Jim's going mad...
Thread Starter
Jim's going mad...
Tearing me hair!
I have a laptop owned by a non-computerate elderly friend which (this may or not be relevant) has recently loaded Windows 11.
Everything worked normally up to that point. But now...
Click on an application - say, Thunderbird or Microsoft Office Word. Loads ok. Still ok until you sleep or hibernate. Then, on restart...
Click on an application. Loads. And loads and loads etc multiple times. Upwards of six copies of the same doc or mail client.
In other words, machine now unusable. Friend reduced to tears.
Have tried scanning with Malwarebytes - lots of irrelevant-looking stuff quarantined; then reinstalled M$ Office and Thunderbird, and eventually downloaded a new copy of Win 11 and telling the thing to repair. No change.
New one on me; never heard of this happening before. I've already wasted a day on this, and am completely stumped. Any thoughts?
My friend wants to ditch the m/c and buy another, but it's only 10 months old, but I don't want to be defeated.
I have a laptop owned by a non-computerate elderly friend which (this may or not be relevant) has recently loaded Windows 11.
Everything worked normally up to that point. But now...
Click on an application - say, Thunderbird or Microsoft Office Word. Loads ok. Still ok until you sleep or hibernate. Then, on restart...
Click on an application. Loads. And loads and loads etc multiple times. Upwards of six copies of the same doc or mail client.
In other words, machine now unusable. Friend reduced to tears.
Have tried scanning with Malwarebytes - lots of irrelevant-looking stuff quarantined; then reinstalled M$ Office and Thunderbird, and eventually downloaded a new copy of Win 11 and telling the thing to repair. No change.
New one on me; never heard of this happening before. I've already wasted a day on this, and am completely stumped. Any thoughts?
My friend wants to ditch the m/c and buy another, but it's only 10 months old, but I don't want to be defeated.
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
Life is too short.
I would back up data and reformat disk, then do a clean install of Win 11 followed by the applications - Office and Thunderbird (and everything else required, including patches and updates). Better still get a new SSD and install on that, leaving the original for reference and easier transfer of data and (some) settings.
SD
I would back up data and reformat disk, then do a clean install of Win 11 followed by the applications - Office and Thunderbird (and everything else required, including patches and updates). Better still get a new SSD and install on that, leaving the original for reference and easier transfer of data and (some) settings.
SD
Thread Starter
SD, thanks - Inclined to go in that direction meself; may have to tell a fib or two, cos even going to the cheapies MS Office costs a bit and she will insist in paying me... SSD is no problem as it happens...
Will report in due course
Will report in due course
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
I assumed that when you said you had already reinstalled Office that there was an existing licence and media. If cost is a problem, go Libre Office or Open office (not sure if OpenOffice is fully supported on Win 11).
Thread Starter
Not sure that existing MS license would hold true with a new download of Office. Is it licensed to the machine/user, then, not to the copy?
https://www.microsoft.com/software-download/windows11
I suspect it will just install and pick up the license from the machine. I have no idea where/how it is stored.
Tearing me hair!
I have a laptop owned by a non-computerate elderly friend which (this may or not be relevant) has recently loaded Windows 11.
Everything worked normally up to that point. But now...
Click on an application - say, Thunderbird or Microsoft Office Word. Loads ok. Still ok until you sleep or hibernate. Then, on restart...
Click on an application. Loads. And loads and loads etc multiple times. Upwards of six copies of the same doc or mail client.
In other words, machine now unusable. Friend reduced to tears.
Have tried scanning with Malwarebytes - lots of irrelevant-looking stuff quarantined; then reinstalled M$ Office and Thunderbird, and eventually downloaded a new copy of Win 11 and telling the thing to repair. No change.
New one on me; never heard of this happening before. I've already wasted a day on this, and am completely stumped. Any thoughts?
My friend wants to ditch the m/c and buy another, but it's only 10 months old, but I don't want to be defeated.
I have a laptop owned by a non-computerate elderly friend which (this may or not be relevant) has recently loaded Windows 11.
Everything worked normally up to that point. But now...
Click on an application - say, Thunderbird or Microsoft Office Word. Loads ok. Still ok until you sleep or hibernate. Then, on restart...
Click on an application. Loads. And loads and loads etc multiple times. Upwards of six copies of the same doc or mail client.
In other words, machine now unusable. Friend reduced to tears.
Have tried scanning with Malwarebytes - lots of irrelevant-looking stuff quarantined; then reinstalled M$ Office and Thunderbird, and eventually downloaded a new copy of Win 11 and telling the thing to repair. No change.
New one on me; never heard of this happening before. I've already wasted a day on this, and am completely stumped. Any thoughts?
My friend wants to ditch the m/c and buy another, but it's only 10 months old, but I don't want to be defeated.
One possibility is that the device driver for the pointing device isn't being woken up properly after sleeping ( a reasonably common scenario).
If you can download more recent drivers, or try a different mouse/touchpad arrangement you may have some luck.
On a related theme, it could be a switch bounce, causing multiple electrical switch closures to be seen by the computer instead of the just the intended single 'click' you applied.
Try a plug-in mouse instead of the built-in track pad.
A surprisingly large number of computer faults can be caused by mechanical or electrical problems, rather than electronic or software faults.
Membrane switches - as used in thin lap-tops can misbehave - especially if liquid has been split. Has your friend spilt a cup of something over the keyboard ?
If so, see if the supplier will repair it under warranty, or claim under house insurance for accidental damage.
Try a plug-in mouse instead of the built-in track pad.
A surprisingly large number of computer faults can be caused by mechanical or electrical problems, rather than electronic or software faults.
Membrane switches - as used in thin lap-tops can misbehave - especially if liquid has been split. Has your friend spilt a cup of something over the keyboard ?
If so, see if the supplier will repair it under warranty, or claim under house insurance for accidental damage.
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
It's the observation that it only goes wrong after sleeping/ hibernation that is curious - I wonder if there's a physical disk problem (even SSDs can get file cross-linkages, especially after an OS upgrade in-situ) that has corrupted the hiberfil.sys. If you haven't already, try disabling sleep / hibernation and deleting that file, then running chkdsk and re-enabling it.
With Windows there's always someone else who's had the same problem.
Mouse Double-Clicks on Single Click After Sleep
Very strange and specific issue. Specifically every time I wake the PC up from sleep, the mouse double clicks on single inputs. The only solution is to unplug and reconnect the usb. Issue occurs on Windows 10 x64.
Mouse Double-Clicks on Single Click After Sleep
Try disabling sleep/hibernation permanently. It was something somebody recomended back in the days of Windows XP. For me, its become habit, I now have surprisingly few and very minor Windows issues.
Thread Starter
Thanks everyone for suggestions. Switch bounce was one of the first things I thought of, so changed the mouse - for a corded one, as it happens. No change. Tried changing from hibernate to sleep: no change. And yes, SD, I was wondering about something like hyberfil.sys and ssd corruption. Soooo,
AFter much teeth-sucking I've decided to go along the route SD suggested in post 2. I have a spare ssd, have downloaded a three-machine copy of Windows/Office from a site promising that they are a M$ partner, and will take out the old disk & replace it with a clean one; install all the stuff again...
and if that doesn't do the trick i shall have to leave it on the back seat of an unlocked car.
One will report in due course.
AFter much teeth-sucking I've decided to go along the route SD suggested in post 2. I have a spare ssd, have downloaded a three-machine copy of Windows/Office from a site promising that they are a M$ partner, and will take out the old disk & replace it with a clean one; install all the stuff again...
and if that doesn't do the trick i shall have to leave it on the back seat of an unlocked car.
One will report in due course.
As a complete technie dinosaur, I just wanted to empathize with what you're experiencing. Whenever my computer does its own thing, I get completely frazzled. Might it not be better to revert to Windows 10 if that's an option? Wishing you and your non-computerate elderly friend (sounds so much like me ... but it isn't!!) all the very best for a successful outcome, and en route, a better night's sleep.
Thread Starter
Update: Windows and Office successfully reinstalled. A bonus was that the download included the Activation Keys inbuilt, so that was a good timesaver.
Thunderbird now works first time & everytime, and all the backed-up docs have been vetted and reinstalled. (Although why she is keeping this rubbish I don't understand.)
Anyway, me lovelies, thanks for your comments and interest.
until the next time...
Thunderbird now works first time & everytime, and all the backed-up docs have been vetted and reinstalled. (Although why she is keeping this rubbish I don't understand.)
Anyway, me lovelies, thanks for your comments and interest.
until the next time...
Join Date: Feb 2006
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For future reference you can pick up SSD's on evilbay preloaded with windows and office at a decent price. As an example of Windows only
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/404726955...Bk9SR57Y-JOdYw
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/404726955...Bk9SR57Y-JOdYw
Last edited by NutLoose; 8th Jan 2024 at 13:18.
Spoon PPRuNerist & Mad Inistrator
For future reference you can pick up SSD's on evilbay preloaded with windows and office at a decent price. As an example of Windows only
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/404726955...Bk9SR57Y-JOdYw
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/404726955...Bk9SR57Y-JOdYw
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Hanging off the end of a thread
Posts: 33,037
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They come with them, I have one in an old PC
Though for a laptop the drive is a bit small. Such as,
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/166337297...Cclp%3A4429486
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134850183...Bk9SR7KqnpedYw
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134850183...Bk9SR6bR6pedYw
Though for a laptop the drive is a bit small. Such as,
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/166337297...Cclp%3A4429486
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134850183...Bk9SR7KqnpedYw
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/134850183...Bk9SR6bR6pedYw
Last edited by NutLoose; 8th Jan 2024 at 13:38.
