PC Freezing Up Temporarily

[jmhis34]

I have a Compaq 5410US and just installed ATT High Speed and the new version of Internet Explorer. Here's my problem, every 30 seconds, or so, the computer freezes up for 2 or 3 seconds, and then responds. Any ideas what the problem is or what I can do about it? I have an Intel Celeron processor with 256 mb SyncDram mem.

 

[qwertycopter]

Try uninstalling IE7 from add/remove programs.

 

[g-paw]

It's possible you just don't have enough RAM. At this point you really need at least 512MB. I probably just get a stick of 512 rather than get another 256 stick given it really won't match what you have and RAM isn't that expensive right now

 

[jmhis34]

Thanks - great idea. I noticed that when running the Windows Task Manager the CPU Usage jumps to 100% when the pc temp freezes up.

 

[g-paw]

Thanks - great idea. I noticed that when running the Windows Task Manager the CPU Usage jumps to 100% when the pc temp freezes up.

Depending on how long you plan on running the machine you may want to go with 1GB given that 512MB is really the minimum

 

[techgeek]

Not to detract from the very valid advice given (need more RAM for sure), when you are looking at the Task Manager, have a look at what process is utilizing your CPU time when it jumps to 100%. To do this go into the Processes tab, and click the CPU column twice (this will sort processes by CPU usage putting the highest use processes at the top). You should have the System Idle Process at the top with around 99% or so. Then launch IE 7 and watch the Task Manager for the process that stalls your computer, watch it for a little while and make sure it's consistently the same process. If it's something ordinary and Windows related, then don't worry about it and just get more RAM (heck get it anyways), but if you see a sketchy named process Google it and get the info on it. You want to make sure that it's not malware or a virus causing your problem. I am not trying to freak you out, cause it's most likely not malware, but it's better to be sure, especially since you notice it when you have IE running.

 

[g-paw]

Not to detract from the very valid advice given (need more RAM for sure), when you are looking at the Task Manager, have a look at what process is utilizing your CPU time when it jumps to 100%. To do this go into the Processes tab, and click the CPU column twice (this will sort processes by CPU usage putting the highest use processes at the top). You should have the System Idle Process at the top with around 99% or so. Then launch IE 7 and watch the Task Manager for the process that stalls your computer, watch it for a little while and make sure it's consistently the same process. If it's something ordinary and Windows related, then don't worry about it and just get more RAM (heck get it anyways), but if you see a sketchy named process Google it and get the info on it. You want to make sure that it's not malware or a virus causing your problem. I am not trying to freak you out, cause it's most likely not malware, but it's better to be sure, especially since you notice it when you have IE running.

In addition to the above, if you haven't done so, download and install AdAware and Spyspot Search and Destroy both free anti-spyware programs and run them in safe mode. Also run CCleaner, also free, and defrag again in Safe Mode in addition to the RAM. While cleaning out stuff and defragging will not directly address your problem, it should help speed things up

 

[jmhis34]

Thanks for all of the advice...I really appreciate it! Great ideas.