My PC hates me, halp?

[mistformsquirrl]

Alright, this is kind of my last stop before taking this box to the shop to get it worked on >.< I don't really understand computers at a more than basic level, so... I don't have a clue what's wrong with this thing.

I'm really sorry to bug folks, but most other websites I know to go to people talk waaaaaaaaaaaaay over my head about this kind of stuff (and then act snooty when I don't immediately know what they're talking about) - so I'm hoping someone here might know <~.~> maybe. I hope.

It was fine for the entire first year I owned it, then on November 26th, it "crashed"* the first time - it would get into a constant "Automatic Repair" loop and never come out of it until I eventually did a total wipe and reinstalled Windows.

Only thing is... after doing that -

A) Windows has constantly bugged me to activate it (I've tried, it won't activate, and since this was a factory install I don't have a disk or the serial number)

B) Every time my computer hibernates because I've been away too long, my left ear phone stops working. I have no idea if it's related, but it's a new problem so it might be.

B) Starting last night it's spewing errors at me again during start up. It's not yet as bad as last time - it WILL start up if I try enough times (I'm on it now); and it works fine once it's up and running... but getting it there is difficult and I'm pretty sure this is not a good way to have a machine running.

I'm on a Windows 8 system. I have a DxDiag report too, but it won't let me copy-paste the whole thing into a spoiler like I'd hoped >.<

Really sorry to bug folks with this, but my other option is to take it to the shop, and given the time of year it is, I'm short on money (not to mention they tend to be extra busy this time of year + have reduced hours; so I'd be waiting a good while to get it back <x.x>)

Any help is immensely appreciated <;_;> Thank you in advance!

*Probably not a genuine crash crash, just a generic "stopped working and started spewing errors at me" kind of thing.

[bluewind95]

Well... what errors is it giving you at startup?

[mistformsquirrl]

Usually it's saying "Disk Read Error, press Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart." - If I do that enough it'll start up, but it takes a long time.

Once in awhile it'll give me a (pale) blue screen that says something to the effect of "There is a problem with windows, it may be corrupted" or something to that effect. It also once said something to the effect that my portable harddrive was the problem; but unplugging it doesn't change anything. So... yeah.

>< Sorry, like I said not super computer literate here at all.

[bluewind95]

That is sounding VERY much like a busted harddrive. It will work for a while like it's doing. But it is possible that after a time, it may stop working. A repair shop might be your best bet. But perhaps other people might be able to weigh in.

[mistformsquirrl]

Crap. <;_;> I may still be under warranty, hopefully it'll hold up until after Christmas and I can get things straightened around then.

[Erloas]

Reading through it it sounds like a hard drive failing to me too. They tend to have errors rather then just dieing outright. There are a few other options but none of them are nearly as likely.

I'm not sure where it would be located with Win8, but there should be an "Event Viewer" program that you can pull up that should show all sorts of errors in the "system" category and reading through those should give you a good idea of what is causing the failures. In older versions of windows it is located in the Control Panel under Administrator Tools.

As for registering windows, I assume this is a computer built by a major manufacturer and they always stick the "Genuine Windows" sticker on there somewhere and that would have your CD key on it (unless they changed that with Win8, but I don't see why they would have done that)

I would call the manufacturer and see what they tell you, but they will probably make you repeat a lot of stuff you've already done and won't listen if you try to tell them what is wrong and then they'll come to the same conclusion. It might be faster and easier to simply purchase a new hard drive and install it yourself. But if you for some reason don't have a CD key you'll have to go through the manufacturer anyway (Windows generally only operates a while before it forces you to register it)

[mistformsquirrl]

Thanks a bunch, both of you >,< I'll have to look for that sticker. (I made the mistake of buying a full size case for this thing... I didn't realize how BIG that was <@_@> makes looking at the blasted thing a bit tricky heh.)

[Bhu]

Hard drives arent horribly expensive if it makes you feel better. You can get a decent one for 60 bucks or less depending on how big you want it.

[mistformsquirrl]

*edit* Good news everyone! <^_^> My brother fixed my PC while he was here. Turned out the problem was my third party start menu for Windows 8 of all things.

Now I've just got to take care of my windows Activation issue <x.x> I think I have to call Microsoft about that one to de-authorize the old activation and authorize a new activation though. That should be entertaining. At least it's doable though.