Why Am I Having to Make Way Too Many Hard Restarts?

Question

Over the past couple of weeks, my wife and I have managed to lock up one or more programs to the point that it is necessary to shut down the computer using the power switch. The latest examples involve editing existing MS Word 2008 files in compatibility mode, but last week it was iTunes and I forget what other program.
I switched to the Mac because Windows kept doing this sort of thing ...

Answer 1

(1) We first noticed the problem after we had purchased a game called "Bejeweled 2".
If it was me and I had a full backup prior to the installation of the game, I would restore to that point.
I moved the game program to the trash,
Moving the program to the trash does not delete the program. Everything is still on your hard disk and if something in that game is causing the hang, that piece of code is still on your computer.
If the game has an "Uninstall" option on the install disk or in the downloaded DMG, I suggest running the Uninstall.
Firmware updates?
Normally those will come up in the Software Update window. Once in a while I log into http://www.apple.com/support/downloads/ then do a search on "Firmware" and my machine ID (Like iMac or MacBook Pro).
I just noticed that my external LaCie 1 GB drive,
I lost mine a few weeks ago as well. Odd. Shut down, unplug the drive, restart, then open Disk Utility. With Disk Utility running in the front window, plug in the LaCie drive and attempt to mount it.
Mine would not come back up so I reformatted it - using the GUID option - and it has been running flawlessly ever since.
Following is over the top, totally unnecessary OCD behavior of a nut who wants everything perfect. Feel free to totally ignore everything that follows.
I started managing networks and supporting individual PCs back in the 1980s. I developed some odd habits. One thing I learned with DOS and Windows computers was that it was often easier to start over than to spend weeks chasing a problem. Once I moved to Macs, I kept my old habits.
You probably do not want to copy my example, but here is what I do:
1.) When I buy a new computer, I transfer the OS installation disks to an external hard disk using the Restore function of disk utility.
2.) I also transfer all of my software installers to the same hard disk as disk images.
3.) When software updates are available, I download the files from the Downloads page to the same external drive. (I don't do the installs from Software Update; I only use that to tell me what needs updating.)
4.) When something goes really bad - almost always from third party software, almost never from Apple software - I wipe the hard drive on the computer and do a full clean reinstall from my external disk. Because EVERYthing - the OS, the updates, and all my applications - are on the external hard disk, the reinstall goes very fast.
Of course, when I do the clean reinstall, I skip whatever application or utility I suspect caused my problem.
The full clean reinstall takes up to three or four hours which I can do while watching an evening of TV. To me, this is a far far better use of my time than spending weeks trying to find that ONE application extension or preference file that is trashing my system.
(By the way, when I do the clean install, I NEVER restore the Library from my back up. I restore all my data from back up, but I trash the old Libraries because whatever went wrong is still in there ... like a bad Ktext extension from a wayward game or widget.)
Now just to prove I really am a NUT, my other system: I keep a firewire external drive cloned to my computer using SuperDuper! When I have updates or new applications, I shut down and boot from the clone. I install the update or the new application on the clone. If that doesn't crash my system, then I'll go ahead and reboot to the internal drive and repeat the installation.
Yep. I have WAY too much time on my hands. But.... I lost all of my staff computers to a bad Windows service pack several years ago and I decided "never again". The Apple OS is not prone to those types of regular Windows disasters, and I have never lost critical data on a Mac, and I have never had an entire department off-line for a week due to a bad Mac OS update. Still, I am old, old habits die hard, so I do this stuff with my Macs at home.
Of course I hope none of these extraordinary efforts are necessary in your case. With luck you can Uninstall the game, reformat your LaCie, and be back to flawless operation shortly.
Hope all this helps ... (jk)