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Evergreen Country Shopper
Attention: Tech Talk
P.O. Box 408
417 9th Ave. W.
Ashland, WI 54806
Email: techtalk@soketnetto.com
Dear Techie:
We have a computer that was new in 2003. It’s pretty slow, but we can’t afford to get a new one just yet. The operating system it has is Windows XP Pro. Is there anything we can do to speed it up a little? The new Windows 7 sounds intriguing. Would you recommend we try to install that on this computer, or just wait a year or two until we can buy a new one?
Thanks!
CyberTurtle
Dear CyberTurtle,
Before you decide anything you might want to check out Microsoftâ’s Windows 7 Product Guide (http://tinyurl.com/windowss7guide). This, 140 page, guide is the most comprehensive official document on Windows 7 and it isnâ’t full of technical jargon. It is perfect for those who want to know what you can expect from the new Microsoft operating system. (Read more . . .)
Can your existing computer handle Windows 7? Windows 7 will not run on every computer. You need to download and run the â’Windows 7 Upgrade Advisorâ’ (http://tinyurl.com/windows7upgradecheck). Helpful hint, connect all your devices to your PC and turn them on before you scan. This way the scan will check external devices for compatibility.
Here are things you should know about Windows XP:
- Microsoft retired Mainstream Support for Windows XP on April 14, 2009, but Extended Support won’t be retired until April 8, 2014.
- Windows XP Service Pack 3 (SP3) is available (http://tinyurl.com/ttwxpsp3). Make sure you read â’Steps to take before you install Windows XP Service Packâ’ and your PC can handle SP3.
Reasons for a Slow Computer
- Too much software
- Figure out how you want to use the computer? Is it a gaming machine? Internet? Email and Word? Think about what software is absolutely necessary. If it just for email and writing, then limit your software to just those few applications.
- Installing/uninstalling software
- Every time you install and uninstall software pieces of the process are left behind. You need to clean your hard drive, do research on what your software will do on install and uninstall. Don’t just assume that software uninstalled on your computer is completely removed.
- Too many background programs running
- CTRL + ALT + DEL brings up the taskbar. Look at all those things running. You need to figure out what they are and what they are doing. Look each up at http://www.processlibrary.com/ — Do not install anything. This is just for information purposes.
- Not enough memory (256 MB is too little, please upgrade)
- Hard drive space limited (min 300MB-500MB free space)
- Fragmented hard drive (Defrag Monthly)
- Device drivers that are old or conflicting
- If you know how to fix this, excellent. Here is a good reference site (http://www.techrescue.net/guides/conflicts6.asp)
- Malicious software (adware, spyware, viruses, or trojans) infected your computer
- Dying hardware
- If you suspect hardware problem, please seek tech support at Radio Shack (Ashland, WI) the guru is very good.
Before you do anything:
- Get computer inventory: write down all your software and license
- Get software: make sure you have all necessary discs for your computer
- Get yourself an external USB hard drive and back up all data, pictures, document, presentations and everything else that is not replaceable
Read and follow the instructions carefully. This guide is for your information, but the risk is your own. Do your own research and before anything make sure all of your data is backed up, not kidding.
Low Cost Hardware Upgrades:
- Upgrading memory, 512 MB starting at $20.
- Get a second internal hard drive. Prices start at $50 for 160 MB.
- Upgrade the processors if you can. Prices vary.
- Put in a new motherboard. Prices vary.
If you are not confident in putting more memory or upgrade your hard drive there are places in Ashland that will upgrade your computer at a competitive rate. It will be cheaper than a new computer and the upgrade will make a huge difference. When you buy a computer you are not stuck with the configurations, upgrade to a new computer.
Non-hardware tweak to speed your XP computer:
Remove malicious software
- Download latest update and definitions to your protection software
- Reboot computer in to Windows Safe Mode. (http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315222)
- Run your protection software
- Once the Scan completes remove any viruses it finds by deleting them from the quarantine.
- Repeat for each protection software
–> Keep computer in Safe Mode <–
Run the Window’s hard drive Defragmenter
- Start > My Computer > Select Drive >Right-click > Properties > Tools > Defragment
Repeat for each hard drive
Perform a disk clean up
- Start > Run > cleanmgr.exe
Repeat for each hard drive
Remove all software you do not use
- Start > Run > Control panel > Click add/remove programs
- Select any old software you do not use and “remove”.
Stop unwanted Start-Up programs
Two Options
- Start > Run > msconfig > Choose startup box > Select uncheck programs you don’t want to run on startup
- (If you installed StartUpCPL) Start > Control Panel > Start up > Disable any programs you do not want load automatically (http://tinyurl.com/ttstartupcpl)
Disable Services you do not use or need
- Start > Control Panel > Administrative Tools > Services.
Note: Disabling the wrong Services may lead to serious problems that you may not notice right away. So do your research. (http://tinyurl.com/ttxpwstartups)
The following is a list of Services that you can disable on most systems
Alerter
Distributed Link Tracking Client
Help and Support – (If you use Windows Help and Support leave this enabled)
Indexing Service
IPSEC Services
Messenger – (Installing SP2 or higher will disable this)
Portable Media Serial Number – (Leave enabled for use with security dongles)
Remote Registry Service
Secondary Logon – (Required to use the “Run As” feature)
Telnet
Upload Manager
Make Windows load faster
- Start > Run > msconfig > BOOT.INI
Over to the right there will be a box labeled Timeout with 30 in it. Change the 30 to a 3 (http://www.extremetech.com)
Disable Indexing Service
- My Computer > Select hard drive > left-click > Properties > Uncheck â’˜Allow Indexing Serviceâ’ > â’˜Apply changes to sub folders and filesâ’.
Note: If any files cannot be updated select “Ignore All”.
–> Reboot Windows Normally <–
You should see a significant difference in speed. If your computer gets slow again defrag, run protection software scan and disk clean up in Windows Safe Mode should do the trick. If it gets too slow you might need hardware upgrade.
Next Week: Buying a computer? What you need to know.
XP Freeware Pick
Tweak UI
- This Windows XP PowerToy gives you access to system settings that are not exposed in the Windows XP default user interface, including mouse settings, Explorer settings, taskbar settings, and more. (http://tinyurl.com/tttweakui)
Good Luck!