Microgaming Softare 100% CPU Utilization??

[spearmaster]

I'm telling you had one hard drive burn out already. I will not go near another MG casino because of this. Unless you have a super computer with one hell of a hard drive BEWARE!!!!

MG software will not cause your hard drive to fail. I think too many people believe the sky is going to fall just because it's dark out.

For the last time, running MG software will NOT cause any additional stress to your hard drive.

 

[Dirk Diggler]

That's fair enough, however they seem to be taking a long time to get this sorted. It's a month and a half since this thread started and definitely been well over 6 months since the software started doing this.

Any idea when/if they intend getting this sorted?

 

[spearmaster]

I think I said somewhere in this thread that the issue will be resolved at the next update If I didn't say it, then I'm saying it now

 

[Dirk Diggler]

You did - it just seems it's been a while and I'd have thought they'd have sorted it by now.

They just recently added a few new games so I'd have thought it could have been fairly easy to slip it in with them - but then technically I haven't got a clue so maybe it isn't

 

[ftg]

The hardware is Elite K7SEM motherboard, Athlon 1.7 GHz CPU, 256MB RAM, the operating system is Win XP Pro SP2.

A few days agao it started crashing with this error message on the blue screen of death: Windows shut down to prevent physical damage to your computer.
IRQL_NOT_LESS_THAN_OR_EQUAL. There was also some other stuff and error codes, but of course there is no way of saving them.

At first there were several hours between crashes, yesterday it was so bad that the computer would boot into Windows then crash immediately. It was behaving better today, I was able to install Motherboard Monitor and it reported that the CPU's temperature was 127C! I did not wait for the crash, I shut down the computer.

I am having the same experience. My computer crashes with Microgaming running. But if I don't start the casino software, it works perfectly.

I am considering to buy a more powerful desktop but then I would ask "is a new desktop can sove the problem?".

Now I just playing the flash casinos and it's been fine.

 

[KasinoKing]

I think I said somewhere in this thread that the issue will be resolved at the next update If I didn't say it, then I'm saying it now

That post was over a month ago (June-17th), and the original statement quite some time before that.
Last night Spin Palace was still eating up all my PC's CPU...

Any clues on when exactly this supposed update is happening, Spearmaster?

 

[Simmo!]

Yes i've disabled my CPU alarm for now, but worryingly, I've started to get the Blue Screen of Death on occassion while playing MG

 

[spearmaster]

Those of you who have been reading my newsletters will recognize the folllowing phrase...

"At great considerable expense, I have gone out of my way to buy a new computer in order to test the CPU utilization of Microgaming software."

Which is not exactly true, but it's close. I actually did order a new machine, built to my specs (still a cheapskate, another Celeron, but with RAID drives) and the very first thing I did was to test CPU utilization and heat with Microgaming software - at two casinos just in case.

First - and very annoying - MGS software still uses 99% CPU. This is unacceptable and I will be raising this point with them immediately.

Second - my CPU temperature only went up by 5-6 degrees, and my system temperature only 1-2 degrees.

Third - I raised this point about overheating with the builder of my machine, who happens to be my former partner. He said exactly the same thing I have been telling you for months.

Software does NOT cause computer problems. If your system is overheating or breaking down it is as a result of the poor quality construction of the system, especially the cooling system.

There is only one known instance where software has actually directly done damage to hardware - if you want to look it up, search for "CIH" or "Chernobyl virus"... and those of you a bit more diligent may discover why I know about this issue.

I will repeat this until I am blue in the face - if you don't care to believe me, then don't, it will ultimately be at your expense anyhow if you don't get your system fixed right away (sound like a doctor, don't I? That's because, when it comes to computers, I basically am).

I don't care WHO the manufacturer is, whether it be generic or brand name - in the passt Compaqs were the most notoriously diffficult machines to deal with, followed closely behind by Dell... if you are seeing temperature problems then the manufacturer must service or replace components.

 

[chalupa]

Software does NOT cause computer problems. If your system is overheating or breaking down it is as a result of the poor quality construction of the system, especially the cooling system.

Wanna bet $100,000? I'll write some custom software, you run it on your new machine.

If I'm feeling generous, maybe I'll even buy you a new machine after it dies before its time. You can deduct the cost from my certified check.

In any case, I hope we are all in agreement that this behavior is totally inexcusable by Microgaming. They have let the problem go on FAR too long,

And certainly there are thousands of machines out there that ARE adversely affected by this bug, whether due to definciencies in the systems as original configured, or overloading with additional components by the consumer, or the buildup of dust in the cooling system, etc. And of course there's no denying the wasted electricity, if nothing else.

 

[spearmaster]

Chalupa, I hope you have $100K to spare for a foolish bet.

 

[chalupa]

Chalupa, I hope you have $100K to spare for a foolish bet.

No. However I do have $100K for a well-considered risk.

From your description, you didn't buy some mil-spec machine. So I'm very confident I can write some software that will heat, shake, rattle and roll it to an early grave.

 

[spearmaster]

Over what period of time, 5 years?

You would have to write software which directly attacks hardware components in my machine, specifically the brains of various chips in the machine.

Writing something to run 100% CPU, thrash my hard disks or my video processor simply ain't going to cut it Even though my machine is not mil-spec, you'd be surprised to learn perhaps that my machine is probably a lot cheaper and yet more sturdy and stable than most mil-spec machines currently being used

 

[nafanny29]

This is going on and on and on!! Surely they can write a fix in their software, cant be that difficult.

IMHO the jury's still out on whether it nauses up PCs but I can tell you that if you have anything else running with MG software the other programs grind to a halt completely and normally the whole PC needs a re-start.

 

[Casinomeister]

MG is completely aware of this situation and have been working on this like happy little squirrels. Apparently it's a reporting issue and where the software doesn't actually utilize 100% of available CPU continuously. Whenever another application is launched though, the CPU resources are divied up as required.

There is an update in the works for the Viper software which will idle at 10-20% CPU usage. I'm not quite sure on the exact release date yet.

 

[Vesuvio]

Apparently it's a reporting issue and where the software doesn't actually utilize 100% of available CPU continuously.

If it was just a reporting problem it shouldn't cause overheating though, should it? (yes, Spearmaster, I know it wouldn't if I had an industrial cooling system or lived in an igloo ) They must be getting the CPU to do something strenuous. The only normal (non test) program I've managed to get to do anything similar was some satellite imagery software I downloaded from NASA...

The only thing I can think an MG casino might be doing when you're in the lobby is some badly programmed encryption of data between the PC & the casino server. Anyway, let's hope they fix it before frying too many more PCs

 

[spearmaster]

It's not a reporting issue - the software is definitely using 99% CPU when other applications are idle. It absolutely does NOT need to do this.

Vesuvio - you don't need an igloo or an industrial cooling system. You need a computer which delivers what was promised by the manufacturer. And you yet again are tying the overheating to the overusage of the CPU caused by the software - and yet again I will repeat that overheating is a symptom of a problem with your cooling system. It has NOTHING to do with software, and NOTHING to do with 100% CPU usage.

Let me put it in a very dramatic way. You could be a chocoholic like me, and eat until the cows come home. Call this 100% chocolate usage.

You could have been born a diabetic, or you could develop diabetes during the course of your life. Call this pancreas failure.

If you continue to eat chocolate all day, your pancreas will simply stop working.

Should the chocolate be blamed for causing pancreas failure? If your pancreas worked NORMALLY, the chocolate would not be blamed for anything.

Now replace "chocolate" with "CPU" and "pancreas" with "cooling system". Note that software does not even come into the equation, though essentially we can replace "chocolate" with "software utilizing full CPU idle cycles" if you like.

Clearly the chocolate is not at fault, because the pancreas either deteriorated over time or came into being in poor working condition.

The person responsible for this is the manufacturer (or God, if you like). The chocolate maker cannot be blamed for the fault and will never be liable for causing the problem. And the chocolate maker cannot be caught out for offering a product which would cause a "health" problem under normal circumstances unless abused.

This is the simple fact - all computers are designed to be run at full throttle - you do not buy cars which are crippled (except in certain states/countries which require this). If your system cannot run at full throttle then the manufacturer has sold you a defective product. You just didn't notice the defects until you ran a full test.

 

[KasinoKing]

Now replace "chocolate" with "CPU" and "pancreas" with "cooling system". Note that software does not even come into the equation, though essentially we can replace "chocolate" with "software utilizing full CPU idle cycles" if you like.

Brilliant!!

Please send me a van load of chocolate so I can test your theory out!

 

[Vesuvio]

The person responsible for this is the manufacturer (or God, if you like). The chocolate maker cannot be blamed for the fault and will never be liable for causing the problem. And the chocolate maker cannot be caught out for offering a product which would cause a "health" problem under normal circumstances unless abused.

I can't help thinking we're going round in circles For the sake of the metaphor I'd say if the chocolate was advertised as sugar-free or "diabetic friendly" and was nearly pure sugar they might shoulder a little of the blame... yeah, I know, not a perfect metaphor. I preferred the sentence I quoted before from Kafka: "The child thinks the house of cards collapsed because an adult bumped into it, but it didn't, it collapsed because it was a house of cards". Having said that I think the child's got some cause for complaint if the adult jumped on the house of cards

I see your point & I'm not saying you can legally catch MG out, but I can't see why you're so adamant running the casinos isn't directly linked to computers being damaged. At best, running at 100% CPU usage when there's no need's going to use more electricity and slightly reduce the lifespan of even the best designed systems. You've said yourself laptops aren't great at dissipating heat due to space limitations. I'm sure I could buy a more expensive one and it would cope better, but the whole point here is that I shouldn't need to to run this software. If the software worked properly I'd have no problem and neither would anyone else.

This is the simple fact - all computers are designed to be run at full throttle - you do not buy cars which are crippled (except in certain states/countries which require this).

Had this metaphor before as well: if you run a car at full throttle you know it'll use more fuel and break down sooner, but you can weigh that up against the fun of driving fast. In the case of MG casinos you're going at full throttle, putting your PC at maximum strain and it's still only going at 50km/h. Lucky they throw in enough bonuses to cover the cost of an eventual new PC or I'd completely avoid them until they fixed it

 

[spearmaster]

I see your point & I'm not saying you can legally catch MG out, but I can't see why you're so adamant running the casinos isn't directly linked to computers being damaged.

I'm saying it because it's not their fault, period. I'm not saying it because I'm defending them - in fact, I'm upset because they haven't delivered on the promise they made to me to get that fixed.

No - I repeat NO - computer should have any problem running CPU at full utilization for lengthy periods of time. If a computer starts to overheat, this is because there is a failure of the cooling system for whatever reason. You cannot blame ANY software for causing this, because they are simply running your computer at full throttle.

If it was the software's fault, EVERY computer running it should be subject to the same problem.

 

[Vesuvio]

No - I repeat NO - computer should have any problem running CPU at full utilization for lengthy periods of time.

But many do - enough people on this forum and others have reported it to make me fairly confident I'm not just a freak with a dodgy computer. In any case, all computers will have a slightly reduced lifespan and use more electricity running software that takes 100% of the CPU instead of using the resources actually required.

If it was the software's fault, EVERY computer running it should be subject to the same problem.

That's a bit like saying, if it was the fault of nuts added to food EVERY person eating it should have an allergic reaction. Some computers are more susceptible than others. Food manufacturers warn about nuts in their products, so would it really have been beyond MG to warn their customers that some computers will be at risk until the software's altered?

 

[Simmo!]

Hey guys i might not be around for a few days as i have to go to hospital. Got a CPU stuck in my Pancreas 'cos Ted recommended it. Bummer.

Simmo!

 

[Macgyver]

Hey guys i might not be around for a few days as i have to go to hospital. Got a CPU stuck in my Pancreas 'cos Ted recommended it. Bummer.

Simmo!

Hey now, I thought this type of "personal entertainment" was only for the "Wild Cards" section of the forum.

 

[spearmaster]

But many do - enough people on this forum and others have reported it to make me fairly confident I'm not just a freak with a dodgy computer. In any case, all computers will have a slightly reduced lifespan and use more electricity running software that takes 100% of the CPU instead of using the resources actually required.
That's a bit like saying, if it was the fault of nuts added to food EVERY person eating it should have an allergic reaction. Some computers are more susceptible than others. Food manufacturers warn about nuts in their products, so would it really have been beyond MG to warn their customers that some computers will be at risk until the software's altered?

Exactly, you said it yourself. You and a number of others have faulty computers.

There are probably hundreds of people in here alone who run MGS software - and only a few have reported them.

You'll personally have a slightly reduced lifespan (me too, for that matter) if you eat too much chocolate. This is NOT what we are talking about - we are talking about something a LOT more serious.

You just want to make a point - make it - but please don't tell us that MGS is at fault for your computer's problems. It's not. You should be thanking them for exposing the weaknesses of your computers a lot more than you should be blaming them for running at full throttle.

Regarding nuts - if you're nut-allergic, and you choose to keep on eating nuts or products that you KNOW have nuts in them, who's to blame?

 

[chalupa]

Ok, ok, I give up.

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[nafanny29]

OK, for the sake of science I opened two Prima poker tables and two crypto tables. Within 5 minutes the CPU was at 100%, the whole PC froze, and even the crypto tables ceased to work. I had to force shut the Prima tables (Which in itself took a couple of minutes)

I then ran the same to crypto tables with two apex tables. No problems at all and CPU average 12% peaked at 22% over 30 minutes.

From that I can say that (On my PC at least), MG software is doing more than just using up free cycles (what ever they are )