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May 2, 2008
Dear CNET members,
Happy Friday, folks! This week's topic is about that mystery PC that keeps rebooting randomly, and in Santhsh's case, every 10 to 20 minutes. Since Santhsh has reformatted his hard drive and replaced his RAM in attempts to fix this problem, it's probably fairly safe to say that his random reboots are most likely caused by some sort of hardware failure (excluding the RAM). However, as with any troubleshooting, we should rule out the software issue completely. After reading through the submissions, most of you described the issue as being a heat related issue--overheating of the processor or power supply (possibly caused by a failing fan). Many of you also pointed out to Santhsh that it could either be an underpowered or failing power supply that's the culprit. Some members go on to mention other things such as a failing motherboard capacitor or even the possibility of malware being reloaded back into his computer after the reformatting--and the list goes on. This just goes to show that when it comes computer troubleshooting, there's not always a definitive or a simple solution. And the best way to tackle this issue is through the process of elimination, starting from the basics to the more complex.
All in all, our members are here to help you! We received an abundant amount of helpful recommendations and advice on this. What I have done is to narrow them down to a few to get you all started. These folks' answers here have done a great job at detailing many of the possible culprits and solutions to hopefully get you, Santhsh--and all who are encountering this issue--on the right track to pinpointing the problem and hopefully to getting your PC back to a healthy state. This newsletter is all about helping each other out, so if you have any additional advice for others on this topic, please join in the discussion topic. And Santhsh, if you get your PC back into working order, please post back to let us know what solutions worked for you. Thanks for the great submissions, everyone! Have an awesome weekend!
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Member Question of the Week
Hi. I have a problem with my PC (AMD Athlon 1700+, 256MB of
RAM, 80GB hard disk, CD writer) and I hope you guys can clue
me in as to what can be the issue of my system rebooting
every 10 to 20 minutes after it has been on. I've changed my
RAM and also reformatted my hard drive in attempt to see if
that will remedy my issue, but no success and I'm at a lost.
Is this a hardware issue? Please kindly help me and if
possible list out all the possible culprits that can cause
such issues and possible solutions to remedy it. Thank you
kindly.
Submitted by:
Santhsh K.
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 Previous week's Q&A
This isn't exactly a technical how-to question, but I would
really like to know how widespread this phenomenon is at this
point. I've been getting phone calls lately that sound for
all the world like phishing. They disguise themselves by
saying something about my credit card (no specific one) or
the car I now own (no specific brand). The two incidents I
specifically remember involve a prerecorded message
announcing (1) we need to discuss your credit card although
there is no problem right now, and (2) the deadline is
approaching to obtain an extended warranty on the vehicle you
now own. Then it says to wait for the operator to come on. I
hung up. Another very suspicious message was left on my
answering machine to call a toll-free number about my credit
card. I think that one mentioned a specific card. However, I
started getting a bit freaked out when they wanted me to give
them a whole bunch of information (card number, address,
etc.) before they would tell me what they had called about. I
hung up on them, too.
Is this becoming more common? Have any of you experienced
this? I have not really seen anything about it and didn't
really know where to post this type of information in order
to get an idea. It certainly seems like someone should get
the word out, as was done with e-mail, before a lot of people
really get messed up! Is there anything we can do to stop
this? Thanks.
Community Buzz
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Have fun and enjoy!
More from the forums
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Check out next week's question:
I'd like the straight scoop on what happens to TV reception
next year. Specifically, will my several analog TVs that are
connected directly to cable still function? Or will I need a
converter box on each of them? TV store salesmen say I will
need a box on each. But I understood that the cable
companies would continue to send both analog and digital
signals over the cable. Only the 'over-the-airwaves
broadcasting' would be free of analog signals so those
receiving TV via antenna will need a box on each analog TV.
Is that correct? Simple question, but I had to get the simple
answer. Either I'm OK as is, or I need a bunch of boxes. If
you can give me clear and definitive answer, that would be
much appreciated! Thank you very much.
--Submitted by:
Chuck B.
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Simple question, simple answer
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