Random restarts during game playing

[UltramarineX]

Here are my specs:
Motherboard: MSI 648 Max series
Power supply: 350W (I think)
CPU: P4 2.4GHz w/ 533MHz FSB
RAM: 512MB PC2700 DDR SDRAM
Video Card: ATI Radeon 9500 Pro w/ "Doom 3" Beta Catalyst 4.9 drivers
Hard Drive: Maxtor 40GB 7200RPM ATA133
Sound Card: Integrated with Motherboard
LG 16x DVD-ROM Drive
Hewlett-Packard 8x/4x/12x DVD-RW Drive

I have updated all the drivers I can to their current versions.

Now, recently my computer has been acting up, so a few days ago I formatted my hard drive and reinstalled everything. It solved most of my problems, except for my games restarting randomly. I should also note a couple of things:
1) My most recent addition to my system was back in late May with my DVD-RW drive. I don't know why but I just "feel" my game problems have gotten worse after installing this drive, although it should be noted this problem has occured before the drive was installed.
2) I upgraded from Catalyst 4.7 drivers, to 4.9 beta drivers, because many forum posts said it gave a huge boost to stability when playing Doom 3. I personally noticed no difference...it still crashed a lot.
3) I play a lot of graphic intensive games (i.e. Doom 3, UT2004, etc.), could that have something to do with it?
4) My comp crashes no matter what game I play.
5) I have already uninstalled/re-installed my video drivers following the advice of this article: http://www.tweaktown.com/document.php?dType=guide&dId=569&dPage=1 . And I have also switched my AGP settings from 8x to 4x...games still crash.

I'm thinking this crashing problem is actually a hardware (not software) problem, although I could be wrong. Any help you guys can provide is much appreciated. Having my games crash on me while kicking ass online is starting to get really annoying:mad: .

Thanks in advance:) .

[UltramarineX]

Sorry. I forgot to mention my OS: It's Windows XP Proffessional edition, with Service Pack 1. I'm going to wait a bit to install service pack 2.

[UltramarineX]

I tried uninstalling and unplugging my DVD-RW cables from the system. At first it seemed to work. I was able to play Doom 3 for a little over half an hour before my computer restarted/crashed. At that point, I concluded that I might have an inadequate power supply. But, immediately after I tried playing Unreal Tournament 2004, my computer restarted in just under 10 min. That got me thinking that my system is too hot. So I checked my system temperature and it hovered around 50 degrees celcius (125 farenheight). Is this an acceptable temperature? Could overheating be causing my computer to restart?

[UltramarineX]

No one has any ideas?

[caperjack]

No one has any ideas?

Just one thing ,mine crashed the other day while playing a game ,froze solid .
It was heat releated .I openee the case and placed a tabletop fan next the case to cool the computer down ,Went back to playing .
You see it was 27C outside and about 35C in the house .and about 75C in the computer !!
Yester it did the same thing ,sor i took computer apart and removed Power Supply and Cpu And use Compressed air to clean computer and all fans and even removed cover from power supply and cleaned it .
Running good to day ,just need to go buy some CPU Cooling grease to-day .
__________________

[Catweazle]

Sounds like heat to me too. The advice given by caperjack is sound advice indeed!

If creating a hurricane in there with a house fan doesn't help, though, try formatting and starting over. Sometimes games systems get all cruddy and simply need a fresh start.

[UltramarineX]

Thanks for your help guys. I've pinpointed the problem as being a faulty power supply. I replaced my old 350W supply with a new 400W one. I was able to play Doom 3 for a little over 1 hour and 20 mins without a single crash or restart. It was a pretty tense game, not only because the game was pretty scary, but also because I was afraid that my system would crash/restart, and I would be back to square one. I also took caperjack's idea and cleaned out my computer with some compressed air (man was it dusty).

Again, thanks for your help:) .

[caperjack]

Dust ,can clog power supply fan also and help in its death !!Heat is a the killer !:)