Skip Links

DNSstuff.com
Get information about your IP
IP Information
50+ On-demand DNS and network tools

Software

Videos

rssRss Feed

Latest News

rssRss Feed
Get instant email notification when white papers, webcasts, executive guides are added to our library.  Stay informed and up-to-date with the latest on IT Technologies with Network World's Resource Alerts.
Audio

Flash vs Silverlight for king of Web multimedia. Listen now!

Network World Panorama

Tech vendors are like high school. Listen now!

Network World's Twisted Pair

Additional Resources

RSS

FEATURED WHITEPAPERS

Edison Group TCO White Paper HP

Edison analysts put the management software of an HP EVA system through a series of typical day-to-day storage management tasks. The same tasks were also evaluated on similar systems from NetApp and EMC. This study demonstrates how the superior user interface and virtualization offered by the HP EVA storage system can provide organizations with the benefits of higher administrative efficiency combined with the potential ability to utilize less expensive human resources.

RSS

FEATURED REPORTS

Executive Guide: Storage Heats Up HP

Get the latest on storage technologies that allow IT professionals to better cope with new IT demands. Learn how storage technologies can help you successfully tackle e-Discover, regulatory compliance, green data center initiatives and the data explosion. Get all the details now.

IT Buyer's Guides

View All Buyer's Guides

Free Newsletters

Sign up and receive the latest news, reviews and trends on your favorite technology topics

Save The Date!
What They Are Saying

Would you support government censorship of the Internet for less spam, viruses and other attacks? - Anonymous

Join the Discussion

Partner Content
CA logo

CA Network & Voice Resource Center

Comprehensive Network & Voice Management Visit CA Network & Voice Management Resource Center and get insights into industry best practices, information that helps you to address your challenges.

CA Network & Voice Management Resource Center

whitepaper

Managing Voice Over IP for Successful Convergence

Voice over IP (VoIP) has much to offer in cost savings but some customers have concerns about VoIP call quality compared to the quality of traditional voice services. This white paper will help you learn how to take the right steps so that voice quality is assured.

Managing VoIP for Successful Convergence

whitepaper

The Changing Face of Network Management

Managing your network is serious business. This paper discusses the benefits of integrating configuration change-awareness into your network fault management solution

Download Whitepaper

What to Do When Windows Gets Really Messed Up

By Lincoln Spector , PC World , 05/06/2008
  • Social Web 
  • Email 
  • Feedback 
  • Close

"To err is human," the old joke goes. "But to really mess things up requires a computer."

This Answer Line collection concentrates on the absolute disasters of Windows computing--the problems that threaten your PC, your career, and your peace of mind. Here's what to do when Windows throws the dreaded Blue Screen of Death your way, and how to restore your OS even if you've lost the original restore CD.

To regain some of your own peace of mind, join the community in our Answer Line forum or send your technology questions to answer@pcworld.com.

Why Does My PC Keep Dying With a Blue Screen of Death?

Gael Busson, Montreal, Quebec, Canada

What's worse than the sudden, unexpected appearance of a blue screen filled with white text? Recurring appearances of blue screens filled with white text. The fewer times you have to read the maddeningly passive-voice observation "A problem has been detected and Windows has been shut down...," the better.

Microsoft calls these freeze-frame moments "stop errors," but everyone else uses a much more descriptive title: The Blue Screen of Death (BSoD). They occur whenever Windows senses a problem that won't let it operate properly.

When you encounter a BSoD, there's not much you can do except mourn your lost data (whatever was in memory but not yet saved to disk), reboot your machine, and go on with your life. If you start getting them regularly, however, you have a problem that must be addressed.

The question is, what's causing the problem?

Believe it or not, BSoD screens actually contain some useful information--albeit not much. The next time your monitor and mood suddenly turn blue, grab a pen and a sheet of paper and jot these items down before rebooting:

-- The problem description: Write down whatever text appears between the boilerplate first paragraph ("A problem has been detected...") and the one that begins "If this is the first time..."

-- Technical details: Write down everything that appears under the heading 'Technical information'.

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |  Next >
Comment
Login
Forgot your account info?
Add comment
Anonymous comments subject to moderator approval. Register here for member benefits.
Have a NetworkWorld account? Log in here. Register now for a free account.
First Name
Last Name
E-mail
Zip Code