T60 starts acting up...

[HalliHallo]

Hi there.

My T60, running win xp, has started acting up.
Cpu: T2500, 80 GB HD, 7200 rpm.

For some time now, when I use the red steering mechanism (don't know what it's called in english) combined with the middle button above the touchpad, to scroll down on a webpage the computer freezes. Sometimes it "de-freezes" and then I can scroll further, other times it stays frozen up, and the only thing to do about it is to reboot. Pretty annoying, but it happens perhaps a couple times a month, so I've lived with it. However, if anybody has some ideas to a solution I'd be glad to hear about it.

And now to the REAL pain in the behind. This has started within the last month. If I run an embedded player (youtube for instance) then the screen goes all black, and theres no way out of that but a reboot.

I suspect that it could be a heat issue (graphics?), as the laptop sometimes gets quite hot, but that's only my own little theory.
Speedfan reads the temps as:
HDD: 43 degrees
Core: 61-63 degrees
Temp1: 66 degrees (motherboard temp?)

How hot do your machines run?

Thanks in advance

[Theokretes]

That's not too hot for a T60; average really. Although you should replace the thermal paste.

The best solution is just to reinstall windows and erase everything.

[RealBlackStuff]

the red steering mechanism (don't know what it's called in english)

It's known under various names.
On a Thinkpad it's a trackpoint.
At times it's called different things, see e.g. this: http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Talk:TrackPoint