Lois & Clark Forums Forums General Discussion Technical Help and How To's More Computer help, please?

{big sigh}

Okay, here's the problem: I just bought a new laptop, less than a month ago. Overall, it works great, but periodically...it freezes up completely. No blue screen of death, just total and utter stillness -- mouse won't move, keyboard won't work, ctrl+alt+delete does nothing.

The only thing that works is to hit the power key and manually shut it down.

I've noticed when it does this, the fan starts whirring like crazy. I've tried shutting the lid to get it to hibernate and theoretically cool down (in case that's the problem), but even after waiting a while, the fan is still whirring, it's not on standby/hibernate and it's still frozen.

I've also noticed it only happens when I have multiple programs running (Word, Firefox, PDFs, etc), but it doesn't happen *every* time I have multiple programs running.

Is this a hardware problem? A software problem? A virus? (I've got protection, but those nasty things like to slip through, I've heard.)

Oh, and the other complication? I bought the machine at a going out of business sale, so I cannot take it back to the store to be looked at. Is my only option to send it to Toshiba?

Thanks so much for any and all help!

Bethy

Well, I'm not *that* good with technics but I had the same problem with my older laptop (Toshiba).

I went to the store I got it from to get it repaired (because I didn't know it was the fan), they cleaned it but told me that it would be blocked again pretty soon and that it's my fault.

There were only some ways to delay the process:

- Only use it on a proper stable base (i.e. not the lap) to make sure the fan gets enough air
- Buy an additional extern fan (about 30$)
- Vacuum it occasionally (sounds silly, but it DID help)

In the end, there was no way around getting a new laptop. If it had only been for the fan, I wouldn't have bought a new one (I got pretty used to save my files every other minute).
And my new one (Acer) never had this kind of problem. So I'd say, it's a hardware problem.
But Toshiba wouldn't want to replace/repair the fan

Hope you are a bit luckier!

Jana

Seems it really is a Toshiba problem. Mine used to do the same. Still does, when I try to do too many things at once. (Seems Toshibas are weak at multi-tasking.) It usually happens when my laptop tries to auto-save some file while I'm just opening something else.

Ever since I found out about it, I try to save my stuff before starting another program. It sure helps - as long as I don't forget it. Turning all auto-save functions off might be another way of dealing with it, but I simply don't know how.

Well, about the auto-save option, I can tell you how to do it for Microsoft Office products.

Go to "Tools->Options..."

Click on the "Save" tab.

There is an option "Save AutoRecover info every:" and a number box beside it. You can either change that number to a higher value, making the time (in minutes) between AutoSaves larger, or simply un-select that option, so that the computer doesn't create AutoRecovery files (may be dangerous if it DOES lock and you didn't save the file; you might lose everything you had typed).

For other Microsoft Office programs (Excel, PowerPoint) it's the same procedure.

malu

That's the dilemma. Last time my laptop decided to crash, I lost half an hour of work despite (or rather, because of) the auto save. But it's still better than loosing all of it. But as I said before: Saving a file before starting something else does help.

Do you have Vista - how much memory do you have?

Are there any other strange behaviors?

And (especially if you have Vista), have you noticed any one particular program (or combination of programs) that causes this to happen? There was one program that I had that worked fine on XP, but on Vista would cause the computer to just turn off (a patch fixed it).

Well, I, for one, have XP.

Thanks for the help, everyone.

I have put it on my desk, with a book under the back of the keyboard to allow air to flow more easily under it and it has helped (it has only frozen once since doing that). (Tangent mutter: It's called a *lap*top for a reason! If I wanted a desktop, I'd've bought one)

Jana, when you say vacuum it -- what exactly am I to vacuum? (My previous Toshiba had fan issues and I would open it up and clean out the fan periodically, but this one doesn't have access to the fan itself. It looks to me like I'd have to remove the entire bottom cover to do that, and I'm wary of that.)

Tzigone -- I have XP and I've got 2G of RAM. It *should* be great at multi-tasking with that much, but clearly, it's not.

Thanks again!

Bethy

Hi Bethy,

good to hear that it's getting at least a bit better - and yeah, *that*'s what I thought when I was told about using a proper base... most of the time I would put a book on my legs and use it there... but still, that's not the way it's supposed to be, I know.

And when I used to vacuum it, I simply cleaned the bottom. I think, I could see where exactly the fan is (I can't see it on my current one though, so I'm not exactly sure). So, I did not remove any parts of the thing itself (that's why I think, it sounds a little silly), but apparently the dust came out of the fan just like that.

Well, as I said, it wasn't really forever but it made the thing stably working for about 3 or 4 days.

Good luck!

Jana

The fact that it crashes less when it's well ventilated could very well mean that it's a heat problem. That could be caused by all sorts of things: bad fan, too much or too little thermal paste, badly designed ventilation, or maybe too much dirt and dust.

The probable reason why it crashes more with multiple applications open is most likely due to the fact that more applications running cause more heat as the processor must work harder.

If it's not a hardware problem, it's most likely due to a poorly-written device driver. Drivers have better access to system functions than applications do because they need direct access to hardware, so it's much, much harder for an application to take down a system.

One thing you can try is to update the drivers on your laptop. Very rarely do newly purchased machines actually have the latest drivers installed. Check Toshiba's website for the latest drivers for your particular laptop and install them. That may fix your problem.

If you're unable to fix the problem, you could always get one of those laptop bases with built-in fans. I have one for my laptop with two built-in fans and it keeps the bottom of my laptop cool where otherwise it'd be almost too hot to touch. If the crashes stop at that point, it's most certainly a heat issue.

If you are having computer problems and aren't getting any real help from the company who made it and it isn't too old - go online to

www.pcworld.com

they have a column "sort of a consumer affairs" type thing. Anyway write them about your problem and what you did to try to solve it and they will contact the company about your problem. I know in the past they've gotten peoples stuff replaced or repair bill paid.

Also call the company's help line. I had a friend that bought a Dell desktop and had prolems with it from the day he bought it. After over a year of calling he finally asked to speak to a supervisor. When he told him the problem right off rep said it was a short in the motherboard. Anyway when he told the rep about all the calls he had made trying to resolve the problem, the supervisory rep looked up his call record and told him they would honor the warranty even though it had expired and send him a new computer. He told him they would do this because he had been trying to resolve the problem from the start and that the techs should have realized what the problem was or told him to take it to an authorized repair place. If he hadn't had the dates, time of call and how long the call lasted I don't think they would have honored the expired warranty.