Shutdown Problem? Screen Looks Like a Tapestry Rug

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My elderly dad has a new pc running Vista Home Premium. All works fine when
I'm there, but after a day or two using it on his own, the same problem comes
up for him--the pc seems to be frozen, with a weird rug-like image on the
monitor. He can't really tell me what he's done, but here's what I notice
when I get there to help: the monitor is turned off (but when I turn the
monitor on, the rug image appears); and the power to the pc is on (at the
tower). The only fix I've found is to turn the power off and restart--then I
usually get a message that the pc wasn't shut down properly. I suspect that
he is simply turning the monitor off when he's done with a session.

Two questions: (1) Could the rug image be a result of turning only the
monitor off (or is it a sign of some other problem)?; and (2) Is there a
safe, easy way he could turn the pc "off" without going to the start menu,
selecting shut down, etc? I've showed this to him many times, but it just
isn't getting through--I'm hoping there's an alternative, and would
appreciate any suggestions.
 
My elderly dad has a new pc running Vista Home Premium. All works fine when
I'm there, but after a day or two using it on his own, the same problem comes
up for him--the pc seems to be frozen, with a weird rug-like image on the
monitor. He can't really tell me what he's done, but here's what I notice
when I get there to help: the monitor is turned off (but when I turn the
monitor on, the rug image appears); and the power to the pc is on (at the
tower). The only fix I've found is to turn the power off and restart--then I
usually get a message that the pc wasn't shut down properly. I suspect that
he is simply turning the monitor off when he's done with a session.

Two questions: (1) Could the rug image be a result of turning only the
monitor off (or is it a sign of some other problem)?; and (2) Is there a
safe, easy way he could turn the pc "off" without going to the start menu,
selecting shut down, etc? I've showed this to him many times, but it just
isn't getting through--I'm hoping there's an alternative, and would
appreciate any suggestions.
Click to expand...

I'm not sure what you mean by a 'rug' image. You mean the screen is so
distorted you can't make anything out and it is just a jumble of
horizontal lines similar to a tv on the fritz? If yes, then sounds
like some sync problem. Can be caused by a bunch of things, two most
likely is either the resolution is set incorrectly or the video card
driver is wrong/buggy.

Turning the monitor off and on won't effect the computer in any way
other than you won't see anything it won't hurt the computer or in any
way cause problems.

As far as bypassing the Start button, there are several ways, a quick
Google using 'make shutdown shortcut for vista' or something similar
should produce several hits. Here's one. I didn't test it.

http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/76841-shutdown-shortcut.html
 
the computer is probably trying to go into sleep mode...

and in that attempt somethnig is crashing...

go to the power options in the control panel and make it so that everything
is on
and only the monitor is turned off after 10 minutes...

as for question 2, if the bios is set to power down the pc,

then if you just push the power button on the tower itself it will start
the shutdown sequence.

Thats easy I think...

if you want to create an icon on the desktop for him to click that is also
possible..

http://www.dbpoweramp.com/shutdown.htm this one runs in the tray

here is a list of many such programs and these are all free

http://www.nonags.com/nonags/shutd.html





you should make the pc be al
 
Adam Albright said:
I'm not sure what you mean by a 'rug' image. You mean the screen is so
distorted you can't make anything out and it is just a jumble of
horizontal lines similar to a tv on the fritz? If yes, then sounds
like some sync problem. Can be caused by a bunch of things, two most
likely is either the resolution is set incorrectly or the video card
driver is wrong/buggy.

Turning the monitor off and on won't effect the computer in any way
other than you won't see anything it won't hurt the computer or in any
way cause problems.

As far as bypassing the Start button, there are several ways, a quick
Google using 'make shutdown shortcut for vista' or something similar
should produce several hits. Here's one. I didn't test it.

http://www.vistax64.com/tutorials/76841-shutdown-shortcut.html

After reading your post, I went to the nvidia forums looking for info about the driver for the video card. From what I found there, it really does seem like a problem with the driver--they're updating constantly for Vista. I haven't had a chance to download a new driver yet, but will try to repost when I have. Thanks for sending me in the right direction, and for the info about shutdown shortcuts.
Click to expand...

BTW, someone on the nvidia forums included a link to a shot of his
screen--looks exactly like my so-called "tapestry rug":
http://www.mafooouk.com/vista/crashing.jpg . I guess a picture is worth a
thousand (of my) words! :-)

Thanks again.
 
Thai Berry (U.S.) said:
the computer is probably trying to go into sleep mode...

and in that attempt somethnig is crashing...

go to the power options in the control panel and make it so that everything
is on
and only the monitor is turned off after 10 minutes...

as for question 2, if the bios is set to power down the pc,

then if you just push the power button on the tower itself it will start
the shutdown sequence.

Thats easy I think...

if you want to create an icon on the desktop for him to click that is also
possible..

http://www.dbpoweramp.com/shutdown.htm this one runs in the tray

here is a list of many such programs and these are all free

http://www.nonags.com/nonags/shutd.html





you should make the pc be al



I've wondered whether going into sleep mode was somehow involved in the crash I described---makes sense given that I don't think dad actually shuts down the pc. Piecing things together that I've gleaned here and on the nvidia forums, I think the driver for the video card is involved in the crash when the pc tries to go into sleep mode, so I will try a new driver and repost.
Click to expand...

Many thanks for your help!
 
oh gawd... thats horrible....


see my post to make the computer not go into sleep mode at all
only the screen will turn off

seems to me like a display adaptor driver problem...
 
power off directly is not a good option
os will complaint about the same every time you start the pc
yes there are ways to shutdown pc without following the default way
create a shortcut to shutdown.exe
& ask your dad to click on that shortcut when he is done
this will shutdown the pc properly
you can also define a shortcut key in shortcut properties

alternatively given below shareware may be of help
http://www.easyshutdown.com
 
..bummer, i wish this discussion would continue with a solution!!!!!!
funny thing is i am working on a relatives nvidia graphics based system with
the same problem, plus it wont restart unless i use speedfan to keep it cool.
What seems to be the problem is the vista power management, nvida and bios
power management and smart fan controls are causing the GPU and its drivers
to lockup creatig that carpet screen and freezing up the whole system. the
worst thing is power is still flowing without any fan controls which gets
nice and hot....lol. one thing though is the power button will still turn it
off.....lol....do not have to do the old unplug to get it to turn off. i saw
one post where some disabled the APCI which i think is advanced power control
interface? another used symantec as the problem. another used nvidia drivers
as the problem which is parcially correct, but i think it is a combination of
many things involving power management within the motherboard and the bios
graphics, temperature and fan controls. sometime i have fixed the problem
temporarily, but some minor change in configuration like disabling sleep or
other power related or graphics setting will cause the problem to occur
again. if it was mine, i would be ok with using speed fan to keep it cool
enough not to crash, but my relativr is not experienced enough even to keep
the nvidia adapter up to date...lol.

i will keep searching aound blogs and forums for the correct solution but
just in case the right person reads this, i will return here and see.

acer aspire l100.....foxconn fc51pvg (motherboard)....amd athlon(tm) 64
processor 3800+ 2400mhz 1 core 1 logic.............phoenix technologies ltd
bios 6.00 pg 3-9-2007 ver. 2.4.............geforce 6150Le nvidia
graphics.(178.13 version drivers update).......... windows vista
sp1..........................................................................................of
course the basics like a clean computer cabinet, fans, heatsink, power supply
are ehok. no driver conflicts or other software conflicts that i can find and
have searched for the most up to date drivers i can
find...............lol..............most of them hardware makers do not have
any good udate or support websites......lol.............but it seem nvidia is
vey serious about making their stuff work with all
platforms................new updates every few days....lol.

(e-mail address removed)
 
aha!!! i was right. reset the cmos by pulling the battery. and now the system
works as originally designed.
 
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