I'm having a really strange problem that I can't put my finger on which involves MySpace. When viewing peoples main profile page on MySpace my computer just crashes and the mouse cursor will not move or the computer respond to any press on the keyboard, the only way to get it back working is to use the reset button on the front of my case.

The strange thing is, my computer has no problems displaying other websites, playing 3D games (e.g. Rollercoaster Tycoon is one I recently played) and performing any other task. I've tried a few different things to diagnose the problem but to no avail:

• I've booted the computer into Safe Mode with Networking and the problem still occurs
• I've tried Firefox, Internet Explorer, Opera and Netscape Navigator and the problem occurs with all of them
• I've updated and tried older versions of Flash, Java and Shockwave
• I've rolled back the graphic card drivers and it still occurs
• I've installed the latest graphic card drivers and it still occurs
• MySpace works fine on 2 other XP computers in my household and my Vista laptop so it isn't a networking problem
• I've tried to access the site with my firewall disabled
• I've run Firefox in its own Safe Mode where plugins are disabled and the problem persists.

I've also checked event viewer after the crashes and no problem with any application or the system is shown.

I'm at a total loss as you can see and I wonder if anybody else can help me.

Thanks

Just a bit of an update here, I've tried MySpace on Knoppix Linux LiveCD and it works. However, Firefox still hangs quite considerably and the window turns white before pages completely load (which takes a while). However, I think Linux deals with the hang better than Windows and it doesn't crash the entire OS.

Can we assume you have completed a full malware scan? What about your RAM? You can test your RAM using one of the following programs. Both require you to create and boot to a bootable floppy disk or CD to run the diagnostics. Using the floppy method is generally easier and yet another reason I still include floppy drives in all my new PC builds. However, the CD method is just as effective at detecting RAM problems. Allow the diagnostics to run for several passes or even overnight. You should have no reported errors.

Windows Memory Diagnostic - see the easy to follow instructions under Quick Start Information.
or
MemTest86+ (for more advanced users) - an excellent how-to guide is available here.

BTW, for the last couple months, I been running both MemTest86+ and Windows Memory Diagnostic over a lot of different RAM. I had one bad stick and both programs found it. That said, I am starting to stress that Microsoft's instructions are easier to follow, and the test results are easy to understand.

Thanks for your reply Bill. I have run malware scans yes and I run them regularly. I am going to leaving Windows Memory Diagnostic running tonight and see what it comes up with it. I'll let you know. Thanks again.

I've run the Windows Memory Diagnostic using the Extended Tests overnight and it had 14 passes with no errors found.

Hmmm, I was hoping it was bad RAM, only because if not that, I don't have a clue.

So, just thinking out loud - if this were on my bench, I would want to know a few things:

Can I duplicate the fault at will?
Does it happen every time?
Is it always the same MySpace main profile page? Is it every profile page or only some profile pages? What about other MySpace pages? Is it only MySpace?
Can I access the offending page(s) on another computer? (Can you provide a few links?)

Is it hardware -besides RAM?

The electronics technician in me likes to start back at the beginning on the hardware side, with a known "given". So the first thing I would do is swap in one of my spare PSUs that I know to be good, plug it into my UPS, and boot. If the problem continues, at least I know it has nothing to do with the power source.

I would disconnect any and all extra hardware not needed - extra hard drives, opticals, floppy, card reader, add-in cards, and especially any USB devices.

While in there, make sure the interior is clean of dust and dirt.

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Inspect the motherboard for leaking capacitors. Flawed and/or abused (over-heated) capacitors literally bulge at the seams due to excessive internal pressures. Extreme cases result in a firecracker type explosion that really can stink up a room. Typically, they just ooze off the pressure by leaking electrolyte. The electrolyte can be caustic, to motherboards and skin.

These failed or failing capacitors are a common cause of sudden, but seemingly random, system lock ups and reboots. Look for white to dark brown, dried, liquid or foam leaking from the tops or bottoms of the capacitors. The capacitors look like tall soda cans, many of which surround the CPU socket. Bulging capacitors are a sign leakage is about to occur.

A motherboard with bulging or leaky capacitors can be repaired, but often it is more cost effective to replace the motherboard. Inspecting for leaking capacitors is something everyone should inspect for, just as a matter of routine. I normally recommend monthly inspections and cleaning, if necessary, of the computer case interior. This ensures there is no heat trapping dust or dirt buildup on the motherboard, video card, vents, fans, and heat sinks. Give the fans a flick of the finger to make sure they spin freely while in there. Then survey the field for leaking capacitors, loose connections, or anything out of the usual. Be sure to power down, unplug the computer, and keep yourself discharged by touching the bare metal of the case.
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You could try the other RAM tester, but I suspect it will not show an error either. That said, there have been times when RAM tests good, but still proved to be the problem. Pulling all but one stick and working with that for awhile, what what happens. Swap in sticks and work your way through all - taking care to properly discharge yourself and, as always, unplug your computer from the wall before adding or removing any hardware to remove the +5Vsb voltage completely (or hit master power switch on back of PSU, if so equipped). Just pulling and reseating RAM (or any electrical/mechanical connection, for that matter) often scrapes clean the contacts, creating a better electrical connection and resolves the issue.

Still thinking out loud - and reaching - try another resolution - wait, you went to one of the standard VGA resolutions when in Safe Mode - consider throwing in a generic graphics card to ensure there's not something your current card does not like about those pages.

I've tried MySpace on Knoppix Linux LiveCD and it works.

Which would mean the hardware works, but with different drivers. Hmmm. Is there an updated driver for your video card?

I'm almost sure it isn't a hardware issue, but I cannot completely rule it out. I'm going to have to do a bit more extensive testing and see when the problem occurs and see what I can nail it down to. I'd prefer to not start checking hardware, because it is such a time consuming procedure, but if it comes to it, I'll do it.

As you may recall, a while ago you helped me with a problem with games crashing on my computer and you thought it was a heating problem, however it turned out to be the motherboard because there were problems with the AGP slots and one of the RAM slots so I've since got a new motherboard, CPU and RAM and since I've had these the problems have occured.

I can confirm that the problem is only with MySpace, I surf lots of different pages regularly, but MySpace is the only website I have a problem with. It crashes on some profiles and then on other ones you think it isn't going to crash, but it eventually seizes up. It even seizes up on Video pages on the MySpace site, not just individual profiles. I have checked out the offending pages on my laptop and 2 other PCs in my house which have a similar setup to mine and there are no problems whatsoever.

My graphic drivers are up to date and I have rolled back to previous drivers and it still occurs. I'll try an AGP graphics card and see if the problems still occur when using that.

I'll also have a little bit more of a diagnostic session to see exactly which profiles are causing the problems, what they have in common, etc, because I can honestly say that my computer is trouble free apart from when I visit MySpace, I've never seen a problem like this where its just one particular website that isn't the work of some spyware distributor that just causes my computer to crash.

I'm almost sure it isn't a hardware issue, but I cannot completely rule it out. I'm going to have to do a bit more extensive testing and see when the problem occurs and see what I can nail it down to. I'd prefer to not start checking hardware, because it is such a time consuming procedure, but if it comes to it, I'll do it.

That's funny! My background is hardware maintenance so I prefer to start with the hardware - so I can quickly eliminate "the usual suspects!" lol - there are often many legitimate troubleshooting starting places, it does not matter which "end" you start with, as long as you work all the way through all the other ends.

Still, I have seen more than one very odd behavior go away with a different power supply. I remember that other problem and as you noted, you ended up getting a new motherboard, CPU and RAM - all of which, probably demand more power than their predecessors. Have you upgraded graphics cards since the PSU was new? Bottom line, is your current PSU the right size for your current hardware?

That said, if only specific pages on only one site, MySpace, on the whole Internet is giving you problems, I would be suspecting the MySpace pages too. Is there a web bug on it that something on your machine does not like?

Will it crash consistently every time you revisit the same page that caused the crash? Or is it intermittent?

You might try entering: dxdiag in your Run box. Work your way through the tabs and run through the tests.

I do believe that my PSU is sufficient for my current hardware, due to the fact I don't have problems with anything else. I've done a few more checks and I've come up with the actual cause of the problem, the reason why it's happening, I don't really know.

These are the diagnostics I did:
* Run DXDiag, No Problems Found
* Run Browser with Java Disabled - Crashes
* Run Browser with JavaScript Disabled - Crashes
* Run Browser with Images Disabled - Doesn't Crash
* Blocked domain myspacecdn.com in Adblock and Enabled Images - Doesn't Crash
* Removed Adblock Plugin - Crashes

The problem happens when lots of images on MySpace pages are loaded from myspacecdn.com (which is the site that MySpace use to store users images and profile pictures). Now I discovered on my main MySpace Home page, there are images from this site but it doesn't crash on here. I counted up and there are about 20 images. However, on some profiles where users have hidden content such as hidden friends lists with lots of display pictures, there are sometimes about 35 images loaded from myspacecdn.com and this is when my computer crashes. I block myspacecdn.com, no problems.

I really can't understand why it's happening.

Yeah, that is odd. But I see you are not alone.

http://forums.myspace.com/t/1326446....ums.viewthread

http://forums.mozillazine.org/viewto...1bdbbc67b0406c

http://ubuntuforums.org/archive/index.php/t-132377.html