[Yarhead]

I've been having a major technical issue with my netbook and am wondering if any of you have any helpful insight. Thank you so much for reading.

Basic Specs:
Acer Aspire One AOA150-1777 Refurbished Netbook - Intel Atom™ Processor N270 1.6GHz, 1GB DDR2, 120GB HDD, 8.9" WSVGA, Windows® XP Home

Yesterday I got the dreaded blue screen but the computer quickly restarted before I could jot down the specific issue (Today I changed the settings so that if I get another blue screen, the system does not automatically restart and I can jot down the issue). Since then, all aspects of the netbook (i.e. startup, browsing, media, etc.) have been running extremely slowly. Up until yesterday, I'd had no issue with this netbook, which I purchased refurbished from an online retailer about 100 days ago.

Does anyone have any idea as to some helpful steps to get this back to normal?

Other info: I am using around 60GB of my HD and have 100GB remaining (they sent me a 160GB HD as opposed to 120 GB).

Keeping in mind that my troubleshooting/system knowledge is relatively minimal, after reading up on the blue screen and evaluating my use of the netbook, I think this could be one of many issues. A few contenders:
1) I've downloaded some files over the past 3 weeks so viruses/spyware could be the issue. Virus and spyware scans have come up blank and some spyware has been found. If there is any update, I can let you know.
2) I switched from the 3-cell battery that came with the netbook to a 9-cell I purchased off of ebay about a week ago. I read in a few spots that sometimes the 9-cell is detrimental to the BIOS. Could that be the issue (have in mind I also tried the 3-cell battery now but the computer was still running just as slow)?

Any help to get this back to normal is hugely appreciated. Thanks again!

P.S. I am now running Avast, Avira, Spybot, Ad-Aware and Malwarebytes (though not simultaneously) to help diagnose. If any of these are not recommended, please let me know. Cheers!

[Rollin' Rog]

Have you tried doing a "system restore" to a prior date?

Start > run: msconfig > Launch System Restore and select a date a few days prior to the crash. These can be "undone" if not helpful.

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I can run a debugging utility on the dump files if you do this:

1 > create a new folder on the desktop and call it "dumpcheck" or whatever you like
2 > navigate to c:\windows\minidump and copy the last few minidump files to that folder. *this assumes 'c' is your boot drive, if it is not, subsitute accordingly
3 > close the folder and right click on it and select Send to Compressed (zipped) Folder.
4 > use the "manage attachments" in the "advanced" reply window to upload that zip file here as an attachment.

This might point us to a non Microsoft driver causing the error, if one exists for it.

If you do not see any minidumps, be sure you are not using any cache cleaner such as CCleaner. Also run sysdm.cpl and select Advanced > Startup and Recovery. Make sure "small memory dump" is the one chosen under "write debugging information" and the location should be %systemroot%\minidump

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You can also try Clean Boot Troubleshooting >>

Run msconfig and select the "Services" tab. Check "Hide Microsoft Services" and then disable the rest. Also uncheck "load startup group" on the general page.


Now restart and test the issue at hand

If no problems, run msconfig and recheck half the disabled items on the Services tab. Test again. If the problem recurs, UNcheck half the items you just checked to narrow down the culprit.

If the problem didn't occur, check the other half, so all the Services are enabled -- proceed to do this on the startup tab as well.

Get the idea? You want to isolate the problem to a specific startup if possible.

Note: if you already have items unchecked under msconfig > startups and are in “selective” startup mode – you should note what these are before beginning. They will need to be de-selected again.


http://support.microsoft.com/kb/929135 << written for Vista but apples equally to XP

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Performance Troubleshooting questions (just answer those that you have not already)

PERFORMANCE QUESTIONS:

0 > when did the problem seem to be begin?
1 > is it very slow to boot up?
2 > do programs open slowly?
3 > does the same behavior occur both on and off the internet. Or with no connection at all?
4 > does it matter how long the system has been on, and does a restart improve things?

Slow performance issues can often be due to overheating, so if the system is faster after it has been shutdown for a while and then restarted -- that would be especially suspect. To check for possible problems here, shutdown, open the case and blow out any accumulated dust. Then turn it
on and check to see that the fan is working. Sometimes it helps to physically clean the fan.

If a laptop, check to see that the vent is clear of dust and verify the fan is working. Temps and fan speed can usually be monitored with SpeedFan (except on Dell desktops), a free utility.

5 > if you do a ctrl-alt-del, do any processes show excess cpu usage, other than System Idle Process?

6 > If you open the Device Manager (run devmgmt.msc) and select the entry for IDE ATA/Atapi and select the Primary IDE > Advanced Settings, does it say the "current transfer mode" is Ultra DMA or PIO?

If it says PIO or even just DMA (rather than “ULTRA” DMA, first ensure "Use DMA if Available” is selected, then select the driver tab and uninstall the driver and reboot. Then check again.

Alternately you can run the script on this page >> http://winhlp.com/node/10

*note that the above will not apply to RAID drive configurations.
___________________________________________________________________________ _
COMMIT CHARGE

Do ctrl-alt-del to open up the task manager. Select the "performance" tab. Let me know what you see under:

Physical Memory

Total: this is your total installed ram -- "physical" memory
Available: this is the amt of real "physical" memory presently uncommitted

Commit Charge

Total: this is the combination of total physical and virtual memory currently in use
Limit: this is the total physical and virtual memory available
Peak: this is the most you have had in use in this session

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[Yarhead]

Thanks for your help! I tried the system restore and it seems to have worked. The computer is running as well as it had before the crash. Thanks a bundle!