[omgshovelyouinthebutt?]

Alright, my brothers comp used to be able to play steam, but he caught a virus and had to reformat. Now when he tries to play any game the comp would lock up and he would have to restart. We thought it was the video card but we put a new one in and it still locks up. We have no idea what to do.

Running:

Windows XP HOme Edition
AMD Athlon 1800+
1.53 GHZ
256 RAM
GeForce FX 5200


The problem started after we reformatted so if anyone can help it would be greatly appreciated.

[kubrick]

Could be anything. Does it only lock up with steam, or all the time? Have you run windows update and installed all the service packs/patches? Install the latest video card drivers, install the agp/bus drivers for your motherboard. Uninstall/reinstall steam.

[Bright Red Nipples]

[ROOFCUTTER]

reinstall, first before changing to many items...I have had bad installs before after it "seemed" to install correctly.
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Only in America......do they have drive-up ATM machines with Braille lettering.

[omgshovelyouinthebutt?]

Well it locks up when hes doing absolutely nothing, jsut bang and he has to restart. It's a GeForce FX 5200 but it was doing that before.

I'll try some windows updates though.

[omgshovelyouinthebutt?]

Updates are a no go, after instaleld and restarted, Launched BF Nam, PC locked up. THis is getting retarded. :\

[Simpleman]

try this driver it's what I had to update to http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp_2k_56.72


I too have a fx5200 256
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<eVa>Simpleman-V$=<RIP>

[Bright Red Nipples]

Is there any way to check the temp of the CPU?? I had issues a long time ago with the CPU overheating and freezing the whole system. It seems kinda silly but what you are describing is exactly what I had problems with
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God Bless You Blue Ruler

[Azrael]

yeah, definitely make sure you're not overheating. Also, check to make sure the power supply is sufficient for your bro's vid card. I have an fx 5600 and my power supply was apparently made for wussies, so I had to go get a beefier one. Like the other guys were saying tho, the problem could be one of many different items.
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Under construction!!!

[Violent Pacifist]

Make sure his BIOS is configured right. My computer got really messed up once, and decided to change some of the settings in my BIOS (not all of them). I'd turn my computer on, do some stuff, and about 2-3 minutes later it would shut itself down or restart. Turned out that the high temperature automatic shutdown was set to an extremely low number. I set it back to where it should be and voila! Problem gone.
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We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams.

[omgshovelyouinthebutt?]

I believe he is overheating/doesnt have enough power. But how can i check these things lol. And how do i check the bios?

[Bright Red Nipples]

[Violent Pacifist]

I've found most computers have a loading screen at the very beginning of start up (when you just turn your computer on) that shows your drives, mobo, video card, etc. Somewhere on there it will probably say "Hit DEL to enter BIOS/Setup". If not, then just keeping looking for something along those lines.

If he is overheating then the computer will normally begin to beep really loudly until it cools back down or shuts itself off. You can check his warning temperature settings in the BIOS.

Check his video card's box (or the company's website if you don't have that) for the amount of power it requires. I'm pretty sure there is a label on the power box in your computer that tells you how much power it is generating. If the power on his power box is too low, he needs to get a video card that requires less power, a new case that has a better power box in it, or if he's really special and likes to take risks, he can try to replace the power box in his case with a better one (NOT RECOMMENDED!! I don't know exactly how dangerous this is, but I know it's not a good idea to try it). I'm not an expert in the "power field", so be sure to get a second opinion before you go out to buy new equipment

As other people also said, try reinstalling the programs, update the drivers, or even try reinstalling the drivers. You might even want to try older drivers in case your current/new ones have problems with your programs or hardware. If all else fails, check if his mobo is malfunctioning or something (don't ask me how to, all I know of is trying to replace it with a different one). Try reformatting again, or switching out harddrives. Strange as it may sound, one of my old harddirves would randomly decide it had gigs more information installed on it than it really did, and would also absorb 80% of my memory when I wasn't doing anything (I didn't have any viruses or spyware on my computer either). Running out of memory that fast will cause your computer to freeze, so be sure to check it.

If nothing works, then simply take the computer for a long walk in the country. When it isn't looking, bash its brains in with a baseball bat, pour water on to its drives, torch its insides with gallons of napalm, read it scary stories, and call lightning down upon the hated creature that so torments human kind and gives our children frights in the night in a cultic like fashion!!!
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We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams.

[Bright Red Nipples]