Can Deal with crashing.......

But I have a very big problem with my computer completly powering off !! This ONLY happens when on SL. Any one have any ideas how to trouble shoot whats happening ????

Tina,

Back when my power supply was failing (and before I knew that was the problem), my computer was doing the same thing any time it had to "work hard." (the fans would start kicking on everywhere) It would just shut off with no warning.

When I joined SL, before I knew that you had to update your graphic card drivers, I'd crash out of SL after only 60 seconds at a time, and my computer was trying to "work hard" again every time.

So if you haven't updated your drivers, SL could possibly just drive your computer into that situation moreso than other things you are running. So if your computer is having the same problem as mine, update the drivers first (free) before looking into the power supply, or a bad RAM chip, or something like that. (You can tell I'm no computer expert -- just have had these things happen to me).

i dont know what other applications you run on your computer but it sounds like either heat and/or power (like mentioned before)

most likely heat imo

the thing to think about here is system usage, when you load up a web browser, or check your e-mail ect the system only does a few seconds of hard work then drops back down to a mostly idle mode, which with most modern compters, drops voltages on the hardware which reduces wattage usage and heat (along with saving you some pennies on your power bill)

when SL is running the cpu, ram, and video card are running full blast, requiring more power... whenever you apply more electricity you create more heat

if somethings getting too hot, to the point of potential damage to the hardware, the system will automatically start cutting back, which results in very poor performance

if its getting extreamly hot it will kill power

now i could write a book here about generic pc repair but maby you could give us some hardware names so we can check for both heat and power using software rather than unpluging everything and opening the pc

Well actually heat was my first thought, the fans only seem to run at one speed. When I put my hand behind the exhaust fan the air coming out doesnt seem to be warm. I have plased a small floor fan in front of a vent blowing in to see what happens. So in you opion, even tho this only seems to happen when running SL, for once its not there fault ??

lets not jump to conclusions now

When was the last time you blew the dust out of your computer? Cans of compressed air are available most everywhere computer assessories are sold. It's best to unplug everything, take teh sides off the case and take the open box outside. Blow every compontent off thoroughly (be careful not to get the can nozzle too close to anything important........the compressed air comes out at a pretty high velosity and it's quite cold). When it get to the fans (including the power supply) make sure you get the air to move the fans blades so the air gets inside and pushes the "dust bunnies" out.

That's the simplest and cheapest thing to do if you suspect heat problems (about 4 USD at Office Depot per can......cheaper in packs of three). A little preventative maintenance (like cleaning out you computer case once a month) will go a long way toward keeping your computer alive for years. I do a thorough cleaning about once a month with weekly squirts through the ventilation holes.......just the keep the dust from sticking too badly to circuit boards, fan blades, heat sink vanes, etc.

Power supplies are not terribly expensive.........you should be able to get a 500 watt, dual fan PS for well under 100 USD. Stick with major brands and stay away from remanufactured ones.

Be careful to place it where the computer actually sucks in air, not one of the vent grilles where air comes out-otherwiese you'll make it worse. You coul aslo try something like Speedfan, a freeware programme that tells you stuff such as CPU temperatures.

yea really the best solution is to yank the side off and hose it down with dry compressed air, while your blowing out dust watch the fans, if they are really slow or frozen they are bad (berings seized) and need to be replaced (which you can do with a screwdriver and a trip to your local mega-compu-mart, bad fans in hand)

I'm having issues as well. I updated my drivers, blew out all the dust, it's in a cool room, and I'm still having issues ONLY with SL. I get in for less than 60 seconds and my monitor shuts down. Black, no power, and not willing to come back on again. In order to clear it up, I have to flip the power switch off on the surge protector.

This has just started happening since I uploaded the new drivers. I'm at a loss as to what to do next. Last week SL was crashing frequently, but at least my monitor wasn't blacking out. Any suggestions before I try writing tech support? I don't want to cancel my SL account, but it's not doing me much good if I can't use the dang thing!

Kembri

Your drivers may be corrupted. Try downloading them again and before you install the new drivers uninstall the old ones (that's a good idea when you install any driver updates but especially when installing video drivers).

Also, it sounds as if somehow your CMOS setting have changed. If, in the past your system would restart instead of shutting down during a catastrophic crash (as you describe) then something has changed. Check you manual for your computer to see how to change or check the CMOS settings..........it's usually hitting "delete" during the boot process before the "splash screen" appears.

I would also check for spy/maleware and, of course, any viruses.......just to be safe.

Worst case scenario would be a broken video card, I guess-SL IS pretty taxing....but I'd also put my money on borked drivers

It is very likely that there is a circuit breaker in the surge protector which is reset by flipping the power switch.

If this is the case, you have broken hardware somewhere and are a risk of causing a fire. The circuit breaker is tripping because something is drawing too much current. Either you have overloaded the power strip (too many things plugged in) or some hardware is broken and causing repeated trips.

Resetting a household circuit breaker every five minutes risks burning down your house because you aren't fixing the *cause* of the tripping breaker. This is very likely the same problem on a smaller scale. Get someone who knows electronics better than you to check it out.

Speaking from experience, house fires are no fun at all.

I'm only going off the first post, but do you have a laptop/notebook, by chance? And if so, do you play SL with it on your lap, or on pillows or blankets? I recommend putting laptops on desks or tables whenever possible. Blankets and stuff seem to just hold the heat in place whereas it has a better chance of dissipating on a flat surface.

I used to play SL in bed, but my compuer started powering off on summer nights. My husband used to play World of Warcraft in bed, but his computer not only powered off but his motherboard fried as a result. Also, my SL partner had overheating problems in her notebook because her exhaust fan started working only intermittently, and her motherboard ended up cooking. The exhaust fan temperature alone is not a good indicator of heat.

Once SL is running and you're moving around your computer is working overtime, and that's when it will run the hottest.

Thanks for all the responses on this.... I have a gateway 835gm desktop. Ive taken it apart, the heat sink dont seem overly hot to the touch so I dont think its heat. But I blew it out and and cleaned it up. reinstalled windows and drivers with my recover disks. Load paintshop, office a couple games. worked fine. Put on SL played for 15 mins, SL crashed twice then all of a sudden kapoot it shut off and repowered. I have no other to think that SL is causing it, just cant figure out how.Other than when SL crashes its corrupting something. I hate this

Tough! Have you put your finger on the heatsink when SL was running, especially the one on the video board? (or depending on board, used speedfan?) Photoshop/Office isn't the same as SL ... SL pushes the limits on the processor and the video board (especially the 3D render). Comparing SL to 3D games would be more like it.

Depending on the video board, it may also be the power supply. Some boards (especially some by ATI) were chewing power for 3D rendering like mad, maybe the power supply gives in if it's under constant strain for some time.

Btw, what's the video board in the computer?

This was happening to me too. Are you running Anti-Idle Camping Adventure in the background, by any chance? I stopped running that and had NO such problems, then after a couple weeks tried running it in the background again, and BLAM! (Notice it is no longer available to buy on slexchange...)

Anti-Idle has nothing to do with it ( I tested that)...I can only stay logged in for 20 min at most and so can my hubby ( diff comps) it looks like we are still online but we are not when we go to move....can't move at all ( frozen=crashed)

High packet loss and friends list not showing up all the way and shoes up my arse........this is not my comp or my hubbies and our connection is very strong...just had internet tec out and he said our connection is best he has seen.....I can surf the net and not loose connection but when running SL I loose connection to SL.....any one got a clue because this is very irritating?

That is a different problem than the original poster's, sorry can't help you with that one.

do you happen to be on wireless connection?

Yes, I am on wireless running off a DSL. I have noticed when I get moving too fast That does crash SL its almost predictable. Good news....!!! I think fingers crossed, I have found the problem, Its a bad memory board. I have been running SL, paint sho pro and explorer for 3 hours, and even tho SL hase crash a couple of time the computer has not sut down one time. Let hope, and The others thats having this shut down probs. D/L a memory tester off the net.