Summary: Airflow through your computer is an important part of keeping it cool and running well. Frequently fans are just blocked by dust and dirt.
For some reason, my computer randomly shuts down a lot. It's been happening even more and more. It started around the start of summer. It usually would shut down for no reason. Yesterday, it said Over Temperature. This shutting down thing is annoying. When I'm trying to do work, I lose it all and the computer shuts down. I asked my cousin, he said that it could be my fan. I haven't checked yet, I'm going to ask you first, is it my fan? Or is it another problem?
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Maybe.
The "Over Temperature" is definitely a clue, and the fan is a definite possibility.
But ... let me tell you a little story about dust bunnies, first.
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For those who might not be familiar with the term, "dust bunnies" are clumps of dust and debris that form in and around computers, furniture and other areas that might not be getting cleaned regularly.
We might not think much of them, and indeed, in places where they exist it's typically because someone isn't thinking about them very often.
But here's the dirty (no pun intended) secret:
Dust bunnies can kill computers.
As you've noted, your computer has at least one, and possibly more, fans that move air through its case. The computer's components generate a lot of heat, and the purpose of the fans is to keep the computer cooler by pushing warm air out and pulling presumably cooler air in.
The problem is that the "pulling air in" part also attracts dust and dirt that might be floating around in the air as your computer is running. The dirt then accumulates into larger clumps that end up blocking the vents that air is supposed to move through.
And this can happen both inside, and outside your computer.
The result is that your fans might well be running, but because the airflow is blocked they can't do their job. In fact, the fans themselves end up adding even more heat to the mix which has nowhere to go.
As a result, your computer overheats and crashes.
As you might imagine, the solution is fairly clear: keep the area around your computer clean and clear.
More specifically:
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Make sure that there is room around your computer, particularly around the vents in front and back, for air to flow.
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Place your computer in a cooler part of your room, or near some natural air flow if you can.
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Vacuum around your computer, particularly behind it, on a regular basis. How often will depend on just how quickly dust bunnies form in your particular location. If you're actually seeing clumps, then you've probably waited a little too long.
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If you're already in the "covered with dust bunnies" stage, shut down and unplug your computer, open the case, and then with a brush attachment gently vacuum out the interior. Pay particular notice to the location of the fans, and any accumulations of dust and dirt.
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While you have your computer open, and after you've cleaned it and put the vacuum away, plug it back in again for a few seconds and make sure those fans are running. If not, then perhaps they've been damaged by getting clogged with dirt and need to be replaced.
It's an easy thing to overlook, and I've personally seen some
seriously over-looked computers in my day. 
The good news is that it's also an easy thing to stay on top of, and it's worth it. There are enough other things to go wrong, we don't need killer dust bunnies to add to our problems.
Article C3573 - November 24, 2008
Another possible cause is the motherboard itself. There is a temperature sensor on the board under the processor. If that sensor has failed and is indicating an extremely high temp, the board will shutdown. This is usually a surface mounted, non-replaceable component. The fix would be a new motherboard.
Posted by: David Irwin at December 1, 2008 12:46 PMTo clean the inside of my computer, I simply use a drinking straw with the bottom taped (with electricians tape) inside of the edge attachment on my vacuum cleaner.
Just wrap the tape gently around the straw until all the suction is coming from within the straw only. When finished, just peel the tape off along with the straw and throw it away.
This makes getting into the fan crevices so much easier and insures that I don't accidentally ram my hardware components with the hard vacuum attachments.
Of course there are are micro attachments that you can also buy, but this method is cheap and works well enough for me.
Posted by: Brandon Wood at December 1, 2008 2:05 PMre: oveheating and cleaning...would it be wise to install a fan running at low speed a few feet away from the unit?
03-Dec-2008
Just one thought from me.
SAVE your work about every 15 minutes to the Hard Drive so if something goes wrong all you have lost is 15 minutes of your work.
Posted by: Ed Vance at December 6, 2008 2:44 PMBesides the fan being free of debris and working properly, another culprit to check is the Thermal grease between the processor and heat sink. It is a gray gel-type liquid deisgned to help "pull" heat away from the processor. Remove the heat sink and clean the bottom of the heat sink and top of the processor gently with a small amount of rubbing alcohol on a rag or paper towel, then apply a small bit of thermal grease and reseat the heatsink. Obviously, remove the power and battery brfore you do this, there is no need to remove the processor if you are careful...
Posted by: St. Pete Tech at February 25, 2010 11:25 AM