Segment violation

Post #372,319 by crazy 3/8/13 6:14:14 PM Reply	Segment violation When a program is allocated memory in the computer, it is allocated in segments. These segments are put in a list as being used by your program. Every memory access by every program is tested against this list for ownership. If your program attempts to access memory it does not own, the operating system sends it the segmentation violation signal, which in turn will cause it to dump a core file (current memory image) for debugging and then KILL the program. Programs attempt bad memory accesses via buffer overflow bugs or bad pointer handling. You can also see this message pop up if your memory or your motherboard is going bad.
Post #372,920 by Ashton 3/25/13 5:04:16 PM Reply	Thanks, belated: got that from log after a bit No 'causality' in a thread fail ... ever seems to be decipherable; I vote--errant BIG Cosmic Ray, maybe a TeV-gamma in energy?
Post #372,931 by crazy 3/25/13 6:54:50 PM Reply	If you find yourself getting them during heavy use ie: watching video, pay attention to temperature. If you run multiple videos in multiple windows you can probably drive it up and trigger the error. Put a fan next to cpu (external to box, simply add airflow around it)(if possible, not paying attention of this is a laptop).
Post #372,933 by Another Scott 3/25/13 7:24:01 PM Reply	Good advice. A year or so ago I inherited a Dell E6400 laptop at work. It's a decent machine. I run 2 external monitors off it in a docking station while at work. When my office gets warm, it often throttled down and became a turtle - driving the external monitors is too much for the video chip while it's also working hard on other things. I blew out the dust and got a cooling pad thingy for it (CoolerMaster NotePal U3 - http://www.amazon.co...oduct/B003ZMF27G/ ) and haven't had the problem recur (will have to see how it does this summer before declaring the problem 'fixed'.) IIRC, Ashton's iMac had some problematic video issues for a while. More cooling may help quite a bit, but cooling an iMac probably isn't easy. Cheers, Scott.
Post #372,941 by Ashton 3/25/13 8:51:23 PM Reply	Thanks for tips, both.. Re temp: Fortunately there is: smcFanControl, which I installed days after acquisition of the iMAc. And I always attend to Temp--in any electronics--I have WInter/Summer values for the little fans. iStat gives me The Word every time I look, esp. at GPU, often warmer than CPU. (Once plugged in an ext. mon. It worked, but I don't use, so removed) Not related to-- As to that video glitch thing--I upped a couple fans (none is video-card specific) a few hundred rpm; last event was ~October IIRC. No plans to r&r that card after first securing New Tape and other watchmaker fiddles to disembowel the world's largest laptop. Not soon anyway, I hope. This machine has been nothing but a treat, after the progression from PDP-8 --> Osborne1/Otrona --> and all the Beastware greasy-kid stuff + the daily, Will-It-Work? If it dies irremediably next year, will just look for another 2yo and move from 20"-->21.5" BIG-screen!! (People who never owned Beastware before getting an Apple.. just Can't appreciate their Apple properly, I wot.)
Post #372,948 by crazy 3/26/13 7:12:12 AM Reply	Good quote and concept but You've been there since PDP, a bit different perspective. My PWW thought I was nutz for taking a new laptop, reformatting it, tossing win 8, installed Win 7 and required apps, and handed it to the wife for school work. He thought I gave it a lobotomy by "downgrading" it. I tracked down "In the beginning there was the command line", threw it on the projector screen, and told him to read it. THAT's 60 pages or so, I'm not reading that! FU, you are are reading the 1st couple of pages so you have a clue of what an OS is, and then we can have the discussion. 5 pages later he had a good start, and I emailed it to him to read the rest in his room. I'll quiz him. He started with Win, is a minor gamer, and does minor windows bitching but it is his world.

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