Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
- Gawdzilla Sama
- Stabsobermaschinist
- Posts: 151265
- Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:24 am
- About me: My posts are related to the thread in the same way Gliese 651b is related to your mother's underwear drawer.
- Location: Sitting next to Ayaan in Domus Draconis, and communicating via PMs.
- Contact:
Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
What's good and free, please?
- klr
- (%gibber(who=klr, what=Leprageek);)
- Posts: 32964
- Joined: Wed Mar 04, 2009 1:25 pm
- About me: The money was just resting in my account.
- Location: Airstrip Two
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
There are plenty of programs that meet the second of the criteria, but I don't know about the first to be honest. I tend to view most of them as being the software equivalent of snake oil.
My rule of thumb is that the more specific and targeted a program as, the more likely it is to be something actually useful. These general "fix everything" programs seem to be aimed at the unwary and the easy to spook.
My rule of thumb is that the more specific and targeted a program as, the more likely it is to be something actually useful. These general "fix everything" programs seem to be aimed at the unwary and the easy to spook.
God has no place within these walls, just like facts have no place within organized religion. - Superintendent Chalmers
It's not up to us to choose which laws we want to obey. If it were, I'd kill everyone who looked at me cock-eyed! - Rex Banner
The Bluebird of Happiness long absent from his life, Ned is visited by the Chicken of Depression. - Gary Larson
It's not up to us to choose which laws we want to obey. If it were, I'd kill everyone who looked at me cock-eyed! - Rex Banner
The Bluebird of Happiness long absent from his life, Ned is visited by the Chicken of Depression. - Gary Larson
- Gawdzilla Sama
- Stabsobermaschinist
- Posts: 151265
- Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:24 am
- About me: My posts are related to the thread in the same way Gliese 651b is related to your mother's underwear drawer.
- Location: Sitting next to Ayaan in Domus Draconis, and communicating via PMs.
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
I'm mainly asking about personal experience. Google is useless since they started pushing the paid sites first.klr wrote:There are plenty of programs that meet the second of the criteria, but I don't know about the first to be honest. I tend to view most of them as being the software equivalent of snake oil.
My rule of thumb is that the more specific and targeted a program as, the more likely it is to be something actually useful. These general "fix everything" programs seem to be aimed at the unwary and the easy to spook.
- pErvinalia
- On the good stuff
- Posts: 59531
- Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2010 11:08 pm
- About me: Spelling 'were' 'where'
- Location: dystopia
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
I had a great collection of freeware that was actually very useful. Unfortunately I lost it all when my second drive died. One that I remember get a bit of use out of was a thing called Glary Utilities. Heaps of handy maintenance utilities. I'm assuming this is what you mean by "check up" programs?
Sent from my penis using wankertalk.
"The Western world is fucking awesome because of mostly white men" - DaveDodo007.
"Socialized medicine is just exactly as morally defensible as gassing and cooking Jews" - Seth. Yes, he really did say that..
"Seth you are a boon to this community" - Cunt.
"I am seriously thinking of going on a spree killing" - Svartalf.
"The Western world is fucking awesome because of mostly white men" - DaveDodo007.
"Socialized medicine is just exactly as morally defensible as gassing and cooking Jews" - Seth. Yes, he really did say that..
"Seth you are a boon to this community" - Cunt.
"I am seriously thinking of going on a spree killing" - Svartalf.
- klr
- (%gibber(who=klr, what=Leprageek);)
- Posts: 32964
- Joined: Wed Mar 04, 2009 1:25 pm
- About me: The money was just resting in my account.
- Location: Airstrip Two
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
I tend to focus on particular issues, and then search around on various software sites.
Apart from programs for:
* Antivirus
* File unlocking
* Detailed system information
* Advanced de-fragmentation
... I just tend not to use such programs. I suppose I could install some programs for finding duplicate files/DLLs, etc., but I don't seem to need them.
Apart from programs for:
* Antivirus
* File unlocking
* Detailed system information
* Advanced de-fragmentation
... I just tend not to use such programs. I suppose I could install some programs for finding duplicate files/DLLs, etc., but I don't seem to need them.
I've heard of it it, but never felt the need to look at it. I would have seen it listed on http://majorgeeks.com/, which tends to list a lot of security/diagnostic programs and updated.rEvolutionist wrote:I had a great collection of freeware that was actually very useful. Unfortunately I lost it all when my second drive died. One that I remember get a bit of use out of was a thing called Glary Utilities. Heaps of handy maintenance utilities. I'm assuming this is what you mean by "check up" programs?
God has no place within these walls, just like facts have no place within organized religion. - Superintendent Chalmers
It's not up to us to choose which laws we want to obey. If it were, I'd kill everyone who looked at me cock-eyed! - Rex Banner
The Bluebird of Happiness long absent from his life, Ned is visited by the Chicken of Depression. - Gary Larson
It's not up to us to choose which laws we want to obey. If it were, I'd kill everyone who looked at me cock-eyed! - Rex Banner
The Bluebird of Happiness long absent from his life, Ned is visited by the Chicken of Depression. - Gary Larson
- Gawdzilla Sama
- Stabsobermaschinist
- Posts: 151265
- Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:24 am
- About me: My posts are related to the thread in the same way Gliese 651b is related to your mother's underwear drawer.
- Location: Sitting next to Ayaan in Domus Draconis, and communicating via PMs.
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
Thanks, FF. I'll check it out.
- klr
- (%gibber(who=klr, what=Leprageek);)
- Posts: 32964
- Joined: Wed Mar 04, 2009 1:25 pm
- About me: The money was just resting in my account.
- Location: Airstrip Two
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
My usual approach for improving the health of a PC is to find and disable/remove as many unnecessary programs and services as possible.
God has no place within these walls, just like facts have no place within organized religion. - Superintendent Chalmers
It's not up to us to choose which laws we want to obey. If it were, I'd kill everyone who looked at me cock-eyed! - Rex Banner
The Bluebird of Happiness long absent from his life, Ned is visited by the Chicken of Depression. - Gary Larson
It's not up to us to choose which laws we want to obey. If it were, I'd kill everyone who looked at me cock-eyed! - Rex Banner
The Bluebird of Happiness long absent from his life, Ned is visited by the Chicken of Depression. - Gary Larson
- Gawdzilla Sama
- Stabsobermaschinist
- Posts: 151265
- Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:24 am
- About me: My posts are related to the thread in the same way Gliese 651b is related to your mother's underwear drawer.
- Location: Sitting next to Ayaan in Domus Draconis, and communicating via PMs.
- Contact:
- Gawdzilla Sama
- Stabsobermaschinist
- Posts: 151265
- Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:24 am
- About me: My posts are related to the thread in the same way Gliese 651b is related to your mother's underwear drawer.
- Location: Sitting next to Ayaan in Domus Draconis, and communicating via PMs.
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
Looks like the Glary Utilities are doing what I already have a program for.
To clarify, I want a program that will check on all the hardware on the computer to make sure it's all working properly. I know that's broad, but I've exhausted the possibilities available through the control panel and still don't know what's causing my computer to freeze up every few minutes.
To clarify, I want a program that will check on all the hardware on the computer to make sure it's all working properly. I know that's broad, but I've exhausted the possibilities available through the control panel and still don't know what's causing my computer to freeze up every few minutes.
- pErvinalia
- On the good stuff
- Posts: 59531
- Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2010 11:08 pm
- About me: Spelling 'were' 'where'
- Location: dystopia
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
try a memory checker. You could have faulty ram.
Sent from my penis using wankertalk.
"The Western world is fucking awesome because of mostly white men" - DaveDodo007.
"Socialized medicine is just exactly as morally defensible as gassing and cooking Jews" - Seth. Yes, he really did say that..
"Seth you are a boon to this community" - Cunt.
"I am seriously thinking of going on a spree killing" - Svartalf.
"The Western world is fucking awesome because of mostly white men" - DaveDodo007.
"Socialized medicine is just exactly as morally defensible as gassing and cooking Jews" - Seth. Yes, he really did say that..
"Seth you are a boon to this community" - Cunt.
"I am seriously thinking of going on a spree killing" - Svartalf.
- Gawdzilla Sama
- Stabsobermaschinist
- Posts: 151265
- Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:24 am
- About me: My posts are related to the thread in the same way Gliese 651b is related to your mother's underwear drawer.
- Location: Sitting next to Ayaan in Domus Draconis, and communicating via PMs.
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
Control panel says no. I need something to test the "video adapter"?rEvolutionist wrote:try a memory checker. You could have faulty ram.
- klr
- (%gibber(who=klr, what=Leprageek);)
- Posts: 32964
- Joined: Wed Mar 04, 2009 1:25 pm
- About me: The money was just resting in my account.
- Location: Airstrip Two
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
Eeek. That could be anything, including an honest-to-goodness hardware fault.Gawdzilla Sama wrote:Looks like the Glary Utilities are doing what I already have a program for.
To clarify, I want a program that will check on all the hardware on the computer to make sure it's all working properly. I know that's broad, but I've exhausted the possibilities available through the control panel and still don't know what's causing my computer to freeze up every few minutes.
The Control Panel won't do that. You need a low-level boot utility like memtest. I used it track down a fault in a memory module, which I was then able to get replaced. Be advised though that thorough memory checking can take exhaustive repeated cycles running into days.Gawdzilla Sama wrote:Control panel says no. I need something to test the "video adapter"?rEvolutionist wrote:try a memory checker. You could have faulty ram.
http://www.memtest.org/
Memtest is also included in other diagnostic boot utilities, as well as being stand-alone.
God has no place within these walls, just like facts have no place within organized religion. - Superintendent Chalmers
It's not up to us to choose which laws we want to obey. If it were, I'd kill everyone who looked at me cock-eyed! - Rex Banner
The Bluebird of Happiness long absent from his life, Ned is visited by the Chicken of Depression. - Gary Larson
It's not up to us to choose which laws we want to obey. If it were, I'd kill everyone who looked at me cock-eyed! - Rex Banner
The Bluebird of Happiness long absent from his life, Ned is visited by the Chicken of Depression. - Gary Larson
- Gawdzilla Sama
- Stabsobermaschinist
- Posts: 151265
- Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:24 am
- About me: My posts are related to the thread in the same way Gliese 651b is related to your mother's underwear drawer.
- Location: Sitting next to Ayaan in Domus Draconis, and communicating via PMs.
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
Okay, on it.
Glary is still running.
Glary is still running.
- pErvinalia
- On the good stuff
- Posts: 59531
- Joined: Tue Feb 23, 2010 11:08 pm
- About me: Spelling 'were' 'where'
- Location: dystopia
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
Control panel doesn't know shit. It's worth testing your memory. It is a common cause of computers freezing up. I'm just looking through my discs of software to see if I can find the one I used (which work brilliantly). But before doing that, it could be worth opening the box up and just making sure the memory is still inserted in correctly and hasn't budged a bit loose.Gawdzilla Sama wrote:Control panel says no. I need something to test the "video adapter"?rEvolutionist wrote:try a memory checker. You could have faulty ram.
edit: I see KLR beat me too it. Yeah, Memtest was one of the ones I used. Regarding the length of time to run it, I think mine took about an hour for 2Gb.
Last edited by pErvinalia on Sun Oct 28, 2012 2:42 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Sent from my penis using wankertalk.
"The Western world is fucking awesome because of mostly white men" - DaveDodo007.
"Socialized medicine is just exactly as morally defensible as gassing and cooking Jews" - Seth. Yes, he really did say that..
"Seth you are a boon to this community" - Cunt.
"I am seriously thinking of going on a spree killing" - Svartalf.
"The Western world is fucking awesome because of mostly white men" - DaveDodo007.
"Socialized medicine is just exactly as morally defensible as gassing and cooking Jews" - Seth. Yes, he really did say that..
"Seth you are a boon to this community" - Cunt.
"I am seriously thinking of going on a spree killing" - Svartalf.
- Gawdzilla Sama
- Stabsobermaschinist
- Posts: 151265
- Joined: Thu Feb 26, 2009 12:24 am
- About me: My posts are related to the thread in the same way Gliese 651b is related to your mother's underwear drawer.
- Location: Sitting next to Ayaan in Domus Draconis, and communicating via PMs.
- Contact:
Re: Dear Ask-a-nerd: Computer "check up" programs?
What the fuck do I download?klr wrote:The Control Panel won't do that. You need a low-level boot utility like memtest. I used it track down a fault in a memory module, which I was then able to get replaced. Be advised though that thorough memory checking can take exhaustive repeated cycles running into days.
http://www.memtest.org/
Memtest is also included in other diagnostic boot utilities, as well as being stand-alone.
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests