For some time I have been having trouble with my computer, a no-name PC from a computer store. It used to work fine, but now it does something I've never seen before. It works OK when you first turn it on, but the longer it stays on, the more it freezes up and the farther behind the clock gets. The freeze-ups are just for a second or two at a time, but it gets to the point where I can't even play a game of Freecell, let alone do any serious work (like THAT ever happens!)

Why does it do this, and what can I do about it? Any ideas?

You could have a bad power supply or a bad motherboard.

I'd say from the symptoms that you have a bad power supply.
As it heats up one of the DC voltages is dropping which affects clock timing, and well....just about everything.
Your power supply fan may have failed. If it failed you can tell by turning on the PC and feeling for airflow at the back of the unit near the power cord. If you feel the fan moving air around it works. That doesn't mean the power supply is good. However, if the fan isn't moving....your power supply has failed due to overheating and should be replaced.

One thing I forgot to mention -- if I restart the computer without turning it off, everything goes back to normal. At least for the time being, Then it slowly starts to lag behind again. Does this change anything?

And thanks, FB. I was wondering if it was something like that.

That would make me think it was a motherboard issue.
At first I was thinking memory bc quite often the connectors on the modules need cleaning and cause all sorts of weird stuff to happen. The clock slowing down is what's throwing me off.
That would only happen if you have a bad motherboard or power supply.

If it was my PC I would take the memory modules out and clean the connectors with a pencil eraser and put them back in.
What CPU does your PC have? One other thing I just thought of is that the cooling fan on your CPU might have died.
While you are in there cleaning memory modules leave the case off and power up the unit. See if the fan comes on for your CPU.

Curses! My computer is doing the same thing. Thanks for the advice!

After doing a little research, I found a troubleshooting website. It sounds as if the battery might be to blame. I haven't tried opening the 'puter yet to see whether mine is replaceable. :eek:
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/x/comp/mbsys/cmos_LosingTime.htm

This site has a variety of troubleshooting links, which I'm still checking out. I found this part amusing:
http://www.pcguide.com/ts/gen/mental.htm

Ya know, I was wondering if it might be the battery. However, there doesn't seem to be a lot of air blowing out the back of the box, so maybe it is the power supply after all. I hope and pray it's not the motherboard--I've had to change a few in the past, and the ol' 'puter is never the same afterwards.

Thanks, guys!!

My number one fix is to take the case cover off and blow out the dust.

Next is that windoze in it's 98se version is best if reinstalled once a year and I can't see any reason not to defrag as often as possible.

There can be a huge number of variables in trying to trouble shoot a computer. They are very complex. I do the simple things first no matter the machine I'm working on.

There are utilities available to test your memory and many other elements of the works. If you like mechanical trouble shooting you might enjoy the hunt. A new mother board will require that you reinstall your operating system if you have winduhs installed.

This might be a good time to make sure you have all your important files backed up to another source. Upload them to a remote server or burn them to disc if you have that option.

The mother board battery failure normally will show up in your bios warnings when you boot.

Your power supply may be under stress from too much dust and dirt as may be your CPU's ability to stay cool and within proper operating temperatures. I suppose that the hard drive itself might be in question. I retired four ide drives this winter as they began to get flaky.

So a reformatting of your hard drive is always an option.

You do have all your updates done right? There may also be updates available for your hardware. You might want to check with the different manufacturers as to what's been updated in the way of "firmware". Your mother board manufacturer might also have bios updates appropriate for your troubles. Check carefully first though as a bios update can render your mother board dead in the water without much error on your part.

Your mileage may vary.
Cheers! Ian.

Hmmm. I live in a very dusty house in a very dusty area. In fact, there is a high wind advisory, complete with blowing dust, this very morning. I believe that's the first thing I'll check!

been there - done that!!!
:D

Seriously, if your computer sucks, get a Mac. I am a computer tech (and have been for the last 11 years). I used to be a anti-Mac ***** thinking Windows was absolutely the way to go...until I got a job where I had to take care of Macs and a co-worker there gave me a Mac of my very own. Within a few weeks my Windows computer was out of the house. I now spend very little (often none) of my home time fixing problems on my own computer. Now I have become one of those Mac-using bigots. Windows, its bugs, viruses, security problems, spyware and such do not exist on a Mac. My job is Windows only, but I'm glad that when I get home I can do what I need to / want to on my own computer without having to deal with all the problems that I have to at work.

If you want to, feel free to ask me more....
Jason

Here is what I think.
My first guess would be software. Especially if it's windows that has been on your computer for awhile. Over time you install and uninstall software stuff gets left behind.. even worse stuff gets left behind in the windows system folders making it very bloated. Alot of old drivers get loaded into the system that is no longer needed. So as mentioned above save your personal files and re-load windows. Once a year is a good number. All this stuff could have loaded down the cpu.. possibly slowing down your clock.
Before you do that you can try this to see if it makes it bearable.
go to the start menu then run, and type in regedit
click on HKEY_CURRENT_USER
next click on software
next click on microsoft
next click on windows
next click on currentVersion
now go to were it says run, anything that starts with run look through it your pretty much safe to delete anything inside of that. You can also go to HKEY_CURRENT_MACHINE at the very begining and follow the same path there is another set of run folders here too.
These are all the files that are run at start up, many times there are old programs in here that will bog your system down. DO NOT TOUCH ANYTHING ELSE HERE. You can create a mess fast this way. If you are unsure about any of the folders tell us what they are I could probably tell you what ones you can get rid of.
Go to this site http://security.kolla.de as well and download spybot this will go through your system to remove any spyware(programs that watch what your doing to sell to other companies, nasty stuff). Of course make sure you have a virus scanner scan every week or so.
Now I doubt it is hardware, but of course it is a possibility, invest in a few cans of the compressed air crack open the case(make sure the computers off) and blow away all the dust. When you put the case back on make sure all the connections are in all the way. As for the battery, the battery keeps the time while the computer is off so if it is loosing time while the computer is on the battery is fine. There are programs that sets your clock to atomic time, windows XP has this feature free.
I'm sorry I'm horrible at explaining things.. if you have any other questions let me know.
Oh one last thing try to find yourself a computer guru someone to help you out when this stuff happens... it's alot easier to diagnose a computer when you can see this stuff go wrong, bribe them with goodies.. we tend to like the spongy stuff with cream in the middle. :-D

As a professional computer technician... who is also very impatient... :D ... I am going to recommend the above post as the most thorough and appropriate one. :D

The one other clue was when you said it "was not blowing air out the back" any more. THAT is a problem you NEED to get fixes ASAP with a new fan, especially given the dusty environment you describe.