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    Computer sometimes stutters in games

    Discussion in 'HP' started by AJVETT, Jul 30, 2004.

  1. AJVETT

    AJVETT Notebook Evangelist

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    The HD in being accessed at the time of the suttering, what could be cuasing this? the 5280 has 1GB of ram so i know that couldnt be it. i defragged and its still happening any ideas?
     
    AJVETT, Jul 30, 2004
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  2. brianstretch

    brianstretch Notebook Virtuoso

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    Assuming you have a Hitachi HD, get Hitachi's Drive Fitness Test and run it:

    http://www.hitachigst.com/hdd/support/download.htm

    That will tell you if there's anything wrong with the HD.

    I suspect the real problem is that the GeForce 440 Go video chip is just too weak for whatever games you're trying to run and the HD light blinking is misdirecting you, but it's best to be thorough.
     
    brianstretch, Jul 30, 2004
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  3. AJVETT

    AJVETT Notebook Evangelist

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    the ZX5280 has a Redeon 9600 128 mb so thats not it i think its the HD its a Fujitsu not a hitachi i wish it was a hitachi.
     
    AJVETT, Jul 30, 2004
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  4. brianstretch

    brianstretch Notebook Virtuoso

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    Ah, sorry, I was thinking of a different HP series with the 3-year-old GeForce 440 Go. (Just saying 5280 is a wee bit vague.) Fujitsu... I remember they had a lot of trouble with their HDs a while back but I'd have thought they'd have fixed all that by now. Hmm, Fujitsu doesn't appear to have an equivilant to Hitachi's DFT or Seagate's test utility. That's disappointing. It sounds like you're on the right track about the drive but I'm not sure how you'd prove it without the manufacturer's diagnostic utility. Call tech support and hope you stumble into someone sympathetic?
     
    brianstretch, Jul 30, 2004
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  5. Big Calhoun

    Big Calhoun Notebook Evangelist

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    Could it be a combination of drive speed and memory swapping?? On my v505, I have a 4200 rpm drive and 1 gig of memory. The 'stuttering' usually happens after about 45 minutes of play (C&C Generals, Age of Mythology). On my NV190 (Vaio), I had to replace the drive and opted for 7200rpm. With only 512 mb memory, I don't get nearly as much stuttering. Now, on my v505, with C&C Generals loaded on a Kingston PC-Card HD, the stuttering is MUCH worse...presumbly because the Kingston is slow.
     
    Big Calhoun, Jul 30, 2004
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