Does anyone know why this is happening?

For some reason when I have been playing GW, at random times the game freezes itself and my entire comp for about 5 seconds - 15 or 20 seconds roughly and then when the comp works again, I get messed up graphics in Guild Wars:

http://img131.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gw038gd8.jpg

http://img131.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gw001kh9.jpg

http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gw005ft3.jpg

http://img149.imageshack.us/my.php?image=gw006wn0.jpg

it can sometimes be even worse than this though like yesterday, when the graphics messed up, the entire GW screen became a very bright white >_< it fixes itself when I minimize GW and then maximize it again but its annoying, specially with PUGs or guildies who don't know whats wrong and just go ahead expecting you to follow (or in some cases, pugs thinking your leeching)

Any ideas?

May i ask, are you using texmod when this happens?

Nope, beside it happened before I downloaded texmod (although I am not using it in any of these pictures)

have you upgraded all your video drivers then? (just going through the basics ^^)

As far as I know yes (updated them as soon as I got the comp since the comp was custom built by a shop, it had no OS or graphic drivers on it), this only started happening with my new computer (my old one didn't have any problems with GW but it had problems with other games like Half life 2 and the sims 2)

My basic computer specs is:

AMD Athlon 6400 X2
4gb of RAM (3.25 being used because it isn't a 64bit OS)
512mb 8800GT

probably should have mentioned these in the first post sorry

Umm, I will resolve this case later, because I need sleep. Although, I hate to say... looks like your graphics card is toast. We can work on this more in depth later on, or jiggles can go superman and solve it before the trolls come. Trust me, they will come, they love issues like this one.

Anywho, I really hope it isn't what I think, which I will explain later. Best of luck to you.

Knowing how new the card is (and the pc setup in general, since I saw it being setup myself) I am not sure.

I already suggested to clean out the fans, and that seems to have not helped as well as I thought it would.

I don't think the card is dead.. after all it isn't even a year old yet, but then again, I am not sure.

Does it happen in other games? If not, it might be a corrupted .dat file and the good 'ol re-installing will help.

doesn't happen in other games, although I am now scared to try any high graphical games >_>

if I don't get any other possible answers, I'll reinstall it and do the image command tonight (possibly before I go to bed since I have dealt with GW doing this for over a month at least I can handle a day with it like this)

It sounds like your graphic card is possibly overheating and/or about to die.

I'd download CoreTemp (http://www.alcpu.com/CoreTemp/) and tell us what your temps are.

http://img71.imageshack.us/img71/667...temppicya3.jpg

took a pic of the info it gave me

an 8800 gt eats guildwars. Other than what Rahaj may think it is. a quick thing to try to fix it is reseat the card. dust can cause a bad contact. This happened to me.

steps to reseat, you will need a can of air and a screwdriver(probably a philps tip:
turn off the pc and unplug it.
take off side of case.
there is prob 1 screw you can see now holding it to the case by the metal bracket.remove it there may also be a small little clip looking thing near the back of the slot. press it down and pull out the card.
now use a can of air and blow out the slot. please only use the computer canned air and nothing else.
look at the contacts on the card for dust/dirt/plastic wrap ect. blow it off as well.
push it firmly back into place, add screw, power up.

fix? I hope so if not wait for rahja.

also i suggest getting riva tuner. the 8800gt likes to leave its fans on 20% power. i like to set mine up to atleast 50-70% when gaming. you can goolge for a tutorial on riva tuner and where to dl it.

Stuart, you have obscenely high core temperatures, I am going to recommend you make sure your fan(s) is not blocked and is cleaned thoroughly. If that doesn't help, you'll want to look into getting more/better fans. I don't use it personally, but a good friend recommended this, also: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16835100007

It's grease which you can apply to your system, it'll lower temps by ~5-10 degrees C, but only get this if the fans aren't enough. (You'll want to find a non-OEM version, probably.)

Those temperatures are strangling your system and not good at all, especially not for the video card.

EDIT:
you're going to want to try to get to ~45 C, mind you thats at 100% load, so it should be a lot less at the loads your cores have.

god, I just looked at the side fan and it has ALOT of dust on it

I just took the dust off of there. god I am alergic to dust as well but my brother won't help (he just said dust it down) and mums not in >_<

I can't do the back fan just now because if I pulled it out, it will take out one or two of the things in the back >_<

Try some of this stuff - http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16846101050 It's an air duster, basically a can of pressurised air. Blows the crap right out without needing any disassembly. Oh, and get yourself a filter mask - dirt cheap (from any hardware store) and avoids any dust allergy nastiness.

oh thanks for the link, I might look for a UK link later

Getting mum to look in Asda while she is there today, if she doesn't get any, I'll order online (saves hassle of looking around shops =P lol ), and from what I was told, you do need to take the case off when using compressed air so you deffinetly get rid of the dust in and out of it

edit: if it doesn't work, I'll come to the conclusion of either 1) the card is dieing or 2) the fans SUCK (or both O.o )

?

60 degrees is very normal for a 8800 GT :/

Doesn't matter when the GPU overheats it overheats and stops working properly regardless of how much or how little work it has to do.

Make sure you dust out your PC regularly and make sure you have adequate airflow.

Note to self: stop assuming people are in America. The guy's a Scot ><

Sorry 'bout that - try here https://www.novatech.co.uk/novatech/...tml?BEL-734004 although you can likely get it cheaper from a non-pc specialist supplier. You have Maplins up there?

yeah, I'll be in glasgow tomorrow and I know where one is actually

this was from his screeny of core temps on the cpu as seen below, not nessaceraly related but needs addressed any how.

Blow out the dust outside or mom will hurt you. It sounds like you are about to make a cloud. plan regular dustings if possible monthly/bimonthly is perfect unless you are in a very dusty enviorment. Also, if you have noncarpeted floors, I suggest to not have the tower on the floor.
dust = heat. heat = death of electronics.

sidenotes, if your going to be taking your pc to bits and playing with the inside
1) dont be on carpet, ever
2) be off the ground
3) be careful , i once took my fan out my pc (first time with that pc) and it took me about 3 hours trying to get it back in. ended up haveing to use a kitchen knife

4) and DONT blow the dust, your blowing saliva all over your pc. pc components +water have worked since when? just used compressed air it only costs about 5 quid

It's not normal for cores though.

Ahh I misread. Half asleep so I assumed that you were still talking about the GPU

Yeah 60 degrees is definitely too high

just a quick question, is two fans (I think its two fans since there is two vents) okay for a 8800GT?

if so, could the fans just be bad? if so I need to look into getting new fans.

Assuming that the card is defo overheating causing the problems mentioned in the first post, a can of compressed air should DEFFINETLY solve the problem? (asking questions now to save me asking them later)

Regular dust removal with an air can is something to be done routinely. If it unclogs your fans and the temps drop to normal, all well and good. If not, then think about new fans.

Have a look in Maplins - they actually have quite a good range of "name" brand fans and cpu heatsink/fans. Be warned, though - fitting a new HSF to a cpu is not a task for the uninitiated - it's fiddly and you need to know all about anti-static precautions.

(Sounds like a guide idea, Rajah - basic computer maintenance, c/w anti-static precautions.)

Maplins is expensive compared to some places online (such as ebuyer ) but for something like canned air, I would use them just for quickness. Fans would probably be more expensive there than online.

I want to make new fans a last resort since I have no desire to replace the fans incase I **** something up and there is no custom comp shops near here so I can't get it done for me

Case fans are easy. CPU HSF are tricky. GPU - I never want to even try. People swear by them, though - have a look at this http://www.overclockers.co.uk/showpr...20VGA%20Cooler

Maybe someone who's actually fitted one can tell us what's involved?

(Oh, Maplins are indeed more expensive than most etailers, but fans is cheap )

I would advise you check the fan on your video card to see if it is rotating. There are tools that will allow you to change your fan settings. But first, check to see if the fan is rotating.
If the fan is not rotating, check it’s power lead to make sure it is properly seated. If it is properly seated and not rotating you may want to consider replacing the cooling solution installed by the manufacturer. Please note that for most video card manufacturers replacing the cooling system will void your warranty so please check with the manufacturer to see if you are in warranty. If you are, get them to replace the video card. If not, replace the cooling system, it is cheaper than replacing the video card.
Replacing the cooling system on your video card is not as difficult as some make it sound. It should be attempted slowly and carefully. Use, if possible, an anti-static strap and do the work on a wood table or a table with an anti-static mat on it. Don't use a glass top table.

From your screen shot, you should at least have your CPU cooler reseated. As for your CPU core temps, they are higher than they should be, however that may be due to your case. Take the side off your of your computer case, let the system run under load for about half an hour and check the temps. If either of the cores are above 45c or a temp difference of more than 2c (5f not sure of my conversion) you should consider replacing your CPU cooler. There are a lot of coolers out there most do not require you to remove the mother board from the case. There are a few that do require a back pane to support the cooler, you will want to check the manufacturer’s web site to be sure. If the CPU temps are below 40c, you may want to consider replacing the case fans with higher capacity (sorry to say noisier) fans.

Hints: After a period of time, most thermal pastes will act as an adhesive. ArticSilver brand is no different, but it does take longer. To defeat that effect you may need to soak the video card in isopropyl alcohol (90% or better). Use a small cake pan (just large enough to fit the card) with just enough isopropyl alcohol to cover the card. It should only take about half an hour to degrade the adhesive properties of the thermal paste. Use as pure isopropyl alcohol as you can get to speed up the process and to reduce drying time, anything less than 75% is almost a waste of time and may damage the video card.