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Laptop freezes up every 20 minutes

1830 Views 6 Replies 2 Participants Last post by MamaLuigi, Nov 4, 2011

MamaLuigi

Discussion Starter · Oct 28, 2011

Hi all
I have been having a problem with my laptop just recently.
I remember a while ago posting here asking for help on why my computer was slow.
It turned out that What I had thought was Mozilla Firefox 5. Then when I downloaded firefox 3 my computer went faster again. It eventually went back to being slow and then after a lot of looking and cleaning we found out that there was a problem with the Automatic Updates making my computer slow.

Now after that it wasn't going slow until just recently when I wanted to make some videos from on computer. This computer isn't the best thing to use video software, it only has 35Gigs of Memory but I have a 1Terabyte external hard drive, and I do my best to try to put everything on that..

Recently, my laptop has decided to slow down again, especially while video making. Last night I was forced to restart my laptop about 20 times within the past 2 hours, since it kept on making everything slow.

Now whenever my laptop freezes, it would work properly for the first 20 minutes, then it would log up, even if I had barley any programs open, and then it would slow down to a complete stop. Sometimes it did this so frequently that it would be impossible to use, and sometimes it would even make it's own beeping sounds, (loud"Doot!"s)

This however, has always been the case with this laptop.

Just today, my computer slowed down within the first 20 minutes of use again and however, it began to make these really strange high pitched beeping sounds, some that I have not heard of before.

My laptop is an Acer TravelMate 290, here are some specs.

System
Microsoft Windows XP Professional
Version 2002
Service Pack 2

Computer Intel (R) Premium (R) M
Processor 1500Mhz
599MHz, 496 MB of RAM.

Last time I checked, it wasn't malware.
Both me and my dad are scratching our heads over this stupid thing! Any or assistance would be gladly appreciated. Thanks.

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Mark1956

· #2 · Oct 28, 2011

Hi, this PC is never going to be very fast with the specs it has and only 500MB of RAM.
Running videos is memory intensive so you would benefit from installing more RAM.

As you are now experiencing regular problems with the PC slowing down I would suspect it is overheating and should be given a good clean out with compressed air. You may achieve some improvement by blowing compressed air through the vents but for a thorough clean the PC should be dismantled to make sure the heatsink and fan are completely free of dust.

Intsall this software CoreTemp so you can see what temp your CPU is running at and report the results back in your next post. Check the temperature when the PC is idle, i.e. when no software is running and check again when you are running a video.

The beeps you are hearing are an error code that will tell you something if you take note of the number of short and long beeps, these can be looked up on the manufacturer's site or in the user manual.

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MamaLuigi

Discussion Starter · #3 · Oct 29, 2011

Mark1956 said:
Hi, this PC is never going to be very fast with the specs it has and only 500MB of RAM.
Running videos is memory intensive so you would benefit from installing more RAM.

As you are now experiencing regular problems with the PC slowing down I would suspect it is overheating and should be given a good clean out with compressed air. You may achieve some improvement by blowing compressed air through the vents but for a thorough clean the PC should be dismantled to make sure the heatsink and fan are completely free of dust.

Intsall this software CoreTemp so you can see what temp your CPU is running at and report the results back in your next post. Check the temperature when the PC is idle, i.e. when no software is running and check again when you are running a video.

The beeps you are hearing are an error code that will tell you something if you take note of the number of short and long beeps, these can be looked up on the manufacturer's site or in the user manual.

Hi, thanks for the reply,
About the beeps, If the computer freezes, I hear two low beeps.
Once when I resetted my computer and turned it on again, I heard 3 - 4 high pitched beeps.

About CoreTemp, I don't know how to use it very well, but it says this:

Model: Intel Pentium M 700 (null) (Banias)
Platform: Socket M (479-Pin)
Frequency: 599.49Mhz (99.92 x 6.0)
VID: 0. 9560v
Revision: B1
CPUID: 0x695

Processor 0 Temperature Readings:

TJ Max: 0 degrees C
Core #0: 0 degrees C to TJMax

Just a few notes, i've realized sometimes my laptop goes slow, my internet disconnects and resets

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Mark1956

· #4 · Oct 29, 2011

That's the first time I have seen Core Temp fail to read temperatures. Try this one Speedfan

I checked the Beep Codes for your PC and the only ones listed are 6 or more in length.

Lets see if Speedfan will give some results and we will go from there, I needed to check for overheating first before moving on as it appears to me to be the prime suspect.

Have you made any attempt to follow my suggestion to clean the PC with compressed air, you should be able to buy a can of it from any computer store.

There is no need to Quote my post in your reply unless there are other helpers in the thread.

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MamaLuigi

Discussion Starter · #5 · Nov 4, 2011

Hi, at the moment I can't use my computer (laptop) at all, since it recently broke down. We (me and my Dad) are thinking that there could be a problem with the fan. At the moment i'm unable to install Speedfan, since I can't put it on my Laptop (i'm on my dad's laptop at the moment).

II had it on for a bit, but it kept on loading, then it loaded forever and it stopped, then it made some beeping sounds. Then when I turned it on the next time it kept on repeating the start up screen. It didn't even get to the Windows Loading logo, it just keeps on repeating the beginning of the start up . Every time I turn my laptop on, it turns on for a few seconds then it automatically turns off. It turns off when the fan makes some funny noise, it may be overheated.

Do you think there could be any hope for my files? I have some very important stuff I don't want to lose on it...we have a 1Terabyte external hard drive and i'm trying to put this stuff on ... if we get the laptop fixed, of course!

I remember before this happened, I DID accidentally leave the laptop on for a long time because I forgot to turn it off. Could this have been the cause of why my laptop overheated and broke down?

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Mark1956

· #6 · Nov 4, 2011

Generally, overheating is caused by dust build up in the heatsink for the CPU, the symptoms you have mentioned certainly point to overheating being the problem as I had first suspected. It will need to be taken apart and properly cleaned and the fan checked before any further use, repeatedly trying to turn it on in its present state is likely to cause more and possibly irreversable damage.

The safest way to retrieve your data from the hard drive is to remove it from the PC. Then purchase a "USB hard drive adapter", about €10 from any computer store or eBay. Always disconnect the laptop from the power supply and take out the battery before performing any work on it.

With the adapter you can connect the drive to any PC and retrieve your data.

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MamaLuigi

Discussion Starter · #7 · Nov 4, 2011

Thanks for the help, i'll let my dad know about this. Thank you!

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