computer is freezing all the time now

hi. don't know if i have any virus issues, this just started yesterday, in the middle of doing a jigsaw puzzle online, computer just froze. kept freezing…. i switched browsers, tried mozilla and explorer, but nothing worked…. and then you couldn't shut it down normally, even with control, alt and delete…. once it froze, that was it, nothing worked. so i left it and came back to it today…started in safe mode and tried system recovery….it went thru it's system recovery schtick, and then i had to log on again….now i can't even log on, at least before the system recovery, i could always log on. so…… need some help….. really don't want to loose everything, you know me, i'm clueless and have no backups….tried using a memory stick but couldn't figure that out either, so have no clue how to save important things like my poetry and music….. so when ever you can help…. thanks….. i'm typing this on my desktop that never seems to have a problem. it's my lenovo laptop, with vista, that's all i know about it. please don't ask me anything else about what version windows i use, i have no clue. thanks again

Hello compudodo, It could very well be malware, but unfortunately it's a bit of a catch 22 situation. In normal circumstances where a system recovery has failed, there aren't many options. Often the easiest thing to do is to backup your files with Puppy Linux and to reinstall Windows. The problem is that if you do have a virus, the minute you restore your files you'll get infected again. So before we move onto a software related fix, lets have a look at the hardware. Have you got a model number for the laptop? Have you ever cleaned the inside of the laptop, or had it serviced? Have you dropped it, spilt and liquids on it or done any other sort of damage to it recently? Also, do you have your Windows Installation Disc (for future reference) and are you comfortable taking the laptop apart? Cheers, Nahumi

Did you do a System Recovery or a System Restore. They are very different processes. System Recovery is done from a partition on the hard drive or by booting a Manufacturers Recovery CD. It usually wipes out everything on the hard drive and puts it back like the day you purchased it. If you did that then your data is probably gone for ever. System Restore on the other hand, restores the registry and critical system files and does not mess with anything else so your personal data will still be there. I sure hope you meant System Restore.

hi guys…. it's a G-555 lenovo…..

well, i do have to admit to putting a glass on the left corner edge of the laptop every now and then but there is a kinda ledge, so my sweating glass with melting ice cubes has never gotten to the keyboard…but maybe it did that day????

no….i live in one of the most remote areas of the USA…. truly, there is nothing here for 75 miles. nothing. not one computer store…. I have to travel up to Salisbury Maryland (another state for goodness sakes) or down the whole peninsula, cross the bay bridge at $12 a crossing and go to Norfolk to find a Staples. No one owns computers here, lol…really, you should see the line at the library, this is farm country and the good ole boyz here don't use computers, so there is no place to take it for maintenance and i sure am not intrepid enough, i'm in my sixties now and even a long drive of over an hour is daunting for me, eyesight is shot and i just really try to stay off the roads as much as possible.

The laptop is just over one year old now and yeah, you are probably right, i didn't do the drastic one which wipes out everything…. in safe mode i went into the control panel and found something called system restore i am sure. NO NO NO….. i am not comfortable on the keyboard, much less opening a computer and i wouldn't know how to open a computer and i don't want to open a computer. i destroy everything i touch due to extreme ignorance and stupidity.

but since i haven't been using the laptop, i switched over to this desktop immediately yesterday….. and today, my malware bytes and my spybot won't allow me to update the programs. So i could have gotten a virus on both of them that day huh???? Very odd not to have BOTH my spyware malfunction like that …… so yeah, this probably could be a virus thing. should i go over to the virus forum and have them check me out?edit: the message i received when i tried to start my spybot and malwarebytes was: error retrieving update information file
and
program_error_updating11004,0, no address found. the requested name is valid and was found in the data base but it does not have the correct associated data

i shut it down, restarted and now it works just fine….go figure. i hate computers. i really do. they mess with my brain. they do. they think it is funny to harass an old lady and it's how they survive the endless hours when they are shut down…turn them on and you have just created another frankenstein monster. bill gates and steve jobs should be indicted for malicious tinkering with the entire universe…who knows what little bug they put in these things????? it's a conspiracy, i'm telling ya, it is

If you're concerned about a possible malware infection, go to the Spyware / Malware / Virus Removal forum, read the info there and follow the posted directions. Once you receive a clean bill of health, come back here if you have any additional questions or concerns or it turns out not to be a malware problem.

Please be patient as that is a very busy area. If you do not receive a response in 3 days, post a message here: What To Do If You Have No Response In 3 Days?

ok, i'll head over there and go through the tortures they inflict

I think you and the malware folks are becoming very good friends