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WinXP temperment when it gets cold.

category: general [glöplog]
Has anyone else had the following problem.

Ever since I firist installed Windows XP when it was first released I have noticed a consistant problem. During Dec-Feb the f'ing OS goes haywire and I have to fresh install. It doesn't seem to understand that I have essays due! Is there something about the winter months that messes with XP? This OS seems to work wonderfully during warm months and I don't understand why I get f'd over when it snows.

No shite. This is when XP given me the most problems.
Maybe it's your hardware. A friend told me, back in the days when he had a SCSI system he had to rewire the hardware every half year. Winter config / summer config. He still doesn't know why, but it worked for him.
You could try getting hold of a norwegian XP-release (a finnish or swedish one might also do the trick, but I havent tested that). They have some special tweaks to cope with the weather we have up here.
One very powerful heating source for cold winters is Povray.
Launch a nice long rendering and your laptop will soon heat any room, and you'll forget WinXP freezing.
Because of cold, that is.
added on the 2005-12-14 11:47:43 by makc makc
The linux kernel has a special compile time flag for winter and summer modes. So it's just a matter of recompiling and switching the kernel twice per year.
added on the 2005-12-14 12:01:11 by bruce bruce
Mine died recently and needed reinstalling too. It's a common missunderstanding that its hypothermia though. Its really just old age. I'm really sorry to say it, but the life expectancy of a windows xp installation is only about 12 months, and much less if it's had an active life. If you can't bear the pain of watching windows get old and decrepit and finally dying once a year, I suggest you get a cat or dog. Or if you haven't the time or patience to look after them, the choice is a unix based os or dos.
added on the 2005-12-14 12:04:14 by psonice psonice
Maybe it's because it's been exactly one year since you installed it the last time, you dope.
added on the 2005-12-14 12:44:38 by gloom gloom
i've had mine going for several years.
added on the 2005-12-14 14:36:18 by quisten quisten
makc: heh, very true. i ran the worldcommunitygrid agent for a while, and it kept my living room at room temperature without turning on the heat. of course, that was in the fall, and it probably added $10 a month onto my electric bill..

anyway, last time my xp setup croaked was.. okay, february.
added on the 2005-12-14 20:20:22 by phoenix phoenix
wtf
added on the 2005-12-14 20:42:48 by Hatikvah Hatikvah
Being the simple fool I am, I always thought that computers liked it colder. Especially if you're an overclocking sort of dude. A system failure due to cold weather does not make any sense at all.

Unless you've got a liquid cooled cpu, and frozen pipework! ;-)
added on the 2005-12-15 00:14:50 by CiH CiH
cih, agreed.
added on the 2005-12-15 00:16:12 by Hatikvah Hatikvah
My XP always dies and goes to heaven during easter.
added on the 2005-12-15 01:06:54 by violator violator
so does my liver
added on the 2005-12-15 11:09:07 by skrebbel skrebbel
my computer gets sad when it's raining :(
added on the 2005-12-15 11:49:51 by quisten quisten
Maybe your XP has a hangover from New Year's Eve.
added on the 2005-12-15 14:18:54 by Gargaj Gargaj
seems like the conclusions here are that xp lasts longer if you wrap it in a blanket, and let it sleep for 12 hours a day.
added on the 2005-12-15 14:37:39 by psonice psonice
Also, do not get wet or feed after midnight.
added on the 2005-12-15 15:04:35 by Gargaj Gargaj
And remember, a properly cared for XP can provide many years of loving affection!
added on the 2005-12-15 15:05:13 by Gargaj Gargaj
my XP gets faster if i boot Ubuntu.. it might get scared i'd swap or so..
It's common knowledge that computers get worn out. After a while, all that strain on the CPU mega-hurts.

...And I've noticed my computers' gotten wheezy ever since I installed Breezy Badger...
added on the 2005-12-15 15:36:54 by crusader crusader
My computer has an anal infection, any tips?
added on the 2005-12-16 01:15:01 by whizzter whizzter
Quote:
A system failure due to cold weather does not make any sense at all.


Living in the Canadian prairies I can assure you that cold weather can make a difference. Not because the computer becomes too cold, but more it becomes much warmer.

During the winter months furnaces kick in to warm people's houses. This means continuous circulation of heated air within the home. Furnaces become the only source of airflow, and because it's already warm before reaching the computer, ambient temperature inside the case does rise.
I agree with thom, It's 32 degrees in my flat as I type and my windows xp professional acts just fine.

unless it's so cold that condensation moisture developes on your hardware.
added on the 2005-12-16 08:27:03 by Mike 3D Mike 3D
back in the olden olden days, ram came in chips, some of which were plugged into sockets on the bottom of the motherboard. The metal expanded and contracted when the temperature changed, and the chips slowly worked loose, and having a ram chip fall out while it was running generally caused a crash. So if you're running xp on an 8086 class machine, check your case for loose ram chips.
added on the 2005-12-16 09:55:09 by psonice psonice

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