win xp weird lock ups, looking for fix plz help!

[Zink560]

http://www.experts-exchange.com/Oper..._20976836.html

im gettin the problem in that link. sometimes the pc will turn on and it will just act perfect, then other times it displays alot of strange symptoms

1. when it starts up and shows the login screen, the mouse moves all jerky and slow instead of smooth, and when i log in the sound clip will be really choppy

2. sometimes when having websites open, aim open, playing an mp3, and browsing threw folders fast, everything will be f*cked up. when trying to open programs they wont open for like 10 minutes and i forget about them, when trying to look at my C drive or some other specefic folder, it wont let me navigate to it! it will just show the flashlight looking arround and then kind of freeze up like that, while another window thats open and responsive sometimes can work fine. and basically when this happens, the comp goes to a halt and i can't do anything! and i will have to force restart it, or rarely it will restart itself

3. when the comp isnt acting right, a common symptom is that the icons on the desktop will disappear and the whole desktop will refresh after like a second or two.

when i got this prob in the past i would just reinstall win xp and it would run clean and squeeky, but iv had it setup like this for a few monthes now and its JUST the way i want it, and i cant do anything drastic like that. (or maybe i can somehow reinstall win xp without any of my settings or other stuff looking any different, if so let me know)

the probelm isnt related to fragmentation, since its defragmented every so often, and the problem doesnt change afterwards.

i also have norton systemworks 2004, and from my experience with macs norton systemworks is the shit! it does everything and fixes it all like nothing else can. when i want to do the disk doctor thing that runs all the checks and fixes files and stuff, it says that windows has taken control over it and it cant run the check if windows is on or something, so i can never fix the drive that way, which would fix it perfect if its anything like the mac version.


anyways, if you think you can help with any of these problems, dont hesitate to post! i feal confident in saying that i think all these problems and symptoms are caused by the same problem, and are all related


thanks for reading, and any help that I recieve!

[thedogcow]

It sounds to me like your hdd is on its way out... Try running the manufacturer's diagnostic tool to check this, or fins a tool which checks the S.M.A.R.T values of the hdd (a simple self test), just make sure SMART is enabled in the bios!

Good Luck!

[Zink560]

is the error-checking option in windows xp properties/tools any good? i'm thinking of running that, or can anyone recommend a good program for the job? or a good application that uses SMART?

[dr_gonzo]

http://www.experts-exchange.com/Oper..._20976836.html

im gettin the problem in that link. sometimes the pc will turn on and it will just act perfect, then other times it displays alot of strange symptoms

1. when it starts up and shows the login screen, the mouse moves all jerky and slow instead of smooth, and when i log in the sound clip will be really choppy

2. sometimes when having websites open, aim open, playing an mp3, and browsing threw folders fast, everything will be f*cked up. when trying to open programs they wont open for like 10 minutes and i forget about them, when trying to look at my C drive or some other specefic folder, it wont let me navigate to it! it will just show the flashlight looking arround and then kind of freeze up like that, while another window thats open and responsive sometimes can work fine. and basically when this happens, the comp goes to a halt and i can't do anything! and i will have to force restart it, or rarely it will restart itself

3. when the comp isnt acting right, a common symptom is that the icons on the desktop will disappear and the whole desktop will refresh after like a second or two.

when i got this prob in the past i would just reinstall win xp and it would run clean and squeeky, but iv had it setup like this for a few monthes now and its JUST the way i want it, and i cant do anything drastic like that. (or maybe i can somehow reinstall win xp without any of my settings or other stuff looking any different, if so let me know)

the probelm isnt related to fragmentation, since its defragmented every so often, and the problem doesnt change afterwards.

i also have norton systemworks 2004, and from my experience with macs norton systemworks is the shit! it does everything and fixes it all like nothing else can. when i want to do the disk doctor thing that runs all the checks and fixes files and stuff, it says that windows has taken control over it and it cant run the check if windows is on or something, so i can never fix the drive that way, which would fix it perfect if its anything like the mac version.


anyways, if you think you can help with any of these problems, dont hesitate to post! i feal confident in saying that i think all these problems and symptoms are caused by the same problem, and are all related


thanks for reading, and any help that I recieve!

format

[Zink560]

definetly, but i cant stand working with a freshly installed os... its not broken in, all the settings are all wrong and nothing is the way i want it to be.. well i can the windows error check thing, so far so good

[Cpt_Obvious]

Arrrrrrr, run yer norton systemworks in safe mode with no network support matey...and also check yer pc for spyware. I've seen pleanty a PC on me network wig out and do just stupid things cuz they was overloaded with that beastly spyware shit. I swears, that stuff is more hard to deal with than yer average pC virus as of late.

[thetieger]

I agree with cappy, I think some is definitelyt running in the backround, I would recommend

1. Start- Run - Msconfig, and disable Them ALL unless u see something you need

2. running lavasoft ad-aware on boot

3. cleaning the registry (which I think that norton app does)

4. do disk cleanup, then defrag (may make it a bit faster )

5. if none of the above works, sadly you have to reformat

-Thetieger

[idiiot]

Download this program and paste the log here
http://www.spychecker.com/program/hijackthis.html

I'll get someone I know who's good at this stuff to look it over and spot some problems.

[thetieger]

yeh, hijackthis is good if you know what you're doin....but that's like going in and mannually removing stuff in most cases, and in most cases it's a lot cause (if his comp is just that fux0red)

[Zink560]

i already dealed with spyware, and my computer is immune. i hav spybot running that doesnt allow the browser settings to be changed or its start page changed and all the other features on, i have adaware with the latest definitions, i have windows sp2, and all of these together make my pc spyware proof. but you guys definetly have the right idea, this does sort of feal like a spyware problem. i am starting to think that stuff is running in the backround causing this stuff to slow down, but i dont think its anything more than one of the many programs i installed causing conflicts of some sort. i'm going to try booting into safemode and run norton