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10-03-2002, 02:32 AM
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#1 |
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Member (8 bit)
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Norwich, UK.
Posts: 218
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Why do PCs freeze up?
Sorry that this is so general, but can anyone give an explanation as to why PCs occasionally freeze up? Is there an accepted cause of these things?
Apologies again if there is a FAQ for this one, and thanks in advance. |
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10-03-2002, 02:56 AM
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#2 |
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Member (10 bit)
Join Date: Jan 2002
Location: Edmonton, AB, Canada
Posts: 628
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A lot of the time its when a command is issued to the CPU thats looped, but there is no end to the loop, hench it gets stuck in this loop.
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10-03-2002, 09:58 AM
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#3 |
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Member (14 bit)
Join Date: Mar 1999
Location: Kelowna, B.C., Canada
Posts: 9,138
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To put it even simpler. Bad code. Any app that's not 100% compatible (are there any?) with the OS can cause a freeze.
Hardware issues, such as bad RAM, IRQ sharing, or software issues like a virus/trojan...the list goes on. There are more things that will cause instability than there are to fix it. |
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10-03-2002, 10:48 AM
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#4 |
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Member (8 bit)
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Norwich, UK.
Posts: 218
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Freezing
This could be a great help - I have one machine that freezes and it is the only one that has a printer attached. I will be taking it out and seeing if I can migrate the problem to another, identical PC.
I have one other pc on the network that locks up for no apparent reason; sometimes in Yahoo mail when composing, and sometimes in MS Word. That machine is about 3 years old, and I do think that maybe there could be a hardware error, I don't know. Thank you. |
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10-03-2002, 02:37 PM
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#5 |
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Mondsreitersmann
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Skingrad
Posts: 8,781
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Also, every PC is different. And no matter how tested a program is by the manufacturer, there always be a system configuration that is gonna be troublesome.
__________________
Darum still, füg' ich mich, wie Gott es will. Nun, so will ich wacker streiten, und sollt' ich den Tod erleiden, stirbt ein braver Reitersmann. |
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10-03-2002, 03:20 PM
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#6 |
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Member (8 bit)
Join Date: Dec 2001
Location: Norwich, UK.
Posts: 218
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So...
So... I guess any idea that computers are uniform things with identities that are exact is misplaced?
I also guess that this kinda post should go into a general/philosophical forum!  I appreciate the advice, anyway.Thank you. |
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10-03-2002, 04:01 PM
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#7 |
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Member (8 bit)
Join Date: Apr 2002
Location: Chicago
Posts: 156
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Ahhh... Teemro... that age old question...
As you can probably guess after a few replies, there is no easy answer. EVERYTHING can potentially cause a PC to freeze. Hardware, software, outside factors... The best advice one can give is to keep your OS updated. Update drivers regularly. Remove unused programs (don't install 3 different versions of something, for instance). The one thing I have found helpful is to use quality components. My dad and uncles can build PC's that crash every day. I use higher quality components and rarely (if ever) experience a problem. |
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10-03-2002, 05:18 PM
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#8 |
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Member (11 bit)
Join Date: Feb 2001
Location: Blue Springs, MO
Posts: 1,766
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You will notice that Win 9x PCs freeze more than Linux or Win NT or Mac's. I have been told that the reason they do has to do with memory management design. The design Win 9x employees allows an application or device to grab system resources as needed on a cooperative basis. Once the application no longer needs the resource, it is expected to release it back to the computer. If the application gets stuck, and doesn't release memory in a timely fashion, the system system runs out of memory and freezes. Other operating systems also allocate memory to requesting applications, but they are designed in such a fashion that when the memory isn't being employed the OS grabs it and makes it available for other uses. This might mean that the application slows, but the system stays up. The difference in design has to do with whether the OS was designed for a single user (Win9x is after all a direct dos descendant) or a multi user computer. It is a fundamental design feature. I wouldn't call it a flaw, because there are certain advantages inherent to the Win9x approach. Remember the IBM PC was about as single user as you can design.
In short, there is a reason that Unix, Linux, NT, WinXP and MAC X computers go down less often than Win98 machines, and it has nothing to do with the quality of the coders or the quality of the code. It has everything to do with the memory management approach employed by each. Everything everybody has posted about compatiblity and quality is absolutely true, but poor design and incompatibility only explain why applications or devices crash, not why they take the system down with them. That's my take and I am sticking to it, until somebody says I am wrong. Then I will sway like swamp grass in Lousiana this afternoon. CH Last edited by Computer Hobbyist; 10-03-2002 at 05:25 PM. |
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10-03-2002, 05:45 PM
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#9 |
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Mondsreitersmann
Join Date: Jul 1999
Location: Skingrad
Posts: 8,781
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Don't think you're wrong, CH. In fact that is why I liked WinXP so much: it seldom freezes. And even when an app manages to crash it doesn't take the system down with it.
Linux is cool, I like it. But, as a gamer, it's not for me right now. 
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