two annoying problems...

[Deadeye]

Ok, recently I've started having two rather annoying problems that i need some help with:

1) blue screening! *cowers in a corner and cries* ... all i know about blue screens is that its some form of memory error (correct?) and I'm presuming it's hardware error ... how can i be sure of whats causing these damn annoyances (usually about once every day or two) and whats the best way to solve that problem?

2) pop-ups with trojans/adware in the cookies ... they come up in internet explorer, even though my default browser is Firefox, so I know its not pop ups from any sites i visit (they always come up in FF), and avast always gives me an error straight after telling me that its found something (two things, actually) ... dunno if this is any help, but this is the link it gives me: C:\Documents and Settings\<user name>\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\K163WTA3\_affvm[1] ... means nothing to me, and each time i go to that folder and delete everything *goes to delete* ... and while i was doing that i got this: C:\Documents and Settings\<user area>\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files\Content.IE5\GXYNOPE3\jaun_20070726[1]
... I've tried scanning with avast, and it finds nothing. I then tried scanning with Spybot (something some guys at a computer shop installed last time i had it upgraded, never heard of it myself) and that finds 103 things (each time, no fail) but when i "fix problem" it tells me they've been deleted, but if I scan again, they're still there

can anyone help me with either of my problems? mainly the popups because they're starting to be extremely annoying

and before you ask, no, i don't visit any dodgy porn sites ... although i did download a crack the other day for the first time (possible cause?)

**EDIT**

forgot a few things:

im running XP with SP2, recently installed the updates that MS released

Hardware:

GeForce 8800 GTX with power supply (overheating cause BSoD?), 2 gig RAM, 1.8Ghz processors, and im trying to find my motherboard brand/etc now will edit when i find it

[ShadowClaw]

Have you tried telling avast to schedule a boot time scan?

[Lazzars]

#1 for bsod try copying down the stop error and running it into microsoft's help center, it might be able to tell you whats at fault

or download memtest and run that to see if your RAM is ok

[YuriRuler90]

What's your Power Supply wattage and the brand/model? Not many can run a 8800GTX right off hand.

[Deadeye]

thanks for the help guys:

@ shadow: scan got 1 adware and deleted it on boot up, but then something poped up in IE as soon as my desktop had finished loading - not sure what is was though as i got a 404 ... and now i just got an online casino popup in IE, so the boot scan didnt sort it >.<

@ lazzars: MS help gives me nothing, just tells me its a stop error but nothing on how to solve the problem ... ill do MemTest over night and then see if i get any errors

@ Yuri: ThermalTake, 250 Watt power supply just for the 8800GTX, then the power supply that came with the PC for everything else (not sure what that is, only knew the thermaltake because the box is in my room >.<)

***EDIT***

Ok, scan definitely didn't work as I've just got 8 adware found by avast in the last 10mins (and it didn't find them in the scan because??? >.<) ... can anyone recommend a good replacement? really bugging me that avast finds them later and that they keep coming back >.<

[Sypher]

Try AVG first, it's free and pretty good so worth a go.

Some serious viruses can really only be solved by the old tried and tested theory of "Backup, reformat, reinstall." < If you go for this option, make sure you do a full reformat else you may find the resiliant little virus will survive.

The virus and BSOD may be linked, or it could be a hardware failure.

[ShadowClaw]

@Sypher: avast has a free version as well. (just for future reference)

@Deadeye: Ok, you mentioned earlier that you had downloaded a crack for a program. Do you know the name of the group/person that made the crack? It is possible that the crack installed a plug-in for IE that is activated whenever it detects network traffic, i.e. browsing the web, and then creates the temp files that avast is detecting, so while it is deleting the temp files it is not deleting the plugin that is creating them. Also it may not even be a plugin for IE but simply a stand alone program. One way to see if it is a plugin is to open up IE and disable all the activate plugins when you first start your computer and then just wait see if anything pops up.

As for the BSOD problem do you have adequate cooling for the case? Two power supplies and a 8800GTX can make things get pretty toasty with out the correct cooling. If this is the case the excess heat may be causing something on the motherboard or RAM or so other component to overheat and cause the error. This might be the case since you said that it happens once or twice a day.

sorry for the length of this, my posts tend to get long when I'm explaining computer related questions.

[Deadeye]

Ok, AVG found quite a few things and i deleted them all. I'll do another scan before I go to bed to see if anything else has appeared.

I just took a look at my plugins, and there were quite a few with names I recognise (and not in a good way) so I disabled them.

For the cooling, the card comes with it's own fan (dang big and noisy too >.<) but I'll still keep an eye on the temp. I'm going to hopefully move the case soon anyway since (well, as soon as acer get back with my monitor!) because right now it's in a little corner with not a lot of breathing space due to the nasty CRT stuck on my desk (all my other stuff takes up the space where the tower would go).

Is there a way to check your computers temperature, and what temp should it be at?

[ShadowClaw]

I'm not sure of a way to tell what the temp should be but this program:
http://www.cpuid.com/pcwizard.php
can tell you the current temperature of your processor, hard drive, vid card, etc. in real time.

Using this program (its free) could be helpful if you have the time to just sit there watch the temp meters to see what the temps are when you start the computer and what they are when it blue screens. Sorry but this is about all I can say to help you with the BSOD problem without knowing what kind of motherboard, RAM, harddrive, etc you have because there is no real standard for temperature tolerance in computer parts. About 40 to 60 degrees Celsius is normal (or something close to this depending on what hardware and cooling systems you have)

[Deadeye]

Well I've found my problem: processor and mainboard (presuming that means motherboard) are running at 192 Celsius, GPU at 77 Celsius and hard disk at 42 Celsius (I'm surprised it hasn't melted to be honest).

I'll get that sorted as soon as possible, most probably the weekend (gotta rely on my parents to take the PC in since I can't drive yet >.<).

Thank you very much guys, you've been a great help.

[Gaucho8788]

Ok well your GPU is 170.6 degrees Fahrenheit. Your Hard Drive is at 107.6. That is crazy, a total collective temp of 278.2 Degrees Fahrenheit. I am shocked literally. Also your motherboard and pcu is at :dismay::dismay:... 377.6 Degrees Fahrenheit. That doesn't seem physically possible without it exploding or completely melting.

[ShadowClaw]

Well let me just say this, the melting point of silicon (what almost every circuit board is made out of) is 1414 °C or 2577 °F so would take a lot to actually melt the board. However at 300 - 400 something degrees Fahrenheit the electrical properties of silicon change causing the sensitive transistors and resistors to not function correctly

[Deadeye]

i didn't think it was physically possible either, but thats what PC wizard is telling me. I've got my room fan blowing on it's highest setting straight to the side, and it's down to 144 C for the processor and motherboard. GPU at 61 C and hard disk at 21 C. Theres a guy coming round today from the PC shop I use to pick it up and take it in, gonna get a decent cooling system and a better processor - just glad my birthday was only a few weeks ago, still got cash to spend, otherwise I'd be pretty screwed.

[Gaucho8788]

Well let me just say this, the melting point of silicon (what almost every circuit board is made out of) is 1414 °C or 2577 °F so would take a lot to actually melt the board. However at 300 - 400 something degrees Fahrenheit the electrical properties of silicon change causing the sensitive transistors and resistors to not function correctly

Thats nice to know. And according to what you're saying it is still not good for it to be at that temp. As long as nothings damaged I guess.

i didn't think it was physically possible either, but thats what PC wizard is telling me. I've got my room fan blowing on it's highest setting straight to the side, and it's down to 144 C for the processor and motherboard. GPU at 61 C and hard disk at 21 C. Theres a guy coming round today from the PC shop I use to pick it up and take it in, gonna get a decent cooling system and a better processor - just glad my birthday was only a few weeks ago, still got cash to spend, otherwise I'd be pretty screwed

It's nice to here that. Hope your problems are solved soon.

[sovietmisaki]

if the fans aren't enough, some heat syncs, or a water colling system may be in order, then you can concentrate on the other problems