Heh! Thanks, my friend. Methinks the drivers are current, but I'll check. Sadly, I don't have any friends with "spare" video cards; they're pretty much in my boat---they replace 'em when they break, but don't keep any "good" ones around. Still...I'll see if I can scare something up.
Re: can Fedex you one cheap.....jim_laneJune 13 2007, 00:06:25 UTC
Yup! Gonna check 'em all. It took about 5 minutes for the system to FINALLY finish re-setting itself and all that foolishness. It's getting worse, which does seem to point to a component failure. (Card itself.)
Still, I'm going to do it "by the book", and check out as much as possible before I jump into another card.
Something isn't striking me as "right" about this.
First, the video sounds shakey, but I tend to like the nVidia cards more and more recently... so, while it could be something there, it doesn't sound completely like that is the case.
I am tending to lean toward a shared IRQ interrupt conflicting, or a driver conflicting with another program. What... I don't know.
You might want to take a moment and look at the programs that are not only in the startup folder, but also ones that load on their own through the registry. I use Tune up for Win XP (Commercial program) but I think the free program here might be just as good.
I am just guessing that there is a program in there that's messing with the video card, and you don't need it to boot with everything else. (Example: I don't allow quicktime or adobe gamma corrector to load at boot, as they are just an annoyance anyway.)
I'll give it a try before I blow bucks on a new card. Certainly can't hurt (well, *I* can mess up a one-car funeral, but that's beside the point...) and even if it's not a software issue (with the video), I'm sure it'll find some other "sins" that I've inflicted upon the poor old box since the last "fresh start"--- };-)
Check the power supply. A PSU that's starting to go flaky will wreak all kinds of seemingly-at-random havoc, and the really insidious part is that it usually ends up looking just like a motherboard failure, O/S corruption, or bad drivers, but it's really due to unreliable voltages.
You'd be amazed how often I've completely cured a screwy-acting PC just by replacing the power supply.
Hmmm... That's a possible cure, but since it's a heavy-duty one with LOTS of connections to the MB, it's going to be tough to trouble-shoot (and I don't have one to swap out, either).
Still, it's one more item on the check-list, if it turns out not to be a software or video card problem. Sad thing is, it can quickly reach the point of "toss it" when trying to repair an old box. Hundred bucks here, hundred bucks there, FIVE hundred+ bucks for a new MB/chip/RAM... I've played the "nickel & dime" game before with computers, and wound up putting twice the money in an old box than a new box would have cost. ...sigh...
Still, I *do* appreciate the advice, and I'll keep it in mind as the mystery deepens. };-)
I'd say, check the software-related stuff first -- drivers, or unneeded startup applications that monkey with the video display (such as the "gamma display corrector" programs Adobe is fond of installing) -- since rolling those back is essentially free.
Next, consider swapping the power supply, since that's probably the least-expensive item on the potential list of culprits. (You can always return it if it doesn't fix the problem.) Don't worry about trying to test the old one -- a simple voltage check with a voltmeter won't always show you the problem anyway. In my experience, PSUs are rarely so obliging as to fail in a way that displays an obviously out-of-whack voltage on one of the rails; more often, you get excessive output ripple, loss of regulation which allows the voltage to rise and fall over time, or a decreased ability to supply the rated current under full load... and you'd pretty much need an oscilloscope and/or a strip-chart recorder to see that sort of thing.
...and since your problems seem to be mostly during boot-
( ... )
Comments 17
Try this:
Download the latest drivers for your card and put them somewhere safe on the C: drive
Un-install the drivers for the card
Reboot
When your system sees the "new" video card, let it install the drivers as normal.
Once Windows has completed installing the drivers, reboot and see if the issue has gone away.
If it hasn't, blargh.
If it's working, then install the latest drivers you downloaded earlier.
If the symptoms are still gone, then Bravo. If not, try to bum a video card from someone and see if that eliminates the problem.
Bonne Chance!
Allen
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MLD
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Still, I'm going to do it "by the book", and check out as much as possible before I jump into another card.
Reply
First, the video sounds shakey, but I tend to like the nVidia cards more and more recently... so, while it could be something there, it doesn't sound completely like that is the case.
I am tending to lean toward a shared IRQ interrupt conflicting, or a driver conflicting with another program. What... I don't know.
You might want to take a moment and look at the programs that are not only in the startup folder, but also ones that load on their own through the registry. I use Tune up for Win XP (Commercial program) but I think the free program here might be just as good.
I am just guessing that there is a program in there that's messing with the video card, and you don't need it to boot with everything else. (Example: I don't allow quicktime or adobe gamma corrector to load at boot, as they are just an annoyance anyway.)
Reply
I'll give it a try before I blow bucks on a new card. Certainly can't hurt (well, *I* can mess up a one-car funeral, but that's beside the point...) and even if it's not a software issue (with the video), I'm sure it'll find some other "sins" that I've inflicted upon the poor old box since the last "fresh start"--- };-)
Reply
You'd be amazed how often I've completely cured a screwy-acting PC just by replacing the power supply.
Reply
Still, it's one more item on the check-list, if it turns out not to be a software or video card problem. Sad thing is, it can quickly reach the point of "toss it" when trying to repair an old box. Hundred bucks here, hundred bucks there, FIVE hundred+ bucks for a new MB/chip/RAM... I've played the "nickel & dime" game before with computers, and wound up putting twice the money in an old box than a new box would have cost. ...sigh...
Still, I *do* appreciate the advice, and I'll keep it in mind as the mystery deepens. };-)
Reply
Next, consider swapping the power supply, since that's probably the least-expensive item on the potential list of culprits. (You can always return it if it doesn't fix the problem.) Don't worry about trying to test the old one -- a simple voltage check with a voltmeter won't always show you the problem anyway. In my experience, PSUs are rarely so obliging as to fail in a way that displays an obviously out-of-whack voltage on one of the rails; more often, you get excessive output ripple, loss of regulation which allows the voltage to rise and fall over time, or a decreased ability to supply the rated current under full load... and you'd pretty much need an oscilloscope and/or a strip-chart recorder to see that sort of thing.
...and since your problems seem to be mostly during boot- ( ... )
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(The comment has been removed)
(The collection on my dresser, of course; the gray hairs on my old, wrinkled head are a "vanishing breed"---) }>-p
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Don't a lot of women go "ka-blooie" from time to time---?
**HEHEHEHE!!!!**
(Ducking and running for my old, worthless LIFE---!)
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(Going back into HIDING again...)
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