Computer help?

Good luck, and make sure you have good backups first. =)

Nah. The disk I'm using right now was put in there by my cat It may be a difference of opinion, but how likely do you think this is the case here? I've been doing this for years and, although I have heard of people supposedly had this happen to them... I've never had this problem.But to relate this to evolution and abiogenesis, just because the supposed probability is low doesn't mean it can't happen

I haven't seen a case provably due to a bad hard disk. However, it seems plausible that disk errors affecting the paging file can look like memory errors.When my disk failed last month (probably a head crash), solaris still booted but with errors. WinME would not boot at all. WinXP booted without any visible error messages, but ran very slowly. It looked to me as if it was silently rebuilding damaged data, for it ran faster on subsequent reboot. (Yes, I one of those people who installs multiple operating systems on the one disk).

Me too. I have 4 right now, two of which are linux systems.

Good backups? Well I put stuff I must keep on some old Zip disks. Hope that suffices. Don't know how to burn a CD and this machine won't do that anyway.I'm not going to try to install a hard drive. I'll have to get someone to do that if it comes to that.I've printed out the advice received so far. I'm still in waiting mode. Another piece of equipment I need happened to go out at the same time -- if it's not one thing it's another -- and will arrive sometime today. Someone has offered me a computer she isn't using, wants to clean it up first. I'll get it later today. I have no idea what to expect. She doesn't know anything about computers, just happens to have this one in the office.I may yet reformat but I have to get my work done first if I can, which I can't get started on until later today thanks to the other machine going out.Funny I can still get on from time to time at least. It didn't even make the awful noises this time. --- correction, not really awful noises, just often sounds like it's working extra hard for a while before it settles down.Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

Jazzns,Bad hard drives can and do cause blue screens on 2000/XP even server 2003.

I know there can sometimes be a problem with the clock in a computer, a battery going bad? For a week or so EvC's times have been about a minute ahead of my computer time. A clue?

My computer time is currently 2 minutes off -- time for me to resynchronize with a time server.This is just clock drift, and normally not a serious problem.

One thing I have not seen mentioned is freespace. How much (as a percentage) of your disk is unused?

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Aslan is not a Tame Lion

The guy who set it up for me a few years ago partitioned the hard drive into C and D. C is about 75% full but D is 98% free. I've never figured out how to use the partition.

Hope this isn't Famous Last Words but the computer has been humming away quietly the whole time I've been on this time, and I've been able to keep posting without a hitch. I had a rocky time GETTING on, went through three bootups, and got frozen out as soon as I got online once. But since I got online this time not a problem at all.

Full harddrives shouldn't give you that much of a problem.

Sounds like bad harddrive. It also is sounding less and less like memory problem.

I guess replacing a hard drive is less expensive than getting a new computer. Can't afford either at the moment but the hard drive is probably the way to go.So can you recommend what hard drive to get? Or should I just find a computer person to do it for me?Does "less and less like memory problem" mean I shouldn't bother trying to reformat?Edited by Faith, : No reason given.

I now agree with the others that this is probably a hardware problem. I would not go ahead with the reformat, but a reinstalling of the OS wouldn't hurt. Back up everything vital Now! while your computer is running good.

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Just a monkey in a long line of kings.
If "elitist" just means "not the dumbest motherfucker in the room", I'll be an elitist!
*not an actual doctor