Computer randomly hangs

[Greg Campbell]

Interesting, the video card issue. FWLIW, I've run various ATIs for years w/o any woes.

In the meantime, hit http://www.memtest.org/ and make yourself a bootable CD. Run the program overnight. If it throws any errors, try pulling the memory modules and re-seating them. (Along similar lines, it's just possible that pulling the video card cleaned a slightly flaky contact, solving your problem. Re-seating any and all expansion cards and power/IO cables is one of the first things to try when chasing random glitches.)

Ya might also run one of several 'stress test' programs overclockers use to certify a system's stability. One of the more popular is http://www.techpowerup.com/downloads/385/Orthos_Stress_Prime_2004.html

Between these two programs, you should catch any CPU/cooling/motherboard/memory issues. Clearly, they won't do a thing for video, HD, CD, etc. problems.

If the 4850 needs a home....

Good luck

 

[Laura Duchesne]

Well, I returned the 4850, and I am pleased with my new video card. Game runs good, and no more freezing after boot up. Thanks to everyone for the suggestions, it seems my issue has been solved.

 

[Robert S. Thompson]

In case anyone is reading this reply in the future, I had similar issues with my old desktop. Everything seemed good and then the computer would freeze for no apparent reason. I tried reconnecting everything, reseating the processor and memory, and swapping the power supply - no change. Eventually I switched the memory to another slot and the problem fixed itself. Go figure. RST