Is this normal?
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
Well, to review, you're not a programmer, you're writing code involving threads, on an out of data compiler ( although, to be fair, not by much ), and it sounds like the computer you've been given is a piece of rubbish. Who do you work for ?
Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.
-
Well, to review, you're not a programmer, you're writing code involving threads, on an out of data compiler ( although, to be fair, not by much ), and it sounds like the computer you've been given is a piece of rubbish. Who do you work for ?
Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.
Christian Graus wrote:
Who do you work for ?
A medium-sized scientific instrument manufacturer. ...Or was that not the answer you were expecting...?
-
Christian Graus wrote:
Who do you work for ?
A medium-sized scientific instrument manufacturer. ...Or was that not the answer you were expecting...?
I wasn't expecting any specific answer. I'm just thinking that you're saying you're attempting a pretty complex task, but you don't regard yourself as a programmer. That seems odd to me. I doubt your threads are the issue. You may be stomping memory in general, or your computer is hosed.
Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.
-
I wasn't expecting any specific answer. I'm just thinking that you're saying you're attempting a pretty complex task, but you don't regard yourself as a programmer. That seems odd to me. I doubt your threads are the issue. You may be stomping memory in general, or your computer is hosed.
Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.
No way am I a programmer! ;P I got through the computing science bit of my degree by copying and pasting other people's code!! Oh, hang on... I still do that... Anyway, memory is another thing I'm never so sure about. I am aware of the concept and the consequences of getting it wrong, but I don't know enough to know for sure what I'm typing is sensible... Better have another look to see if I'm mangling pointers or something... :~
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
PaulowniaK wrote:
Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
It may happen, while you shouldn't mess up with threads that way. :)
If the Lord God Almighty had consulted me before embarking upon the Creation, I would have recommended something simpler. -- Alfonso the Wise, 13th Century King of Castile.
This is going on my arrogant assumptions. You may have a superb reason why I'm completely wrong. -- Iain Clarke
[My articles] -
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
PaulowniaK wrote:
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer.
Nor do I. Stop what you are doing and get a different job. And yes, you can quite easialy lock the machine with threads it all depends on priority, have yiou been messing with thread prioirity too?
Morality is indistinguishable from social proscription
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
Happens all the time, I reboot every night and I expect a lock up a couple of times a week. I figure every time I hit a bug while developing there is a little bit of crap left over and it sort of accumulates in the corners. Needs a cold boot to clear it out. I mean I have had this issue since early 90s when I started writing excel macros, not a lot has changed in this area, I can still manage to crash a computer regularly.
Never underestimate the power of human stupidity RAH
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
PaulowniaK wrote:
Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them
Oh dear :sigh: Threads and the unexperienced are a recipe for disaster.
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
Odds are you have runaway threads, which cause a system to appear locked up.
-
Well, to review, you're not a programmer, you're writing code involving threads, on an out of data compiler ( although, to be fair, not by much ), and it sounds like the computer you've been given is a piece of rubbish. Who do you work for ?
Christian Graus Driven to the arms of OSX by Vista. Read my blog to find out how I've worked around bugs in Microsoft tools and frameworks.
Christian Graus wrote:
Who do you work for ?
I realize this is old, but I was hoping he would say "Telstra" :laugh:
"The activity of 'debugging', or removing bugs from a program, ends when people get tired of doing it, not when the bugs are removed." - "Datamation", January 15, 1984
-
PaulowniaK wrote:
Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them
Oh dear :sigh: Threads and the unexperienced are a recipe for disaster.
Norm .net wrote:
Oh dear Sigh Threads and the unexperienced are a recipe for disaster.
That's... very comforting to know... ... ... X|
-
Odds are you have runaway threads, which cause a system to appear locked up.
Joe Woodbury wrote:
Odds are you have runaway threads, which cause a system to appear locked up.
Most likely...:thumbsup:
-
Thanks for the info.:thumbsup: It's quite hard, but I'll try reading it.
-
Norm .net wrote:
Oh dear Sigh Threads and the unexperienced are a recipe for disaster.
That's... very comforting to know... ... ... X|
You know, you wouldn't do open heart surgery without training and experience, the same goes with software engineering.
-
You know, you wouldn't do open heart surgery without training and experience, the same goes with software engineering.
Norm .net wrote:
You know, you wouldn't do open heart surgery without training and experience
True... but it's not so common that you kill someone by writing bad code... I'm sure you can (f-ing up the software used in air traffic control, say) but in my case, the worst that is going to happen is that some ionized molecules are going to go to ionized molecule heaven.
-
I don't call myself a programmer, nor a software developer. I'm just doing a job that I can sort of do... on a good day... Anyway, I'm writing a small test app for a DLL I've been told to develop in C++ in VS2005. My whole PC froze on me twice in about 2 hours. The latest incident was so bad I had to resort to the "big red button" approach, i.e. kill the power. Actually, this isn't the first time this happened to me. Granted I'm doing dodgy things with threads when I don't really understand them, but it shouldn't keep locking me out like this, should it?
There are two usual causes to freezing machines: 1) Memory leaks: Watch your memory usage in Task Manager. Does it rise faster than you can explain? Then you very likely forgot to free the memory of some objects which you create in a loop. 2) Never ending loops: Watch you CPU time in Task Manager. Does it reach 100% before the machine freezes? Then very likely a break condition is never reached (i.e. you loop over a list, but forget to increment the index). As you are unexperienced, only a debugger can save you.
This statement is false.
-
Norm .net wrote:
You know, you wouldn't do open heart surgery without training and experience
True... but it's not so common that you kill someone by writing bad code... I'm sure you can (f-ing up the software used in air traffic control, say) but in my case, the worst that is going to happen is that some ionized molecules are going to go to ionized molecule heaven.
That was a brilliant response to the inaccurate comparison. :thumbsup: