posted
Anyone know anything about computers? It keeps on saying the virtual memory is low or the virtual memory is gone. I called IT and they said this was the RAM, and I needed to remove programs to make room. I did that, and all I have now is the stuff I need to function as a student. But it's still acting up like mad. Internet Explorer and Word were incredibly squirrelly when I tried to run them, and I almost lost my midterm paper. Could this be a hardware problem?
Oh, and in the add/remove program list there are like three programs called "Windows Hotflicks" and some long number. Is this important? I don't remember them being there originally, I don't remember installing them, and I don't know of any use I have for them. But when I take steps to uninstall them, it says "Are you sure you want to untinstall Windows 2000?" Of course I don't.
BTW it's a school rental, so if any hardware is weird they should replace the computer. I'm just wondering if its possible to fix this on my own.
And...I deleted AIM. So until this problem is solved, no more AIM.
posted
What is the maximum size of your paging file? You can find out, in Windows 2000, by right clicking on "My Computer", selecting "Properties" from the menu, clicking on the "Advanced" tab, clicking on the "Performance Options" button, and then finally clicking on the "Change" button. There will be a section entitled "Paging file size for selected drive". Within this section it will tell you the available space in the drive you've selected, and allow you to set the initial size of the paging file as well as its maximum size.
When your computer says its low on virutal memory, what it means is that is paging file (which it uses, basically, as extra RAM) is running out of space. If you increase the size of the paging file it will likely take care of the problem, although you don't want to use up too much of your available space for this. Another solution would be to add more RAM to the machine, but you probably don't want to do that, since it isn't actually yours.
posted
Actually, I think your problem probably lies in software; I'm as suspicious of those programs in your Add/Remove menu as you are. What's your OS?
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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posted
What I'm also wondering is on the Performance tab, how much Available Physical Memory you have. If you're running short on that, you'll be using more virtual memory, and increasing your page file won't help speed your computer back up.
Also, I'm wondering what processes are running on your machine (task manager can show you if you click on Processes).
You might want to install AIM again so that we can talk to you real time (instead of posting).
Posts: 851 | Registered: Oct 2001
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posted
If it were a non windows 2k I'd have you look at the startup items as well, but that's more complicated on win 2k (anyone memorized all the locations of startup items?). Ooh, I have a solution: download this: http://www.mlin.net/StartupCPL.shtml . Send a list of everything in HKCU/Run, Startup (User), Startup (Common), Services (if you see it), and HKLM/Run. We'll likely be disabling most of the stuff.
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
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posted
I'm off to work, so if they're emailed in I won't be able to help until this evening, but I do have web access, so just post any lists here.
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
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Well, you at least don't have to worry about the "Hotflicks," or rather the "Hotfixes." They're from Windowsupdate, and you wouldn't want to get rid of them.
Posts: 1592 | Registered: Jan 2001
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Thank you, Nato. I was sitting here in torment, trying to figure out what kind of spyware a "Windows Hotflick" might be, and it never even OCCURRED to me that she might mean "Hotfix." *blush*
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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I've known someone who sprayed lysol in his computer. I never figured out how he didn't fry something doing this..
Posts: 851 | Registered: Oct 2001
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If I really felt like exposing myself to ridicule, I could tell you about the time I cleaned my keyboard with Fantastik. Posts: 32919 | Registered: Mar 2003
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At least you've never taken your machine to a gas station to use the compressed air, only to be surprised when oily water came out (read it on a website somewhere).
Posts: 851 | Registered: Oct 2001
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Who's Computer Stinks? It sounds like a name from a Mad Magazine parody of Encyclopedia Brown.
Posts: 37449 | Registered: May 1999
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posted
Here's what be on my add/remove program list:
Adobe Reader 6.0 EPSON Printer Software Internet Exploreer Q818529 LiveUpdate 1.80 (Symantec Corporation Microsoft Office XP Professional with Frontpage Outlook Express Update Q330994 Symantec Antivirus Client Windows 2000 Hotfix - KB823559 Windows 2000 Hotfix - KB823980 Windows 2000 Hotfix (SP5) Q818043 Windows 2000 Support Tools WinTools for Internet Explorer
Noemon, it keeps sending me warnings about upping the size of my paging file, but whenever I tried after the warnings popped up, it just popped up more warning windows of "You're virtual memory is low," or "Virtual memory is gone" and wouldn't let me do it. Right now I can get into it, but I can't find the properties menu.
Thanks for the help yo. I have to go to class, but I'll try to do the other stuff ya'll suggested when I come back.
Oh, and thanks for correcting me on the Hotflicks issue. I'd read it wrong the whole time.
posted
Do check the performance tab as suggested and post what it says there (right click my computer, choose properties, click performance).
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
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I'm with fugu, mine is like 4 times that long.
Do you have any anti-virus software on it? Could be a virus.
And correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't page-file information stored on your hard drive and not on RAM? Posts: 354 | Registered: Jun 2002
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posted
Yeah, it is. The page file acts like extra RAM. When the computer is using all available RAM, and still needs more, it writes to the page file. Accessing the paging file is slower than accessing RAM, though, so in general its good to have a lot of RAM, and not have to rely on a huge page file.
Posts: 16059 | Registered: Aug 2000
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Then why would the IT people that sarcasticmuppet tell him it was RAM when it was hard drive space? Why wouldn't they tell him what you just said Noemon?
Oh well.
Speaking of RAM, I need a little more than my 256 megabytes of DDR 266 RAM. Posts: 354 | Registered: Jun 2002
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posted
But it's also good to have enough available memory to run things, so if you don't have a lot of RAM, you will need a larger paging file.
You should try increasing the maximum size of the paging file to see if that helps. It probably would help a lot.
For Windows XP: (I'm pretty sure 2000 is the same or really similar.)
quote:Open System in Control Panel. On the Advanced tab, under Performance, click Settings. On the Advanced tab, under Virtual memory, click Change. Under Drive [Volume Label], click the drive that contains the paging file you want to change. Under Paging file size for selected drive, click Custom size, and type a new paging file size in megabytes in the Initial size (MB) or Maximum size (MB) box, and then click Set.
posted
It might actually be spyware. The original problem was that these full-page popups would come up and then either immediately or later the textbars on IExplorer wouldn't work and I'd be unable to type anything (very annoying when trying to post something). I still have that problem. I currently have 3 windows open--a popup that I can't close, an IE window that I can't close or type in, and another one that I reloaded to tell you all about it. And, per someone's advice in AIM the other night, I deleted my cookies. It didn't seem to help much.
Bok--Kazaa and other file sharing programs are strictly against the BYU honor code. I'm appalled that you would even insinuate such a thing...
But to answer your question, no, I don't have any file sharing software.
fugu--I couldn't find what you mentioned, but under the performance options function I found that under Virtual memory the total paging file size for all drives is 215 MB. Besides that they're just an application response (Optimize performance for Applications, Background services, whatever that means).
As for a virus--that's what I thought it was at first, but I scanned the entire computer and symantec couldn't find one.
to AFR--well...hmm...I'll have to get back to you on that.
Wetchick:
quote: Why wouldn't they tell him what you just said Noemon?
him? Him!?!?!?
[ October 23, 2003, 05:45 PM: Message edited by: Her Royal Sweekiness ]
Posts: 59 | Registered: Sep 2003
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posted
Noemon, Windows will always use a paging file, no matter how much RAM you've got in your machine. You always have a paging file in use, though it may not be used very much if you've got lots of RAM.
Also, I'd be careful about manually setting the virtual memory size. IME windows 2k (and above) have been very good with setting the page file size on it's own.
What I'd really like to do would be to log into the machine remotely (pcanywhere, VNC, etc) and take a look at it that way.
Msmuppet, I'd try to run SpyBot: Search and Destroy and see if that turns up any spyware.
Posts: 851 | Registered: Oct 2001
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posted
Has your virus scanner been updated lately (so it has the latest virus definations)?
How much RAM do you have installed in your machine? How much memory is being used? (right click on "My Computer", select "System Information", look at the memory tab for information about how much RAM (physical memory) and "Windows memory" (virtual memory) you have.
Do you have any unusual operations running (check your system taskbar and task manager)?
posted
it says I have 130,608 KB of physical memory, and I edited my above post with info on my virtual memory (215 MB).
I just updated my virusscan software, but it'll take me twenty minutes to perform a scan to see if I have one. I'll let you know then.
Posts: 59 | Registered: Sep 2003
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quote: -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Why wouldn't they tell him what you just said Noemon? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
him? Him!?!?!?
Are you getting OVERSENSITIVE when people make mistakes? Are you? ARE YOU!?!?!
Take it easy, I just assumed. I didn't know sarcasticmuppet was a girl......
posted
By the way, it's Wetchik, not Wetchick. Wetchik is a character from the series called Homecoming, which Orson Scott Card wrote. Posts: 354 | Registered: Jun 2002
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I agree with slacker and ludosti. Download Spybot S&D, click internet update to get the latest definitions, then run it to see if it turns anything up (you may need to restart the program after updating the definitions). If this doesn't work, beat your computer to death and make it look like suicide, nobody will know it was you Posts: 331 | Registered: Oct 2003
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Well, after getting three referrals, I downloaded Spybot and got rid of a bunch of junk. I got on IExplorer for the first time with no difficulites, which is a minor miracle. I'll have to see if the virtual memory problem pops up again, but other than that, I think the problem turned out to be spyware. Thanks a lot to everyone who knows more about computers than me!!!!
Posts: 59 | Registered: Sep 2003
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quote:it says I have 130,608 KB of physical memory
Eep. You need more memory for that machine if you want to do too much these days. Find out how much more memory you can get in it (or find someone with some memory to spare).
As bad as it sounds, I can't imagine working with less than 512MB these days...
Posts: 851 | Registered: Oct 2001
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Yeah, I was amazed how much more I liked my 500 mHz Windows 2000 machine after I went from 128 MB to 256 MB.
Posts: 1592 | Registered: Jan 2001
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*Bump to add further advice* sarcasticmuppet,(hopefully you'll read this) to prevent getting any more spyware, I strongly advise you regularly run and update these programs (and Spybot), they will keep spyware from ever being downloaded.
SpywareBlaster is recommended in the immunize section of Spybot S&D, so it is good software, SpywareGuard was linked from SpywareBlaster's website.
Everybody: , Spybot is now a mandatory download, if anyone fails to download it I will be forced to glare at you, and you don't want that. These other programs aren't mandatory, yet, but they are highly recommended.
[ November 05, 2003, 03:51 PM: Message edited by: Liquor and Fireworks ]
Posts: 331 | Registered: Oct 2003
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I'm with fugu, mine is like 4 times that long. ![[Dont Know]](graemlins/dontknow.gif)
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