Black screen of death for 7

Create a Post
I read that, too, but haven't had a single call about it today. (I support several hundred pc's for a bunch of local companies, as a pay-by-the-hour consultant) If it was mainstream, the phone probably would be ringing off the hook. Let's hope it STAYS quiet. :)

Note that it is for all versions of windows, not just Win7. My guess that involves some combination of third party software and a compat issue with the recent update.

Microsoft probably yanked that file from going out to more folks, until they determine the cause.

Mike
 
I just got my new laptop hard drive today and I've installed my shiny new copy of Windows 7.

Oh Joy! Just in time for the black screen :)

I hope it doesn't happen....
 
I doubt you'll see the issue on any of your Win7, XP, or Vista machines.

So how do you like Win7? :) I have been VERY pleased with it so far and we have it on 5 machines at home. The shop will be getting it's first Win7 machine this week, to replace an aging (2002) XP machine at the front counter. Dell already shipped it, so it's in the hands of FEDEX.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask here. Several regulars have it.
 
I'm loving it...its really fast especially during startup. Finding a few stray drivers right now.

I have a Dell 1720 Laptop with a 500gb HD and 4 Gigs of Memory....you'd think with that any operating system would HAVE to be fast...but not so....Vista was always a blink away. This is a lot better.

Even the install was blazing.

There was a bulletin somewhere that said my machine required the A09 bios upgrade (or the black screen could visit) but I did that long time ago....
 
The company that "Cried wolf" about the alleged issue has reversed it's story and is now apologizing to Microsoft for a false alarm.

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2009/12/02/black_screen_u_turn/

The behavior was real for a small group of folks, but they believe it was damage to the registry caused by some kind of malware ; but not from an official Microsoft update.

It just reinforces the importance of having capable a/v protection.

Mike
 
Mike I still like Apples new ad, that had the PC Guy through the ages touting how bulletproof the new OS was ;) Just another kink in the MS Armour. Of all the machines I have worked on over the past 14 years I think I only saw the BSOD twice. Well 4 times if you count the 2 that were a BSOD screensaver ;) I thought it would be funny to load that, but I almost had heart failure when I got to my computer and the BSOD screen saver was on... :)
 
Thanks Mike. I didn't want to be an alarmist, just wanted to try to help other grumblers just in case.

If there was a big issue I was sure you would get to the bottom of it or know how to fix it.

Bob
 
Yes the blue screen (which could have meant a number of bad driver or hardware failures) had a lot of hyped up media at the time. That must have been close to a decade ago, now :)

Apple has had some pretty funny ads in their slur marketing campaign. Even though they're more of a psychology exercise than marketing, to put doubt in people's minds, they are quite comical :) I wonder how many dollars per machine goes to their huge advertising budget?

Apple OS versions represent (a very vocal and proud) 5.1% of the market, fractions of a percent below the new Windows 7. XP still has about 68%, and Vista about 19%. XP is losing the most market share, as people are upgrading to Win7.

It's interesting to see in last month's Grumble Technology Survey that about 10% of framers have at least one MAC in their shop. (twice the market average) It shows that a lot of framers are probably from an artistic background, which is an area where Apple has always done well.

I hope Apple continues to thrive and gain market share, because competition breeds innovation. Microsoft could use some competition!

Mike
 
It happens...

My poor little Windows 7 encountered the dreaded "black screen of death" after I did the last Microsoft update. Fortunately, I found a fix for it, so it should be okay now. But it was very disconcerting to experience the problem before knowing there was a solution.

I'll keep my fingers crossed. Of course, the only way you really know that it's fixed is if it doesn't go black again. In the meantime, I'm counting... 5 minutes and still okay... 15 min. and still okay... 25 minutes and still okay...

We'll see what tomorrow brings.
 
We added the first Win7 machine in our shop last week (for a POS slave workstation, one of two at the front counter), and all has been well.

At home we have 2 laptops and 2 desktops, all with Win7. No problems. I'm very pleased with it. Then again, I was also pleased with Vista. It is noticeably faster than Vista and XP, and takes better advantage of the quad core CPU. Our first Win7 machine at home was set up in December of 2008, which I set up to beta test for Microsoft and LifeSaver. It seemed rock solid since then, and the final version changed very little from a year ago.

The blue screens are usually because the wrong hardware drivers are installed. Although older Vista drivers will usually work fine, it's best to check with all peripheral vendors to get their newest drivers. For the most part, Win7 does a decent job of doing this for you automatically. Video cards can be especially troublesome, and the vendors update these drivers monthly. (usually because new games come out) If you play games, you'll want to grab current drivers.

It's also good to update the motherboard's chipset files once in a while, and I like to update the BIOS of the motherboard. This fixes known issues with the board, and will often make things faster. If you have a dell or HP and put your "Service Tag #" in the support section of their website, it'll tell you all new bios and driver updates available for your specific machine. You can click to install from that screen.

Mike
 
working on a solution

Jim3535 said:
Which black screen problem did you have? The one this thread was about was caused by malware, not the update.
Click to expand...

I thought it was this one:
http://www.ghacks.net/2009/12/01/windows-7-black-screen-of-death-fix/
but I guess not.

I really like Windows 7. It's been working great for 2 months. I've tested FrameReady, FileMaker Pro and some other programs on it and all work fine!

Then suddenly last week, it would go to the black screen and there was no solution but to shut the computer down.

I thought someone had adjusted the settings on my computer, or did something? But, I guess not.

I'll just have to keep investigating. I like my Windows 7 and want it back. That's all.
 
Had several fatal errors on my new computer with Win7 (just a month old ) yesterday and now that Black Screen of Death. Waiting for tech support to get back to me. I am on another computer and glad I have my POS on another one in the back of the shop
 
I don't know what I got, but I set up my first Win7 system today, and when I came back after being gone a while the display wouldn't turn back on. I had to force a shutdown with the power button, and when it restarted it seemed to be ok. Guess we'll see...
 
The media did nickname one issue "the black screen of death" a couple months ago, but it was caused by malware. (see above) Which a/v do ya have and is it current?

When you get a black screen, does the cpu turn off? (is keyboard and power light on?)

May be good to run www.malwarebytes.org scan to make sure it's clean. Several common programs (avg free,etc) don't block many of the commonly known malwares that are floating around.

Win7 is the safest one yet, but some buggys can still get through emails and the web.

Are the air intake vents free of papers or obstructions? (could it be overheating and shutting down to protect itelf?)

It may be a good idea also to update the video card driver and the firmware/bios for the system board. You can go on dell.com/support and put your system's service tag in to be linked directly to the most current versions of each.

Mike
 
David N Waldmann said:
I don't know what I got, but I set up my first Win7 system today, and when I came back after being gone a while the display wouldn't turn back on. I had to force a shutdown with the power button, and when it restarted it seemed to be ok. Guess we'll see...
Click to expand...

I've had issues with that myself - seems to be some combination of the DVI or VGA port not signaling correctly to wake the monitor back up. I fixed it just by switching cable types, but not exactly sure if there is a driver-level fix out there.
 
This thread is making me smile. Sorry Mike, sorry Bill gates, but the "Vista minus the bugs" hype isn't really holding true ;)

Macs don't have this issue, but only because mac doesn't have all the optional hardware that PC's support. And the headaches that come with being so customizable. Even with these headaches I won't be going back to Mac anytime soon. As I see it, when I first used the Internet I used AOL and was happy with it, but once I got away from being offered only what AOL wanted to offer me I wanted to do more with the internet. When I first started using a computer it sure was nice to press a button and have it work. But when you want to add a video card, when you want a better, cheaper printer, when you want to add software a PC sure is easier and has more options. And the occasional crash lets me open the hood and tinker. Something a Mac definitely hates letting the user do!
 
After 1/2 day on the phone with the Dell Tech guy (in India probably) the issue seems to be the video card. They are sending someout to replace it and possibly the mother board as well because a lever got broken trying to get the card out as he described.

So maybe it wasn't the aforementioned "Black Screen of Death" but it felt like it to this non-techno. :shrug:
 
J Paul, I gotta say I hated doing hardware installs over the phone! CMOS and BIOS changes were scary enough, but just hearing the customer struggling to get the cover off the case in the old days made the 3 hour drive worth the aggravation :) I always knew if unscrewing a case drove a person to tears that explaining how to properly ground and then remove a board would not go well. Always expected to hear a sizzling sound, followed by me saying, "oh ####, I forgot to tell them to unplug it first..."

Glad you had the nerve to try and fix it with the tech guy. I would think they would have told you to bring it to a Staples and let their tech fix it on Dell's dime....
 
Bob Doyle said:
J Paul, I gotta say I hated doing hardware installs over the phone! CMOS and BIOS changes were scary enough, but just hearing the customer struggling to get the cover off the case in the old days made the 3 hour drive worth the aggravation :) I always knew if unscrewing a case drove a person to tears that explaining how to properly ground and then remove a board would not go well. Always expected to hear a sizzling sound, followed by me saying, "oh ####, I forgot to tell them to unplug it first..."

Glad you had the nerve to try and fix it with the tech guy. I would think they would have told you to bring it to a Staples and let their tech fix it on Dell's dime....
Click to expand...

With Dell's next business day on-site service, all you have to say during the initial phone trouble shooting, if they ask you to open the case, is just say you are uncomfortable doing it. They will send a tech, then, next business day. If you are willing to open the case, they will overnight the part only if you agree to install it. Otherwise, a tech will do it. That's one reason that I buy direct from the Small Business Division - the next business day service is usually included in the package, and can be extended to 3 or 4 years cheaply.
 
Pat Murphey said:
With Dell's next business day on-site service, all you have to say during the initial phone trouble shooting, if they ask you to open the case, is just say you are uncomfortable doing it. They will send a tech, then, next business day. If you are willing to open the case, they will overnight the part only if you agree to install it. Otherwise, a tech will do it. That's one reason that I buy direct from the Small Business Division - the next business day service is usually included in the package, and can be extended to 3 or 4 years cheaply.
Click to expand...

That is a great service. When we bought a home machine it was included and I used it. I remember calling the tech line as a fan was not working properly and setting off CMOS alerts. I had no problem opening and installing a new fan but Dell sent a tech anyway and it was done quickly. He also checked for other glitches and updated the CMOS. The cost was definitely worth it.

For the people with disabilities that I sold machines to, I highly recommended that they get Dells solely for the NBD reason. Never regretted it.

Compaqs, which they were being told to buy by their therapists were nightmares. Compaq's repair policy was to run their GoBack utility first thing then look for hardware issues. Completely destroying all the customization work that I had done.
 
Pat Murphey said:
With Dell's next business day on-site service, all you have to say during the initial phone trouble shooting, if they ask you to open the case, is just say you are uncomfortable doing it. They will send a tech, then, next business day.
Click to expand...


Wish I had known that yesterday, I would certainly have done that. If there is a next time I will know and do that for sure. Thanks
 
Bob Doyle said:
I had no problem opening and installing a new fan but Dell sent a tech anyway and it was done quickly.
Click to expand...

Ditto. Twice within the same week on the same machine. First the CPU fan and then the Power Supply.
 
As a total aside, one of the things I have been bummed about with Win7 is the lack of ability to add folders to the start menu. I find them to be very helpful in organizing and providing quick access to often used files and applications. I just found a registry modification that allows it. Use at your own risk...
http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/8964-start-menu-pin-unpin-folder.html
 
David N Waldmann said:
As a total aside, one of the things I have been bummed about with Win7 is the lack of ability to add folders to the start menu. I find them to be very helpful in organizing and providing quick access to often used files and applications.[/url]
Click to expand...

If you're good with the keyboard, you might want to check out Launchy. It works a lot like the start menu search, but you can point it at document or link folders as well (within reason, not your entire hard drive). With it, I never use the start menu. All applications are just a few key presses away. It also learns as you launch stuff, so normally you only a few letters to get the exact app you want.

http://launchy.net/
 
Jim, that sounds cool for apps, and I may try it out, but I have quite a few files I use often as well. In fact, I have almost all the customizable keys on my keyboard pointing to often used files or folders too. I also use Google Desktop Search (which Launcy reminds me of) quite a bit for less used files.
 
David can't you just park them in the Windows Explorer folder in the bottom corner next to the start icon. Also JWB is John. If he weren't so shy he would include his name in the signature area.
 
Jeff - what I am looking for is a cascading menu system like has been in Windows since Win95. It is so easy to use and intuitive I can't imagine why it's been taken away. BTW, the registry tweak I found is not what I'm looking for - all it does it open a WinExplorer window at the location specified.

Also, if you are referring to the default shortcut to Windows Explorer on the Taskbar (it's actually at the Top of my taskbar) I'm more apt to use the keyboard shortcut to get there (Win+E). But it seems such a waste to me to have to open a window and pick something, and then have to close the folder window.

Lastly, I know JWB is John, but he hasn't posted in this thread. I was responding to Jim3535, who I am assuming is Jim, but I suppose I don't really know...
 
My Bad David. My Dislexia kicking in, I saw 3 letters and numbers and thought I was reading JWB. I even looked at it twice. It gets worse when I work too many hours, time to cut back.
 
David N Waldmann said:
what I am looking for is a cascading menu system like has been in Windows since Win95.
Click to expand...

Hey, I just found something....

If you enable the Toolbar "Desktop", there is a button you can click on that will show all items on the desktop. including folders, which cascade open!!!
 
David N Waldmann said:
Jim, that sounds cool for apps, and I may try it out, but I have quite a few files I use often as well. In fact, I have almost all the customizable keys on my keyboard pointing to often used files or folders too. I also use Google Desktop Search (which Launcy reminds me of) quite a bit for less used files.
Click to expand...

You can configure Launchy to index file names in folders outside the start menu. At times I have set it up with an extra folder of shortcuts to different folders (and added the .lnk extension to the indexed list). This gives you access to folders directly from the program. You should be able to do the same with documents as well. However, it's not meant to be a full drive searching application, so keep the set of files to a fairly small number. I imagine a few hundred or less should work fine, but you can always test it with your setup.

David N Waldmann said:
I was responding to Jim3535, who I am assuming is Jim, but I suppose I don't really know...
Click to expand...

That is correct.
 
Jim3535 said:
At times I have set it up with an extra folder of shortcuts to different folders
Click to expand...

I saw the ability to add locations to index but hadn't considered the idea of creating a folder with shortcuts. That's essentially how the old Win95/XP Start Menu system worked, and how I have set up my Desktop Toolbar. However, I am a keyboard guy, so I think I am going to give Launchy a shot using that principle.
 
Clive - looks like just what I'm looking for. Thanks!
 
Create a Post
Back
Top