As with many things in life, everything is great until something goes wrong. Your computer is fantastic until it crashes and there is now a problem doing something… so what do you do? Phone the nearest help line? Blame it on the software you were using at the time? No.

First impulse is to blame it on whatever you were using at the time of the crash, but Windows doesn't work that way.

Windows applications share their components, files such as Dynamic Link Libraries (DLL's). Games also share their various components, such as DirectX for example. DirectX in turn depends on certain aspects found in the latest device drivers.

In the wider scheme of things, there can be any number of problems that might occur when newer versions of components are overwritten with older ones, and vice versa. As a rule, newer versions are backward compatible, i.e. they will work in the same way as the older ones, however this is not always the case.

With this in mind, where you should be looking to find the cause is usually the last system update prior to the problem occurring. This could be a software installation, a driver update or hardware upgrade.

What do I look for? Firstly, if an error appears make a note of it. The first error is the important one, as subsequent errors might be a result of the first. Secondly, look for further clues.

Where should I look for clues? Windows NT, 2000 and XP have event logs which detail system events including errors. This is a good place to start, so look for the Event Viewer...

Start > Settings > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Event Viewer.

Unfortunately Windows 95, 98 and Millennium Edition (ME) don't have event logs, this is a feature of Windows NT4, Windows 2000 and XP onwards.

If you're having problems installing something, some applications have installer log files to help identify the cause of installation failures. These might be found in their installation folder.

There might be knowledgebase databases available on the internet from most software suppliers/manufacturers to help you through problem solving. Try looking for updates to the software you are using, as the problem might be a bug in their software for example.

There are also newsgroups and independent support websites to offer advice, such as this one.

Advanced users might want to try tools such as Dependency Walker for example, to identify problem files and the precise point of failure.

Have you ever just entered the error message in Google? use both internet and newsgroups searches, this will show any relating articles which might help. Try variations of related search criteria.

Try to be logical in your approach to fixing a problem. Windows is not as unpredictable as you might think. Errors usually happen for a reason, and finding the reason needs patience and a willingness to look.

For more information on where to look for help...

Microsoft's Knowledgebase		support.microsoft.com/search/
Microsoft's DLL Database		support.microsoft.com/servicedesks/fileversion/
Dependency Walker		www.dependencywalker.com
Google		www.google.com
Google Newsgroups		groups.google.com
This Beginner's Guide		Computer Health
This Beginner's Guide		Problem Solving

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