"Jim Ludwig" <jimlud@sbcglobal.net> wrote in
news:9QmWi.3786$Vx3.2021@nlpi069.nbdc.sbc.com:

> Hi all,
> I'm having trouble with dad's computer. I did a clean install of
> winxp and it's still doing the same thing it was doing which
> caused me to do a HD wipe. Every time he plays a game, the
> computer shuts down and reboots. You can load a game (the ones
> I've tried are Tron 2.0, Jedi Academy, and Flight Simulator), go
> through all the initial setup, choose your options, and watch any
> cut scenes or videos. However, when the actual "gameplay" starts
> when you take control of your character/ship, the screen goes
> blank and it reboots, just as if you hit the reset button. This
> is not limited to games either. I have had the machine do the
> same thing while on the internet. It seems like it was doing that
> when I would download an Active X control or something like that.
> Not really all downloads, just the "on the fly" kind of downloads
> that you install while you're browsing. Any idea at all why this
> computer is so unstable? My brother built the computer with all
> various components. It is an AMD Sempron with 512 mb ram, an
> nVidia mobo and the video card is an nVidia geforce 3 6200. He
> built it about a year and a half ago and it has never worked
> right. I am kind of suspecting there is a conflict between the
> video card and the onboard built in video, but if so, I don't know
> how to resolve this. Any help is greatly appreciated. Jim
> jimlud@sbcglobal.net

Have you gone to the nVidia site and downloaded the latest drivers for
your video card? The latest driver package is dated Sep 27, 2007 and
the major change incorporated was to make it compatible with several
games.

<http://www.nvidia.com/object/winxp_163.71.html>

If you suspect an conflict with the internal video, then boot into the
BIOS and check the settings. You might be able to disable the internal
video from there.

HTH,
John