Common
causes of freezing:
- Low memory
- Low disk space
- Fragmented disk
- Too many programs
open simultaneously
- Low CPU speed
- Corrupt files
- Software bugs
- Overheating - random
lockups that start several minutes after you start up the PC are often
the result of the processor cooling fan not working properly
- Some non-standard
applications are suspect with freezing problems
- Memory chip problems
- Virus infection
Steps
you can take to minimize freezing:
There are many things
that you can do to help your computer do what you want without testing
your patience...
- Do a disk cleanup
(cache, temp files, old or unused files, recycle bin) .. click here for
instructions.
- Do not run any more
applications at one time than you need to.
- If the freezing
happens consistently with one application, uninstall and reinstall it -
files associated with the application may have become corrupted. Always
use Control Panel/ Add Remove programs, or the uninstall program
belonging to the program to uninstall a program.
- If the freezing has
been occurring since you installed a new program, uninstall it.
- Uninstall any
programs that you may have downloaded and installed in the past, but no
longer use.
- Get the latest
Windows update at
http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com
- Get any available
patches for your software - go to the manufacturer's websites to check
for patches or updates to your programs.
- Free up resources -
click on Run and type "msconfig" in the dialog box. Next, click on the
"Startup" tab. All the programs listed here with check marks are
running in the system memory. To free resources Windows 98 users may
uncheck everything except "System Tray" . Windows ME users can uncheck
everything except ScanRegistry, PCHealth, *StateMgr and System Tray.
Leave your anti-virus software in the startup as well. You must restart
the computer for these changes to take effect.
- Run ScanDisk (or
Check Disk in Windows XP)
- Defragment your disk.
Click here for instructions.
- If you have an older
computer and are trying to run multiple applications, you may need to
upgrade your computer... check the system specifications recommended
for the applications you are running to see if your system is capable
of doing what you are asking.
- Obtain the latest
drivers for your hardware - go to the web sites of the hardware
manufacturers and get the latest drivers for your video card, sound
card etc
- Redetect your devices
- remove the components from the Control Panel, System, Device
Management screen. Reboot the system and let Windows redetect and add
only those devices which are actually on your system.
- Make sure that you
have anti-virus software installed. Set it to automatically update
virus definitions, to scan all incoming files, and to do a full system
check at regular intervals.
Disk
Cleanup :
For Windows 98 & 2000
You have probably been
downloading programs, creating and deleting files, and installing new
software without thinking about the effect this has on your disk space.
It's probably time to have a clean-up. Windows 98 and 2000 have a
feature that cleans up your disks for you. It removes temporary files,
the recycle bin and other files - giving you the option to delete or not
to delete. It is simple to run.
|
Do this
clean-up as follows:
Start: Programs:
Accessories: System Tools: Disk Clean Up
When it opens up,
select the C: Drive and start it. It will pop up and show you about
four types of files, each with a check box. Check the boxes for files
you would like deleted and proceed. It should run through pretty
quickly and then you will have more space on your computer.
For Win 95
Windows Temporary
Files
Firstly, get rid of
your Windows Temporary files. |
Go to Start> Find>
Files & Folders. Then search for "*.tmp" (minus the quotes). The *
allows you to look for any file that has a temporary file type. If you
have done it right, only files that have a .tmp after them should appear
in the search results. Now just click on the first one, hold shift, use
the scroll bar to go all the way to the bottom, then click on the last
one, and press delete.
Secondly, get rid of
your Temporary Internet files
Go to the Temporary
Internet Files folder in the Windows directory. It should be next to the
Temp folder. There shouldn't be anything in here that can't be deleted,
so you can go ahead and delete the files in this folder.
Thirdly, empty your
recycle bin. Right click on the Recycle Bin icon, select Empty Recycle
Bin. Many people have hundreds of files they "deleted" but they are
still taking up space in the Recycle Bin.
Run the Disk
Defragmenter
Editing and deleting
files as you work leaves gaps on data storage media. Instead of each
file being stored in one continuous block, it ends up in several
locations, resulting in inefficient retrieval of your data. As you add
more data to your hard drive, the gaps left by previous deletions are
filled. Your file becomes split, or fragmented. This will slow down your
system – when you try to retrieve a file, the process is slower than if
it was stored in one block. To make your disk storage more efficient, a
process called "defragmenting" is used.
Windows has a built in
defragmenter, which is located at:
Start > Programs >
Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter
It is a good idea to
run this program once a month. When you run the defragmenter, close all
programs including your screensaver. If programs are running it can
cause data on your hard drive to be changed which makes the defragmenter
start from the beginning... and never finish!
The more frequently you
use defrag, the faster it will become. |
