How Long Should A Good Pc System Last In Thailand?

[PeaceBlondie]

My Hewlett Packard pavillion a422d that I bought for 28K in Chiang Mai in April 2004 is almost inoperable. I use it maybe 1-0 to 15 hours per day for internet, Word processing, Excel spreadsheet, ACDSee images, etc. We have doubled the RAM and installed a new VCD player over the years.

Sometimes it crashes right after connecting to the internet (I use dialup). Sometimes it just freezes (mouse, etc.). Sometimes it will not open a shortcut logo on my dashboard. I cannot close it down manually the right way, and often (3 times or 6 times per day) have to cut the power and start over. Then, it will not do a shortcut (such as F10 to choose how to restart, or bypassing the disk scan/disk check). Sometimes it dies with a black screen, sometimes black with white vertical lines on the top inch or two of the monitor, sometimes with a flash of green rectangles.

The repairman is coming tomorrow, and I wonder if we should just bite the bullet and replace the whole system. I am ignorant, and do not speak computerese. Any helpful advice in standard non-techie English would be appreciated.

Now, to see if this even posts...

[percy2]

My Hewlett Packard pavillion a422d that I bought for 28K in Chiang Mai in April 2004 is almost inoperable. I use it maybe 1-0 to 15 hours per day for internet, Word processing, Excel spreadsheet, ACDSee images, etc. We have doubled the RAM and installed a new VCD player over the years.

Sometimes it crashes right after connecting to the internet (I use dialup). Sometimes it just freezes (mouse, etc.). Sometimes it will not open a shortcut logo on my dashboard. I cannot close it down manually the right way, and often (3 times or 6 times per day) have to cut the power and start over. Then, it will not do a shortcut (such as F10 to choose how to restart, or bypassing the disk scan/disk check). Sometimes it dies with a black screen, sometimes black with white vertical lines on the top inch or two of the monitor, sometimes with a flash of green rectangles.

The repairman is coming tomorrow, and I wonder if we should just bite the bullet and replace the whole system. I am ignorant, and do not speak computerese. Any helpful advice in standard non-techie English would be appreciated.

Now, to see if this even posts...

When was the last time you reformatted the hard drive?

I would suggest a reformat and reinstall of Windows.

Make sure you backup everything you want to keep before.

Cheers

[stumonster]

redo windows

make sure you also have all the driver for it available on the HP website

for what you do with it it could well last you another 3 years.

[DragonQuest]

i would say get a new computer every 5 years cause technology is changing fast, i still have 2-3 years more to go for my laptop, im hoping for a blu-ray pc when the prices drop futher.

[PeaceBlondie]

Okay, can I as a total idiot reformat my hard drive myself, or do I need the technician to do it? Last time he was here, he backed up everything; that was a few months ago.

Thanks for your replies.

[percy2]

PB with all due respect I get the feeling you would be better getting a techie to do it for you

Make sure he makes a new backup first.

Cheers

[bkkperson]

Okay, can I as a total idiot reformat my hard drive myself, or do I need the technician to do it? Last time he was here, he backed up everything; that was a few months ago.

Thanks for your replies.

It isnt that hard aslong as you have the disk and familir with re-installing all your programs..if you want a walk through on how to do it PM me

[PeaceBlondie]

Okay, can I as a total idiot reformat my hard drive myself, or do I need the technician to do it? Last time he was here, he backed up everything; that was a few months ago.

Thanks for your replies.

It isnt that hard aslong as you have the disk and familir with re-installing all your programs..if you want a walk through on how to do it PM me

bkkperson, thanks for the offer, but perhaps you don't realize how nontechnical I am. Time and again on here, expert computer folks have given me perfectly clear advice in Tlingit and Tzotzil, Urdu and Pashtu, thinking they were speaking English. I do not follow gibberish or jargon at all. My son makes good money as a software expert, but I guess he didn't inherit that from me.

[rgs2001uk]

pb

take it to your local computer store, thais will charge you 300 baht, it will take 1 hour.

in non geek speak when was the last time you did any housekeeping with your system, is the hard drive almost full?

make sure you have copies of the programs you want loaded back on, if not ask whatever shop you take the computer to, to make back up copies of your programmes and data.

are you running several anti spyware programmes at the same time, i dont know what you have on your system, but some software can take over or hog your system.http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/style_images/ip.boardpr1183049877/folder_editor_images/rte-emo-button.png

Emoticons

if i was in the area i would do it for you, but its a living hel_l being stuck in bkk.

good luck

[Firefoxx]

A system lasts as long as it's useful to you. This means it could last from a couple seconds to decades. There is no set time period, although in general terms, 3 years to 5 years is typical for most.

[bkkperson]

Okay, can I as a total idiot reformat my hard drive myself, or do I need the technician to do it? Last time he was here, he backed up everything; that was a few months ago.

Thanks for your replies.

It isnt that hard aslong as you have the disk and familir with re-installing all your programs..if you want a walk through on how to do it PM me

bkkperson, thanks for the offer, but perhaps you don't realize how nontechnical I am. Time and again on here, expert computer folks have given me perfectly clear advice in Tlingit and Tzotzil, Urdu and Pashtu, thinking they were speaking English. I do not follow gibberish or jargon at all. My son makes good money as a software expert, but I guess he didn't inherit that from me.

Yeah take it to a techie then...

[bino]

redo windows

make sure you also have all the driver for it available on the HP website

for what you do with it it could well last you another 3 years.

I agree with Stu. Considering what you use the PC for, There is still a lot of life in it for sure.

I bought a Compaq Pentium 3-500 desktop computer for home shortly after I arrived in Thailand in 1999. (It was state of the art at the time- can't believe that I paid IT City 60 K Baht for it!) I've upgraded the RAM and the operating system to Windows 2000 Pro over the years, and it is still a perfectly usable PC for internet surfing, word processing, and all other basic needs.

I have recently upgraded only because a guy I know was leaving the country and selling off his stuff for cheap to raise plane fare. Otherwise- I'd probably still be using the old PC.

[peter991]

I found heat, humidity and dust were the biggest computer-killers in Thailand.

Heat: Buy one of those laptop fans from your favourite computer store - around 300 baht - they plug into a spare USB port and quite often have 3 or 4 USB ports at the back. Keeps the laptop's operating temperature down.

Humidity: I don't know if there's much you can do about this - other than operate the computer in an air-conditioned room.

Dust: Another killer. Check the cleanliness of the inside of the computer case and remove the dust and fluff regularly. Even spotlessly clean environments somehow transfer dust to computers.

Hopefully your computer should last around 5 years - then carefully wipe all your personal data and donate it to the local school or a charity.

Peter

Edited January 15, 2008 by peter991

[donna]

get a man in i say. for all the hassle and time it will take you to do it, you might as well pay someone a nominal amount and be done with it.

[jfchandler]

PeaceBlondie, from all the problems you recite, odds are that you're having one of a couple of problems that PROBABLY should NOT require you to buy a new set of hardware. I looked at the specs on that HP model, and it's a perfectly fine system for the kind of use you're giving it. Not too old or behind the times to warrant replacing.

So, what's happening: Here's some possibilities

(Try No. 1 first, and if that doesn't work, then go to No. 2. If neither solve the problem, then it probably is a hardware thing):

1. It's possible, as others suggested, that you've run out (or running out) of free space on your main Hard Drive. Windows needs elbow room to run well, and if it doesn't have free disk space to use, it starts to do all kinds of squirrely things. If you've got a 40 GB hard drive or something like that, you'd want at least a couple Gigs of free, unused disk space. If you don't have that, consider uninstalling some unnecessary programs and running Disk Cleanup in Windows. HP tends to preinstall a lot of useless programs on their machines that suck up loads of disk space.

So first, you should run Disk Cleanup regardless, since junk tends to accumulate on your hard drive anways. Look for the Disk Cleanup icon in your Programs Start Menu. Then, go to your Settings Menu/Control Panel, and choose Add or Remove Programs. It will show you a list of what is installed on your machine, and go down the list and you can click to uninstall junk you don't need or want.

2. You've got your operating system infected with spyware or viruses. They can cause the kind of mischief you describe. The cure for that is to reformat your HD and reinstall Windows and all your accompanying programs. Given your skills at this, best to leave to a GOOD technician. Doing that and getting everything back right again is not an easy or quick task. As said, make sure to gather up and assemble all the CDs/disks etc. for stuff you've installed through the years, along with any registration codes, etc.

Whatever you do, practice safe computing. If you use any Internet connection other than dialup, always use Windows firewall or even better a hardware router. (Dialup doesn't require that kind of protection). Also, install and use a couple of anti-virus programs, including the free Windows Defender. Other good free choices are Spybot SD and Lavasoft, also free to download.

You didn't say what operating system (version of Windows) your machine has. You want to be running Windows XP for a machine that's a couple years old. Windows ME was and in a mess, full of many problems. Windows 98 is OK, but no longer supported. XP is stable and is supported by Microsoft with upgrades.

Also, another risk area is electrical current to your PC. Make sure it's a clean current and always use a good surge protector. I believe, if you have an erratic or spiking electrical current coming to the PC, it also could cause those kinds of problems, not to mention frying the chips on your motherboard.

Good Luck... --John.

[PeaceBlondie]

Thanks, CM happy. I checked and my D drive is 98% empty (even with a thousand photos on it!), while the C drive is about 25% empty. I regularly use Cleanup and right now it didn't need it. Also I use degragmenter occasionally. I have only listed maybe half of the current problems I have trying to stay online.

Thanks to all who said the hardware should last for more years. The technician is coming at 10 am and he's the best we know (fairly good at English, too). I'll be sure to save everything before he removes Windows, which is still XP.

I never expected a home PC to be as trouble free as a home refrigerator, but I didn't think it would be worse than a desmodrodic valve Ducati twin-cam sportbike.

[DragonQuest]

Actually you could format yourself PeaceBlondie and save the 500-300 baht to have someone do it for you, thats what I did on my laptop just make sure you back up your important files^^.

[JSixpack]

If you've done the virus and spyware scans and cleaned up & defragged the disk, then I think it's more likely a hardware problem and Windows does not need to be reinstalled. Maybe all your HP needs is a good cleanup: the techie can blow it out, clean the RAM and cards, and check the fans and power supply. If a part is defective, it can be replaced and you're good to go.

Reinstalling Windows is almost always a waste of time (and money, if you're paying).

[DragonQuest]

PeaceBlondie I read your post again and it seems you might have a VIRUS! lol I wish you luck my friend.

(It might be a hardware or software problem) lets hope your tech - e - is good.

[Crushdepth]

Another vote for reinstalling windows. Don't bother getting a new computer, you don't need one.

[onethailand]

I'd agree with reinstalling Windows - but I suspect your CPU is overheating. Your description of the vertical white lines or green rectangles could also suggest that the video chip is overheating.

First thing to do - get the technician to take off the computer case and then turn it on - and look at the CPU fan, and the fan on the video card if there is one.

If that turns out to be a problem, cleaning or replacing the fan will solve part of your problem - but make absolutely sure that when the tech replaces it, he uses silicone or other heatsink material to ensure good contact between CPU and fan.

The dysfunctional Windows could be because of many things, amongst them a virus, or the frequent abnormal shutdowns corrupting files, so a reinstall (or repair) of that will also be necessary.

For what you do with the computer, there is no need to get new equipment. Like Firefoxx says, from a general perspective, computers should typically be usable for 3-5 years.

Whatever you do, don't let the tech install Windows Vista. You don't need it and your equipment may not be sufficient enough to run it smoothly.

Edited January 15, 2008 by onethailand

[PeaceBlondie]

Thanks for all the advice. He came, he saw, he conquered. Well, not really. As fate would have it, the machine was operating flawlessly when the technician arrived. He checked the fan temp and said it's not overheating. Checked for viruses, etc. He said NOD32 had made another computer malfunction yesterday, so he removed it and installed AVG. He had me explain all the weird malfunctions but then pronounced the computer okay. 300 baht, maybe 50 minutes.

I'm afraid that tomorrow morning, the computer will act badly when cold, and my Honda CBR150 won't start.

[stumonster]

get a life sized cardboard cutout of a photo of your comp tech and wheel it out when the machine misbehaves - you might as well get one of the motocy mech too

[pattyboy]

When strange or intermittent computer problems occur it's a good idea to remove the case cover/panel and clean the boards and cards. Sometimes rather large dust balls form on the motherboard and cards which cause partial electric shorts or similar problems. If your confident enough, you should also remove the memory and cards, clean the gold-plated contacts using a standard rubber eraser and re-seat them (put them back into their slots). You'd be amazed how dirty it can get inside one's computer and how tarnished the gold contacts on cards and memory can become. These conditions can create quite a variety of problems.

Edited January 16, 2008 by pattyboy

[JSixpack]

When strange or intermittent computer problems occur it's a good idea to remove the case cover/panel and clean the boards and cards. Sometimes rather large dust balls form on the motherboard and cards which cause partial electric shorts or similar problems. If your confident enough, you should also remove the memory and cards, clean the gold-plated contacts using a standard rubber eraser and re-seat them (put them back into their slots). You'd be amazed how dirty it can get inside one's computer and how tarnished the gold contacts on cards and memory can become. These conditions can create quite a variety of problems.

+1

[PeaceBlondie]

In the two days or so since the technician said he couldn't find a problem, it's been better, but my PC still acts up, especially in the morning when it's cold. Right now yahoo won't work on Firefox, but works on Explorer! A ThaiVisa buddy is coming over soon to check if my registry is clogged, and maybe we'll dust off the innards of the box, also.

My partner is taking the bike in to get the carburetor fixed so it doesn't need ten starter kicks to get running. The world of Chiang Mai is cold blooded in the mornings!