Do you have Windows XP installed, and is it crashing regularly?

[Radio_Lady]

This has been occurring almost every time I try to sign on. Today, the program began to take me to this page:

http://oca.microsoft.com/en/response.aspx?SGD=d9a30c0a-9feb-44f5-872d-ab3197d6883b&SID=1501

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Windows XP Error during Shutdown: Solution in Progress

Last Updated April 28, 2005

Thank you for taking the time to submit an error report to Microsoft. The information you sent us helps make the entire Windows experience measurably better for our customers.

Description

The error you are encountering in Microsoft Windows XP occurs when you shut down or restart your computer. Because of this, Windows can’t notify you until you start your computer again.

Microsoft has determined the cause, and a solution is currently under development. We are working as quickly as possible to release the solution to our customers.

We do not expect this experience to harm your data or the performance of your computer.

We apologize for any inconvenience this problem may have caused you.

What to Expect

You might see a repeat of this error when you turn on your computer. Please continue to send us feedback through these error reports to Microsoft. The information we receive helps us investigate this and other problems you may encounter. Additionally, if you encounter this error again and a solution is available, you will see an updated message and information about the solution.

We also recommend that you turn on Automatic Updates. This will help ensure that you receive the solution in a Windows Update release when it is available.

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Looks like they're taking their sweet time coming up with a fix.

Oh well, it gives me more time to work on my reading.

[amerikat]

1. I had the same problem

I figured it out......It was bad ram memory.

[Radio_Lady]

2. How did you fix it, amerikat?

[amerikat]

11. Went to the store and got a new memory card

I am computer literate and nothing seamed to work........I tried everything...microsoft kept saying it was a bad driver that needed to be updated. It was just a bad/uncompatable ram chip. My computer crashed twice a day at least. Now it runs perfectly.

[Mist]

25. Same thing happened w/my laptop

After about 5 months of use, was crashing to the point of being frozen. Memory card had to be replaced.

[Stinky The Clown]

33. I had exactly the same issue on a brand new computer

The computer was custom built locally by a storefront guy named Sam. In the first few days it crashed pretty damned regularly. Sam took it back and was oing to run a RAM test overnight. It crashed immediately. New ram. 24 hour test. No problem.

That was almost 6 months ago. Since then it has not crashed even once.

[Radio_Lady]

39. Did you read my initial message fully?

Microsoft is accepting the fact that there is a problem, and says it is working on it since April, 2005.

I am not interested in replacing RAM that tests OK. I am not interested in changing from Microsoft products to other products.

I simply inquired if anyone had reached the same CRASH message.

It is at:

http://oca.microsoft.com/en/response.aspx?SGD=d9a30c0a-9feb-44f5-872d-ab3197d6883b&SID=1501

[bananas]

26. memory test

Here's a free memory tester.
http://www.memtest86.com/

[iconoclastic cat]

9. You get new RAM.

It's cheap.

[amerikat]

17. your cat drinks Bass?

[iconoclastic cat]

My cat does not drink Bass.

[amerikat]

24. oh......he bathes in bass?

You need a pilsner potty.

[Gloria]

3. Jeez, I hope this doesn't happen to me!!

My big problem is with my battery back up surge protector. It messes up my getting onto the internet. I have to unplug everything when I'm done to avoid the problem...most of the time.

[Cleita]

4. When it happened to me, it turned out that I had a virus.

eom

[Horse with no Name]

5. It sounds like you have a worm

Would recommend if you can:

1. Run a scan
www.pandasoftware.com/activescan (free)

2. Install Adaware and run
www.lavasoft.de (free)

3. Have a good antivirus
www.grisoft.com (free)

4. Run a spyware scan
www.download.com (find webroot spysweeper) (free)

Don't upgrade to service pack 2 whatever you do.
I hope this helps.

[Nite Owl]

10. Still not safe for SP2?

My son did it months ago and keeps telling me to do it but I had it install by itself in Nov and it was a mess. I had the thing checked not to install automatically checked too. I did that restore thing and it's all been ok til tonight with the outlook problem.

[Horse with no Name]

12. I won't install it

Try the scans and see if you find anything.
This really sounds like a worm.

[Nite Owl]

16. Norton did it's scan

and I'll do another one overnight. I didn't want to miss Malloy! I usually do adaware, spybot, trendmicro and have spywareblaster installed too. At least once usually twice a week. Something got in somehow.

[NuttyFluffers]

30. i'd do an AVG antivirus scan

spyware is nice, but you need something to buffer norton's antivirus, it isn't all that hot (to quote paris hilton...).

try it and let me know if it helps.

[Nite Owl]

32. Thanks I will.

I so dislike this Norton and to think I actually paid for it too! I got the new one a few months ago, the old one seemed fine but I had to upgrade the damned thing! I'm going to do one scan, go to bed and let it run and see what happens in the am then do AVG and the rest. I'll holler if it doesn't work.

[mahina]

6. XP needs a pretty fast processor and more RAM than 98

I learned sadly.
It's working now.
Good luck! Sorry about stating the obvious but do back up while you can, I crashed hard and wished I had.

[Tux]

7. LOL

Got Linux?

[okieinpain]

18. oh linux is ok, and so is windows. once linux becomes popular

you will hear the same complaints about linux that you do about windows. just let folks start installing their smiley icons, and cute screen savers and it will be windows all over again.

[QC]

29. Exactly--if Linux ever breaks out of the 3% market share range,

then assholes will find it worth their time to create viruses for it.

[Tux]

34. ALready doing it

They released a total of 4 last year and none worked even on the targeted distros. Why Linux users have to deal with lame virus writers, I'll never know.

[kenny blankenship]

43. what you just said

makes it obvious neither of you understand how much Linux and Windows differ in their security models.

It's not possible to send me an attachment in email that my Linux system considers executable--ELF binary, shell script, whatever.

That's not a "setting" in my email program, that's a systemwide policy that is set to prevent such idiocies and it's default on any Linux system I've ever heard of. When I create, receive in email, any file, this file is created with read and write permissions for my user id read, read perms for my group. No execute perms. It doesn't matter the file in question is a binary executable suitable for the linux loader: until that execute flag is set in the file's permissions it cannot be run, not by me or any process owned by me or even by the administrative account or a process running as root.

If I was fool enough to deliberately chmod the attachment to be executable, and then ran it (which would have to be a deliberate act on my part as well since this file will not be stored on any path that the loader ordinarily looks through for runnable programs) this program still would not be able to modify or replace important system binaries making it difficult or impossible to clean out of the system. It could only trash my personal files. Why? Because as a normal user of my system who surfs the internet, edits images, reads email and composes word processed documents I don't have permission to write to any of these critical system files, or even to create files in the directories where such system files live. If I need to do something of an administrative nature I have to be logged in as the system's unique administrative account: "root."

On 90+ percent of all the Windows systems out there anyone sitting at the keyboard can (inadvertantly) install any shit whatsoever. You do or your kids do it or your kids' friends can also do it. No security AT ALL. WHen Windows users run programs like Outlook and Internet Explorer these programs are so hooked into the core of the Windows system and unrestricted by access privileges that they can completely compromise their systems without the user having done anything of a deliberate or unusual nature. And then Microsoft blames the billions and billions of dollars' worth of damage and downtime their shitfaced operating system causes on "user error."

THAT is why Windows is a fucked up world of shit and why there are no email viruses for Linux (and precious few successful worm programs either of the kind which also continuously permeate the Windows culture and which were hitting my firewall at least once no doubt as I typed this reply)

[bpilgrim]

41. MAC is PLUG&PLAY, though

http://www.apple.com/macmini

and runs MS Office ;->

peace

[Nite Owl]

8. So far shut down and restart are ok

but Outlook won't get the mail from the servers. Keeps freezing up. Just started tonight. Error keeps coming up.

[Lauri16]

15. I had nothing but problems with Outlook

Switch to Mozilla Thunderbird. No more issues with freezing or Outlooks other problematic quirks.

[Nite Owl]

20. I have a lot of programs

for work that need IE unfortunately. I was thinking of going the Mozilla route but just kept seeing that they would work only on IE or netscape on the sites and programs so I would have to keep switching back and forth.

[Lauri16]

27. Oh, that stinks.

I didn't even think that about that. Sorry.:(
I'm 'puter illiterate, so I can only tell you that I hope someone can help you get it figured out! :)

[Nite Owl]

31. I was all set to

get an Apple when I needed the new computer too. They have some sort of 'skin' that you can use to imitate windows but it slows things down and that wouldn't work out too well. I was so disappointed. Always something with these machines, it's really a love/hate relationship!

[FreepFryer]

13. That question is redundant, ipso facto. :) n/t

[librechik]

14. I'm no expert, but have you checked the temperature on your computer?

Seems like every time the computer just goes CRAZY it's a problem with the cooling fan. When the fan goes bad nothing works right. Is there a kind of louder fan noise than you are used to? I have had this happen to me many times over 15 or 20 years of using computers. My son built a computer that was so heat sensitive he had to build in a thermometer program to keep it operating properly. We finally had to part it out, it was just too hot.

Fans are fairly cheap and easy to fix. Your local computer guy will do it, most likely for $100 or so. We do it ourselves--you open up the case and there's the fan. Unscrew it and take the whole thing to the computer parts store. They give you back a replacement and you screw it back in place of the old one.

I have an old laptop with XP and it works just fine. My other computer has recurring fan problems (I've changed the fan 3 times.) It effects the memory (I get "memory full" messages) and causes the computers to start acting flakey, like shutting themselves off, or programs freezing and crashing.

A new fan gives my computer a new lease on life. All the flakiness goes away (for a year or two)Then the fan goes bad and I start over.

Can't say for sure that's what your computer has, but I would check that. Computers are really difficult to break, except for the few moving parts, or if you drop it or get invaded.

just an idea.Good luck!

[IChing]

19. I have a powerbook

but my friend said his PC crashed too.

You all need to go to linux,
it is free and open source
and has no security problems as compared

south america is going linux
china is inventing its own os.

[paparush]

21. Several Things to Consider

1. Your may have a bad RAM stick. Download a utility that tests your ram: http://oca.microsoft.com/en/windiag.asp RAM does go bad and will cause a myriad of strange behaviors.

2. Your power supply might be f@cked. Fluctuating voltage can do weird things.

3. Your cpu fan might be shot. See #2 above.

4. You may have a virus/worm.

[TreasonousBastard]

22. Surprisingly, I've had no problems with...

XP and SP2.

Maybe because it's a plain vanilla XP that came with an IBM desktop and doesn't have all the the crap Compaq, Dell, and some others add to "improve" Windows. I had a W98 Compaq that crashed daily, when it worked at all, but the HP with the vanilla 98 I loaded from an MS disk ran like a champ.

Needless to say, run all the virus and spyware apps you can get your hands on. You could be infected, or it could be some hardware problem like a failing drive or memory. Most likely it's some software conflict. You might want to uninstall suspicious or weird apps that you don't really use anyway. Then find a registry cleaner to get rid of the remaining crumbs. I installed Secretmaker, and it really screwed things up for a while until I uninstalled it and cleaned the registry. I'm using the free version of Tweak Now registry cleaner ( www.tweaknow.com ) but there are plenty of others out there.

M$ says it "knows" what the problem is, which is more evidence it's a software conflict, and I'm guessing that they are working out a way to deal with something non-M$ on your machine.

[countmyvote4real]

23. Humble Mac user "not a problem for me" dance.

Not a problem on 9.1. Not a problem on 10.3.9.

I could go on, but I'll just leave with the slightest suggestion of a gloat dance and remind you Windows users that you are SO popular. I could never be a cheerleader.

[Princess Turandot]

36. I only used MACS thru OS 8.5..

and had the machine crash almost every day. I got a windows 98 based laptop in 98 and in abt 6 months actually stopped using the MAC altogether. I'm a tiny minority, but I found I liked Windows a lot more than Apple when all was said and done.

[bpilgrim]

42. that's ancient history... OS X is where it's at TODAY

http://www.apple.com/macmini

and for todays wired world the security alone is worth any app windows got ;->

peace

[Poiuyt]

40. Mac OS X doesn't crash

Applications will, but not the system. And no viruses, worms, spyware, etc.

[raysr]

28. Take the plunge

switch to Linux. I downloaded sp2 and XP immediately crashed. I reinstalled and it was still messed up, so I looked at all the spyware and anti-virus programs I had accumulated and said "I don't need this shit". Xandros 3 on one drive and Mepis 3.3 on the other. F--k Gates.

[AntiCoup2K4]

37. Any windows user should be able to switch to Xandros.

Put two machines side by side and it would be hard to notice the difference in how it functions, from the end user perspective. Xandros even includes the "crossover office" plug-in which will run MS Office on your computer. It would even run Internet Explorer - not that you would want to.

Mepis is good too. As is any Debian based distro.

Only thing that keeps Windows on my machine right now is the ability to burn video DVD's. Linux doesn't have that one down yet. Oh sure, it's possible if you do it all from command line coding, but my last Unix class was in 1996 and who the Hell remembers all that shit?

As soon as K3B (or a similar program) handles DVD's as well as NERO does for Windows, I'm done with M$ for good.

[Princess Turandot]

35. I did a clean install of XP on a new second drive when I installed it..

I also did the SP2 upgrade when it came out. I've not had a problem with either. XP has never crashed in terms of the Blue Screen of Death, and I've maybe had 3 screen freezes which were application related since I installed XP around 2 years ago.

I do have a lot of RAM however (1.2 gb).

I have a newish laptop with 512mb RAM and XP SP2 and haven't had a problem with that either, although I don't do anything too intensive with it.

[Radio_Lady]

38. My husband ran a memory test from a program called

Check-It Diagnostics. It said that the memory in my computer was fine.

Funny, his installation of Windows XP has had no problems. Same broadband cable and router linkage -- go figure.

We did the upgrades to Service Pack 2 a while ago. This problem has come up just recently.

I'm just going to continue to send them error reports until they come up with a fix or a "workaround".

Thanks for your advice, DUers! Have a great Saturday!