Random Crashes

[DocWalrus]

Like the title says, I crash randomly, sometimes when I'm just walking around. I turned down the graphics, and that didn't do much. Help? Please?

[seedy]

Like the title says, I crash randomly, sometimes when I'm just walking around. I turned down the graphics, and that didn't do much. Help? Please?

I have the same problem. I am using a toshiba satellite a100. I have disabled music in the config ini, i have tried minimum graphics, making sure nothing is running the background (although svchost seems to consume a lot of resourcs, my AVG antivirus claims that it's not an infection, still i expect either microsoft is doing dodgy things or it's a viral infection slipping past my defenses... I loathe MS)

 

I know how to increase the probability of a crash. Play for long periods at a time, move quickly, and zone. I am guessing it's memory management issue. I'd be happier if my system was sluggish than crashing to desktop. I have the latest patch and have tried completely uninstalling and reinstalling. I don't know if it's due to buggy drivers (using toshiba laptop and toshiba won't tell me if the will ever update the drivers, but they are clear that using anyone elses voids my warranty). I have seen similar problems in other games, but games also seem a lot buggier than they used to be as exactly the same type of problems cropped up on other computers i have tried gaming on.

 

Heat levels are fine.

 

I've noticed the same issues occuring over and over with other people on this forum. There doesn't seem to be any error logging built into the game so as far as i know, if it is a bethseda issue, there's no way to isolate it. I suspect bethseda because firaxis also kept generating crashes with the game Civ 4, and also denied that it could be their fault over two separate issues, which were proven to be buggy code by independent progrmmers (and firaxis then included the 3rd party patch without any credit given!)

 

Is there a way to isolate the crash to desktop problems people are getting to identify if bethseda has simply done inadequate quality control, if it's becuase it understates the system requirements, if the graphics drivers are at fault, or the cause is 'other'?

 

Also, buying /selling from a merchant will crash the game if it is done quickly, which makes raising mercantile tedious, i assume this is because the system resources are tied up in animating the merchant's face?

 

I was trying to troubleshoot my issues and was amazed by the number of hits on google from people frustrated with the buck passing with game crashes. I think oblivion will be my last PC game unless things improve. A few years ago when i bought windows xp on a different machine and it crashed when i used a device, i called microsoft. They told me i had to be using the microsoft driver before they could help me. I explained that I was. They then told me i shouldn't be using the microsoft driver and to try using someone else's driver. (so, presumably microsoft didn't have to take any responsibility)

 

reposted from http://www.sysopt.com/features/software/ar...12030_3617781_5

 

 

'Please Tell Microsoft About This Problem'- Page 5/5

June 30, 2006

By Christopher Saunders

 

When I get my copy of "Elder Scrolls V" and it crashes two hours into playing, I want to see hard evidence that my video card driver is to blame. I want ATI or nVidia notified of the problem. I want them working with Bethesda (or whoever has acquired them by the time you're reading this -- I'm looking at you, EA) to figure out who messed up, and how it can be fixed. And I want the problem solved in a driver update or game patch. ASAP.

 

Ideally, errors and unanticipated incompatibilities should never make it to the end-user level. Customers shouldn't be the final Q/A test for your wares. But if you software publishers and hardware makers insist on shipping products that haven't been fully tested, do the reasonable thing and make user-originated crash data collection and sharing a routine part of your product development and support cycle.

 

Ultimately, the industry can only benefit, and we customers can finally see fewer requests to "Please tell Microsoft."

 

EDIT: Posts merged.

 

- Switch

[Abramul]

@seedy, and possibly Walrus: Defragment and run a spyware check.

 

I always did wonder why MS wanted to be notified of a program crash caused by MY faulty code.

[seedy]

@seedy, and possibly Walrus: Defragment and run a spyware check.

 

I always did wonder why MS wanted to be notified of a program crash caused by MY faulty code.

I did both, no effect; i checked it occurs if i remove all mods (yes but it seems to cause a delay), and tried a format and reinstall of windows.

 

I get similar problems on modern games but the older type (morrowind, rise of nations) are perfectly stable and if i'm not gaming i have no problems. Perhaps nvidia or toshiba is releasing dodgy drivers (nd toshiba voids your warranty if you try a non-toshiba driver, and will not investigate potential driver issues), perhaps it's windows xp or directx, perhaps it's because software houses are under more pressure than ever to release now and patch later.

 

Because the programs aren't issuing error messages when they crash, i can't tell. The fact i was getting roughly the same issues on two radically different computers implies to me it's not an infection related issue, but I am now at the point where as soon as I can, I'll get a mac and dmn the expense. It'snot worth saving a few pennies in exchange for an unreliable system.

 

The thing is with a toshiba satellite a100 they can't even use the excuse that the hardware is unpredictable; everyone of them has the same and if toshiba and microsoft can't coordinate then they deserve to be dumped.

 

I presume you can get oblivion for a mac? Cn it still be modded? i noticed people were releasing mods as .exe files however, which seems to me to be asking for trouble.

 

I know i should try under wine or something but linux makes me grind my teeth when it comes to sound and 3d games. Good otherwise, my ubuntu system never crashes.

 

i TURNED off all but oblivion and shivering isle, loaded game ok but as soo as i tried to save, CTD, and this happen with all ten of my saved games. They are saved abnormally too; 128kB instead of nearly 3 mB like the others. So i am looking at trashing and trying one more time with no mods (blah). No guarantees it won't happen again. All security systems indicate there's nothing going on.

 

I just with "please send my data to microsoft" would actully do something benign but as MS sai that they weren't going to further developing XP, it's pretty pointless. XP is a dead man walkin'!

 

And considering the woes vista users have reported (shudder)... time to save for a mac and hope the games line for the older users gets better, because cosole types are fer the young 'uns not artritic half blind grumpy old men like me. :D

 

EDIT: Merged your posts. Please edit rather than double (or triple as you did earlier in the thread) posting, as doing so is spam. Thanks.

 

- Switch

[ninja_lord666]

I also have a problem with crashes; however, they're not random. I know exactly when and where they'll strike, but not why or how. Whenever I ever reload a save during gameplay, if I take off ANY equipment, the game crashes. I think it's a mod because it wasn't always like this, but I don't know which one... :unsure:

 

My mod list:

castle domrose, acs realisticaly priced clutter, purge cell buffers, denock arrows, enchantment restore over time, qarl and timeslips depth of field, spell delete, upper class clothes cost fix, fathis ules works, no quest items, natural environments, gem price fix, sneaking, update my statue, no guild master kick, alexanders wings, bag of holding, dark altars, vaults of cyrodiil, wheres my horse, beautiful people, book jackets, illumination within, children of rourken episode 1, servant of the dawn, lynges don't ask me how many, loading screen quotes, assassin's blade, eternal dragon armor, the bow of daedric blood, and shivering ilses.

 

Please help me.

 

Edit: When I restart the game after the crash, it works fine, but the problem happens again if I reload during the game.

[Abramul]

And does it occur if you disable all mods?

[ninja_lord666]

And does it occur if you disable all mods?

Nope, it works perfectly...which means it is a mod...that's too bad...I like all my mods.

 

Edit: It turns out it isn't one of my mods. I started a new character with all my mods and it worked fine. It turns out my character is screwed up. :(

[seedy]

And does it occur if you disable all mods?

Nope, it works perfectly...which means it is a mod...that's too bad...I like all my mods.

 

Edit: It turns out it isn't one of my mods. I started a new character with all my mods and it worked fine. It turns out my character is screwed up. :(

I've noticed my saved games become corupted when they reach nearish 3 meg. If itry loading an earlier game with that character, it still crashes the same way as soon as i try to save the game, even through console. Interesting oddity: the saved games become 128 kB in size. I tried deleting unneeded saved games, defrag, spyware checks, ran memtest, nada. In the past i have restarted and it was fine but i am sick of that.

 

I think I might try a few more things and if that fails, perhaps i'll disable all mods and see if it helps. If the system requirements go up with each mod, then it might explain my woes, as toshiba satellite a100 graphic cards use partially shared mainboard memory, presumably so that they can make it sound meatier than it is. "Graphics with Grunt" the advertising goes, but it's more the grunt of someone lifting weights and getting a ruptured hernia.

 

Edit: It turns out it isn't one of my mods. I started a new character with all my mods and it worked fine. It turns out my character is screwed up. :(

 

Exactly the same here. Mind you I still get a CTD if i buy/sell quickly.

 

update: I installed oblivion on a friend's machine and patched 1.2 (no mods), then tried the same things, and noticed it crashing on the same points e.g. zoning, buying items from a merchant quickly. There doesn't seem to be any way to report bugs to bethseda. My friend reckoned it was due to the 'pipes' or something (i should have written it down)... basiclly too much data going to and fro for windows to cope. His machine is 2-3 years old but still above the min. req's.

 

Does anyone else get this? Is there any way to inform bethseda?

 

EDIT: Merged posts. Please don't double post/bump unless the thread's been dead for a week or more. Thanks.

 

- Switch

[Interlude]

im getting the same problem as you guys, everytime i try and fast travel or enter any area of the imperial city my game crashes...

[Kenshinio]

For me, the game crashes (practicaly always) when I try to load a game from menu... :(