
|

That's different, if you have a wife & kid that get sore. Just ask
Colorado! Let me see what the others wrote...

(a) Well, yes, as Lil' Dave said, try to run those games with minimal
else started in the background, especially Task Scheduler.

(b) "START button, Run, DxDiag". That is the DirectX Diagnostic Tool.
Does it have a message for you?

(c) If the slider at "Desktop Properties, Settings tab, Advanced button,
Performance tab" seems to solve it, per Terhune, then consider...

http://support.microsoft.com/default...39&Product=w98
Troubleshooting Video Problems in Windows

"START, Run, MSConfig, Advanced button". If checked, then uncheck "VGA
640x480x16", & reboot.

"Control Panel, Display, Settings tab". Select as you wish from the
Colors dropdown menu & the Size slider. Really, you should need nothing
higher than "High Color (16 bit)", for speed/resource considerations.

If you move the Screen Area slider to 1024x768 there, be sure to click
the Advanced button, & select Large fonts.

Try to get your colors/size at least twice that way. If it continues to
fail, you may need to reinstall your Monitor or Display Adapter...

For the Monitor...
(1) Boot to Safe Mode
(Hold F5 as you boot or CTRL for the Startup Menu)
(2) "START, Settings, Control Panel, System, Device Manager tab"
(3) Open the Monitors branch, & Remove all entries.

Perhaps, FIRST, even in Normal Mode, note what is installed
similar to below for the Adapter. That is...
(a) D-Clk the monitor there for Properties, Driver tab.
(b) Click the Update Driver button, then "Next".
(c) Bolt "Display a list...", & click "Next".
(d) Bolt "Show all hardware".
Examine the two panes to see what is currently installed.
That is likely what you wish to end up with, after step (4).

(4) Boot to Normal Mode.

Hopefully, it will be rediscovered & installed. Then, if still
necessary, here is the rigmarole of the Display Adapter...

.......Quote..........
The first thing to do is to remove the video adapter you have
installed. Right-click on the desktop; choose "Properties" from the
drop-down menu; select "Settings;" click on the "Advanced" button; and
click on "Adapter". An adapter is a program that tells Windows how to
deal with a specific video card. Make note of the adapter that is
currently installed. Then, change the adapter to "Standard Display
Adapter (VGA)" and restart the system.

[That is: Click "Change, Next, bolt 'Display a List...', Next, bolt
'Show all hardware', scroll left pane to top, select '(Standard display
types)', select 'Standard Display Adapter (VGA)' in right pane, click
'Next'"... PCR]

This will remove the current adapter and replace it with a generic VGA
adapter that works with all video cards. You will not like VGA because
it supports only 16 colors, but the purpose of installing it is to get
rid of whatever was there before.

Next, return to the adapter screen and install an adapter that matches
your video card. This may or may not be the adapter that you are
using now. Examine the materials you received with your computer to
see if they include a CD-ROM or floppy disk that contains the correct
video adapter. Or go to the Gateway website and see if they have an
adapter for you to download. Or check the website of the company that
made your video card.

Bill Starbuck (MVP)
.......End....of quote....

Also...
..........Quote................
To identify your video adapter correctly, download and run either the
Everest or
Aida32 utility, available he
http://aumha.org/freeware/freeware.php#everest

Once you have identified the display adapter, go to the manufacturer's
web site and download the correct driver for you operating
system....(such as) Windows 98/98SE.
--
Glen Ventura, MS MVP Shell/User, A+
http://dts-l.org/goodpost.htm
.........EOQ....................


|
|
| Thanks
|

--
Thanks or Good Luck,
There may be humor in this post, and,
Naturally, you will not sue,
should things get worse after this,
PCR


| "Jess Fertudei" wrote in message
| ...
| | Hello,
| |
| | On my son's 98SE machine he used to get odd freezes where it just
| quits
| | solid... no cntl alt del or anything will work. This happens when
he's
| using
| | his kids educational software games, but only rarely and with no
| pattern to
| | which game it would appear.
| |
| | I originally wondered if it were a hardware issue and, after the
via
| sysmon
| | gave a few warnings on voltage, replaced the power supply. Then I
| wondered
| | if it were the board's supply. So... I built a new box in a new
case
| with
| | another new PS and new RAM and new Sempron. Before removing the
hard
| drive
| | from the old machine I did the Safe Mode deal where I removed
| everything
| | from Device Manager and when I put it into the new machine it went
| through
| | the paces of discovering and installing rather admirably. All were
| happy
| | with the new Zip over the old K6-2 500 that this 2400+ had...
until
| the
| | &^%^^%%*&^ froze solid on him again. I ran Maxtor Powermax on it
with
| the
| | full scan *twice* and the drive checks good. It is also not
| fragmented.
| |
| | SIGH
| |
| | It must be Windows. I really do not want to try doing a clean
install
| and
| | reinstall of all his flipping software. I considered doing an
upgrade
| to XP
| | Home until I found out that you only save $5 dollars by buying
| additional
| | licenses... I just spent a lot on building this system and don't
want
| to
| | invest that much more cash at this point.
| |
| | Suggestions on what might cause this, how to diagnose it and how
to
| fix it
| | cheap without going through night after night sitting there
putting
| all his
| | stuff back on it?
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
| |
|
|
|
|