This may be a crazy question, but here goes...

My brother suggested that I could somehow use either a Ubuntu Live Boot CD or Flash drive or Kubuntu as a way to diagnose issues I'm currently having with my laptop. I'm running Windows 7 and for some reason my laptop has suddenly started freezing during Windows start up. This started immediately after I began seeing the hard drive light remaining on and my computer running very, very slowly - even though when I checked Task Manager it said that no applications or unusual processes were running at the time and CPU usage was 0%. Strange, I know.

I've used the Restore disks 3 times already, thinking maybe it was a virus, even though I run Norton 360 and it found nothing upon a full system scan. But every time I end up with Windows failing to start up at all, or it getting stuck on the "Windows Starting" screen for at least 15-20 minutes before it starts.

I'm at a total loss here. I'm thinking it is either a Hard drive issue or perhaps a RAM issue, but I am a total moron when it comes to the operational aspect of computers. I don't know where to begin. My brother said that if I used a flash drive of Ubuntu or Kubuntu and tried to boot from there that I would know immediately if it was my Hard drive because it wouldn't operate. I don't understand that since it wouldn't be operating off my hard drive, it would be running from the CD/flash drive.

Does anyone have any clues on what I can do to check this out? I'm tempted to buy a new hard drive and RAM, but would hate to buy something I can't return if they aren't the issue.

I'm stuck...any help would be very appreciated. Thanks so much and have a wonderful weekend.


Question: Is it worth bringing a flash for a backpacking trip?
Answer: As always, this kind of questions depends on what you plan to photograph. If we are talking about the deep-blue sea, palms along the sandy beach, Thai temples and street traffic, then, probably, you will not need a flash.

If you are going to take pictures of people - street traders, monks, life saviors on the beach-  if you are planning to enter low-ceiling houses of the locals, perhaps talk them into a "folk" scene, then a flash would come in handy.

Flash could also be useful if you decide to photograph local food. Anywhere where you go with bad lighting and close-up shots, you might need a flash.

Me personally, I am a landscape photographer. I have not needed a flash in the past 5 years, since I always stick to nature and urban architecture. People appear in my photographs so rarely that even if I made one or two photos during a trip, the flash would definitely not have been worth the fuss.