i recently bought a pre-owned desktop, and i have a problem with it. it's running an AMD Athlon mobo, 1.74GHz, 3 GB of RAM, 250GB hard drive, and XP Home, SP3, auto updates on... it's a 'home-based' desktop, so it doesn't need to run if i'm not home. the problem is that it won't go to standby properly, even if i do it manually (start>turn off computer>standby). the monitor goes blank, but the CPU shuts Windows down completely -- it reboots completely if i move the mouse/touch a key. the first screen i get (after the memory check) is blue, with something about missing components (it's not on the screen long enough to read it all), and 'Windows has been shut down....' (not sure what the rest is, i'm not an engineer).the 'power management' schemes all appear to work properly, except for the 'standby' bit... i can turn it off, but it's a PITA to do that, if i don't need to. the shop i bought the system from said they could check it out (no charge, i've owned it for less than a week), but the diagnosis/repair might take some time. any suggestions? i'm an end-user, so try not to get too technical on me 1 person needs an answerI do too

On Thu, 12 Aug 2010 05:42:32 +0000, recycledteenager wrote:i recently bought a pre-owned desktop, and i have a problem with it.  If I acquired a used computer, no matter who previously owned it, the first thing I would do with it would be to reinstall the operating system cleanly. You have no idea how the computer has been maintained,what has been installed incorrectly, what is missing, what viruses andspyware there may be, etc. I wouldn't want to live with somebody else's mistakes and problems, possibility of kiddy p0rn, etc., and I wouldn't recommend that anyone else do so either.Ken Blake

hi ken, thanks for your reply... further to my question, short of buying an XP Home CD, and starting over, what options do i have? i know that XP is being phased out, would i be further ahead to upgrade to windows 7 (the home version)? i haven't checked to see if my current PC can even run windows 7, but i think i saw a link somewhere to check that part... if i CAN run windows 7, is it available to download (as an upgrade, or a complete package), or do i have to save some shekels and buy it in a store?

On Sat, 14 Aug 2010 01:01:27 +0000, recycledteenager wrote:hi ken, thanks for your reply...You're welcome. Glad to help.further to my question, short of buying an XP Home CD, and starting over, what options do i have?  i know that XP is being phased out, would i be further ahead to upgrade to windows 7 (the home version)?  i haven't checked to see if my current PC can even run windows 7, Your description sounds like it should run.but i think i saw a link somewhere to check that part... if i CAN run windows 7, is it available to download (as an upgrade, or a complete package), or do i have to save some shekels and buy it in a store?If you want to buy Windows 7, I would buy an Upgrade version in astore or, probably cheaper, from an internet site like Amazon.com.But you should be able to buy a used XP CD for a lot less money.Ken Blake