Summary: Windows has many sounds all of which are tied to specific events. Random sounds, including the computer shouting your name at you, is a mystery.
Mystery virus? I've not been able to narrow down what triggers this annoying virus, so I come to you before I pull my last hair out. I believe it has evolved a little too! Several times a day, for no apparent reason, my PC yells at me. For a year, it was an odd dog bark. It changed to a rooster crow and now it shout my NAME as loud as it can.
I run AVG and AVS and recently installed Comodo. I've scanned with Spydoctor, Norton AV, McAfee and some online scanners...everything I could. When any of them finds something, I clean it out and rescan. Even when nothing is found, the screaming continues. I often scan floppies, yet 2 other systems have the same problem.
•
I was all ready to suggest that perhaps Windows was generating a warning pop up and what you were hearing was the accompanying alert sound.
Up until you indicated that your computer is calling you by name, that is.
I'm actually hoping that my readers can come up with some other plausible suggestions, but I can think of only one explanation.
•
I think someone's having some fun with you, at your expense.
And by someone, I mean someone you know who has access, direct or indirect, to your computers.
It actually wouldn't be that hard to make a computer act this way. In fact, I've considered it as a prank in the past, but thought the better of it. I'd write a small program or script that simply played a audio file at random times during the day. That audio file could be a dog barking, a rooster crowing, or someone yelling a name. Or worse.
The problem in your situation, and the reason I think it's intentional, is that I'm not aware of any viruses or spyware that actually do this.
Another alternative, though still along the lines of a prank, would be someone replacing one of the system notification sounds with a sound of their own. So perhaps the sound happens when Windows notifies you of something, but it's a sound that your prankster has provided rather than the Windows original.
Yet another alternative might be a web site that does the same thing - perhaps when you visit it plays random sounds, one of which might be your name.
In your shoes I would:
-
Take note of what programs are running, or what websites are displayed, when the sound occurs. Look for something in common.
-
Review all the sound files in c:\Windows\Media, and make sure that they're not what you've been hearing.
-
Review the sound settings in Control Panel, Sounds and Audio Devices, Sounds, Program Events, and make sure they're not what you've been hearing.
And lastly, I'd take a close listen to the sound of your name, and see if it sounds like anyone you know.
I'm hoping some of my regular readers will have additional ideas. If you do, please add them as a comment.
Related:
-
Ask Leo! - How do I change Windows sounds?
-
Ask Leo! - Spyware: How do I remove and avoid spyware?
Article C3181 - October 14, 2007
Why does my computer shout at me? Leo, maybe the reader has a program like AOL IM that has sounds associated with people comming and going? Just a thought.
Mike Malloy
Posted by: Michael Malloy at October 20, 2007 7:02 AM[Email Address Removed]
i don't know, i had the rooster crowing too. it went away all of a sudden. baffled me!
Posted by: gee at October 20, 2007 8:21 AMI thought maybe it is not from the computer but from his own mind. That was my first thought I am afraid.
Posted by: angel at October 21, 2007 9:58 AMBut then being of the nursing persuasion and not the technical persuasion - maybe that's why....I thought that. Sorry, don't mean to offend.
My previous computer would also, at random, start playing the trumpet notes you hear at the beginning of a horse race! It would be louder than my speakers were normally set for, and there was never anything visual on my computer. I offer no solution, just letting you know there is one more person out there with that annoying problem.
Posted by: Mark Nicholas at October 21, 2007 11:47 AMWell it may not be the same thing but i had my old computer programed to said: Good Morning Rebecca and good evening etc. Well it got a glich one time i dont know if it was a virus or not but it would say my name when ever i would which between programs like from yahoo to MSN and other times scared me one night lol, Needless to say i disabled it.
Posted by: Becky Garrett at October 22, 2007 12:19 AMI too have a shouting problem. No one at work believed me until they actually heard my computer shout "give me some money" randomly. There was never a pattern or a similar group of programs open that I could figure out. I've since left that job and laptop behind and NOW MY BRAND NEW HOME LAPTOP is shouting the same thing. My assumption is that this must be from AIM or Messenger OR from a random file that has a virus. The thing is, the two laptops never crossed paths. This one is a tough one for me as I often need sound on during presentations and it randomly statrs shouting - give me some money. Too bizarre.
Posted by: hapiday at January 21, 2008 8:33 AM-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE-----
Hash: SHA1
My assumption is the same as yours: some kind of virus or,
as in the article, someone you know playing with your head.
:-)
Leo
-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----
Version: GnuPG v1.4.7 (MingW32)
iD8DBQFHlpybCMEe9B/8oqERAs8XAKCJbXlVR2Bpvya7Gwqvu1LnEwlEbwCeLRLm
Posted by: Leo A. Notenboom at January 22, 2008 5:46 PMLRKJK7nAJzoQG29Sb2Zzpv8=
=sId9
-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----
I have the same problem. All of sudden about 3 months ago, my laptop started crowing like a Rooster. This does not happen when I use the desk top computer. I have gone into the windows sounds and played all of them .... no rooster there. I thought it might me my email, either yahoo or gmail telling me I had mail... found nothing. I check the clock when the rooster crows and it doesn't happen on the hour, 1/2 hour etc. I'm totally puzzeled. I even submitted this information on my High School yahoo group site. (just came back from my 41 Reunion). One of HS Classmates told me to go to http://www.ubuntu.com/ have you heard of this? I haven't downloaded anything yet because I want to find out more about ubuntu .If the computer starts yelling at me or calling me by my name. I'm getting a new computer. If by chance I find out what this mystery is I'll pass it on if you find out please let me know.
Posted by: Deb at April 22, 2009 10:05 AMMy computer "moos" at me at totally random times, really freaks me out, would love to know what it is. Also, the sound of a door opening and closing, thought it was a new mail indicator, but it usually happens on my reunion website. No clue about the mooing, though
Posted by: Kim at June 6, 2009 7:52 AMCrowing roosters and mooing cows sound suspiciously like Yahoo! Messenger's Audibles.
I haven't used Y!M in ages, but perhaps there are Audibles with people's names now.
Posted by: Henry at September 10, 2009 7:31 AMAudibles: Send an animated, talking character to a friend to liven up your IM conversation.
http://messenger.yahoo.com/features/