"Illegal Operation" ???

What exactly is the meaning of the computer error message “…performed an illegal operation”??? I gather its not something illegal as in “against the law”, so what does it mean?

In a nutshell, this means that a mathematical error that is unrecoverable had occured. Either due to poor programming or just a glitch that mixes up some binary numbers.

At the lowest level computers follow instructions which have a numeric code known as an op-code (operation code.) There are more numbers available than there are different instructions so some op-codes are invalid. What you describe happens when a program comes across one of these invalid op-codes - usually because a programming error has caused it to look in the wrong part of memory for its next instruction.

But I am working on a friends PC that is getting this message for a Hasbro kids game program. When she talked to the folks who sold her the PC, they said they would send someone out to fix it.

Is this possible?

It was bothering her quite a bit… so is this something that can be fixed or is it something that she’s just going to have to learn to hate forever??

Tristan, the problem is in some part of the software, possibly a bad driver. So, yes, it probably is fixable.

Muchos Groceries, me Amigo!