Vista crashes sometimes when opening something

About 2 months ago I installed Vista Ultimate 64-bit on my PC. About 2 weeks
ago it starting rebooting sometimes when I open something like an image file
or even Internet Explorer. It doesn't happen evey time and only happens about
once a day (but only when I go to open something). I want to figure this out
so that I don't lose any data or end up with some data corruption.
I have run the Windows memory diagnostic tool and it didn't find any issues.
The only event in the Event viewer that even related to the issue, was an
event logged after it finished rebooting that stated the PC was shutdown
improperly.
Any ideas on what else I should check?

-dm

DangerMaus wrote:
> About 2 months ago I installed Vista Ultimate 64-bit on my PC. About 2 weeks
> ago it starting rebooting sometimes when I open something like an image file
> or even Internet Explorer. It doesn't happen evey time and only happens about
> once a day (but only when I go to open something). I want to figure this out
> so that I don't lose any data or end up with some data corruption.
> I have run the Windows memory diagnostic tool and it didn't find any issues.
> The only event in the Event viewer that even related to the issue, was an
> event logged after it finished rebooting that stated the PC was shutdown
> improperly.
> Any ideas on what else I should check?
>
> -dm

First back up your data to an external hard drive. Do that NOW!

Second, nuke that piece of **** and merrily cry out, Hasta la Vista,
Baby and cruise on over to http://www.ubuntu.com/ and get a real
operating system that won't crash like that for no reason. It's free and
comes with access to thousands of free programs.

Oh, and it's bullet proof compared to Vista when it comes to malware or
viruses.

Alias

DangerMaus wrote:
> About 2 months ago I installed Vista Ultimate 64-bit on my PC. About 2 weeks
> ago it starting rebooting sometimes when I open something like an image file
> or even Internet Explorer. It doesn't happen evey time and only happens about
> once a day (but only when I go to open something). I want to figure this out
> so that I don't lose any data or end up with some data corruption.
> I have run the Windows memory diagnostic tool and it didn't find any issues.
> The only event in the Event viewer that even related to the issue, was an
> event logged after it finished rebooting that stated the PC was shutdown
> improperly.
> Any ideas on what else I should check?
>
> -dm


I think the first thing to do would be to narrow down, as far as
possible, the exact circumstances under which the reboot(s) occur.
Exactly what is being opened when the problem manifests? What specific
type(s) of file(s)? What specific application(s) are being used to open
the offending file(s)? How are you opening the file(s): by
double-clicking a data file (whether *.doc, *jpg, *.pdf, *.wmv, *.mp3,
etc.) and relying upon Windows' file association to choose the correct
application, or from within an application specifically designed to open
the data file in question? With more detailed information, someone
might be able to suggest further troubleshooting steps and potential
remedies.


--

Bruce Chambers

Help us help you:
http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html

http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375

They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin

Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell

The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
killed a great many philosophers.
~ Denis Diderot

Random blue screens and restarts can indicate a failing hard drive or power
supply.
Back up your data.
Run a software test for your hard drive.

The things I have noticed so far as these:
1. I tried to open Internet Explorer from the quicklaunch bar. It didn't
even open the window before Vista rebooted.
2. I tried opening a .jpg (this has happened more than once). I double-click
the file and let Vista pick the app. The default is the built-in Windows
Photo Gallery.

-dm

"Bruce Chambers" wrote:

> DangerMaus wrote:
> > About 2 months ago I installed Vista Ultimate 64-bit on my PC. About 2 weeks
> > ago it starting rebooting sometimes when I open something like an image file
> > or even Internet Explorer. It doesn't happen evey time and only happens about
> > once a day (but only when I go to open something). I want to figure this out
> > so that I don't lose any data or end up with some data corruption.
> > I have run the Windows memory diagnostic tool and it didn't find any issues.
> > The only event in the Event viewer that even related to the issue, was an
> > event logged after it finished rebooting that stated the PC was shutdown
> > improperly.
> > Any ideas on what else I should check?
> >
> > -dm
>
>
> I think the first thing to do would be to narrow down, as far as
> possible, the exact circumstances under which the reboot(s) occur.
> Exactly what is being opened when the problem manifests? What specific
> type(s) of file(s)? What specific application(s) are being used to open
> the offending file(s)? How are you opening the file(s): by
> double-clicking a data file (whether *.doc, *jpg, *.pdf, *.wmv, *.mp3,
> etc.) and relying upon Windows' file association to choose the correct
> application, or from within an application specifically designed to open
> the data file in question? With more detailed information, someone
> might be able to suggest further troubleshooting steps and potential
> remedies.
>
>
> --
>
> Bruce Chambers
>
> Help us help you:
> http://www.catb.org/~esr/faqs/smart-questions.html
>
> http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx/kb/555375
>
> They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
> safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin
>
> Many people would rather die than think; in fact, most do. ~Bertrand Russell
>
> The philosopher has never killed any priests, whereas the priest has
> killed a great many philosophers.
> ~ Denis Diderot
>

"pupick" <> wrote:

>Random blue screens and restarts can indicate a failing hard drive or power
>supply.
>Back up your data.
>Run a software test for your hard drive.

These don't appear to be "random", and besides, you're a fool who
should not be giving advice here.

In article <7120E060-38FC-4CE2-A469->,
DangerMaus <> wrote:
>The things I have noticed so far as these:
>1. I tried to open Internet Explorer from the quicklaunch bar. It didn't
>even open the window before Vista rebooted.
>2. I tried opening a .jpg (this has happened more than once). I double-click
>the file and let Vista pick the app. The default is the built-in Windows
>Photo Gallery.

Ok, look, repeatable crashes when performing a particular operation
are almost always software. The only thing that can really crash Vista in
this situation is a video driver (even if the actual error is in the
application an application really can't crash vista easily).

So, my two cents is upgrade your video drivers! To be safe
revert to vga mode, uninstall the drivers, uninstall the device, let windows
find the device on reboot and install the new drivers.

I did update my video drivers and I have had a crash since then. I
uninstalled the previous drivers, rebooted and then installed the new drivers.

-dm

"the wharf rat" wrote:

> In article <7120E060-38FC-4CE2-A469->,
> DangerMaus <> wrote:
> >The things I have noticed so far as these:
> >1. I tried to open Internet Explorer from the quicklaunch bar. It didn't
> >even open the window before Vista rebooted.
> >2. I tried opening a .jpg (this has happened more than once). I double-click
> >the file and let Vista pick the app. The default is the built-in Windows
> >Photo Gallery.
>
> Ok, look, repeatable crashes when performing a particular operation
> are almost always software. The only thing that can really crash Vista in
> this situation is a video driver (even if the actual error is in the
> application an application really can't crash vista easily).
>
> So, my two cents is upgrade your video drivers! To be safe
> revert to vga mode, uninstall the drivers, uninstall the device, let windows
> find the device on reboot and install the new drivers.
>
>

These are not random crashes but are repeatable by the user. It is most
likely a software interaction or malware problem.

I would still run chkdsk on the drive to make certain that there are not any
defective drive sectors. It is part of any trouble shooting procedure. A
once a month check of the drive does not hurt either.

--

Richard Urban
Microsoft MVP
Windows Desktop Experience



"pupick" <> wrote in message
news:#$...
> Random blue screens and restarts can indicate a failing hard drive or
> power supply.
> Back up your data.
> Run a software test for your hard drive.

I did a chkdsk on the the C drive and am now checking the others just in
case. It is a repeatable problem but it doesn't happen every time. In fact it
happens not very often but when it does happen (about once a day) it is
always when I open an image file or IE.

-dm

"Richard Urban" wrote:

> These are not random crashes but are repeatable by the user. It is most
> likely a software interaction or malware problem.
>
> I would still run chkdsk on the drive to make certain that there are not any
> defective drive sectors. It is part of any trouble shooting procedure. A
> once a month check of the drive does not hurt either.
>
> --
>
> Richard Urban
> Microsoft MVP
> Windows Desktop Experience
>
>
>
> "pupick" <> wrote in message
> news:#$...
> > Random blue screens and restarts can indicate a failing hard drive or
> > power supply.
> > Back up your data.
> > Run a software test for your hard drive.
>
>