Slow computer. I already tried....

[gergery]

Ok, I have a slow computer and I’m trying to get it to speed up.
I will often have Party, Stars, Empire, PT, PTO, Playerview, Explorer open.

I searched other threads and went into Windows, Run and found which applications open when I turn the computer on. There were ~15 or more applications listed. I unclicked a bunch and restarted which seemed to help, but there are still lots listed. But they have crazy names like nwiz and I can’t tell whether they are actually valuable or not.

How can I figure out which ones I can unclick without screwing something up?

Also, I’ve done defragmenter, disk check and deleted .tmp files.
What else can I do to help speed up my compter?

--greg (I am completely helpless with all things technical/computer related)

How much RAM do you have? How fast is your CPU? You may not be able to speed your computer up enough... blood from a stone and all.

Google the startup items you are unfamiliar with. You should be able to find out pretty easily if you need them or not. There are a variety of sites dedicated to this...

[JDErickson]

just wanted to add be careful unchecking those items, you can seriously screw up your whole system doing this without knowing what you are doing.

Make sure and run Spybot S&D and see if any nasties are calling your hard drive home.

As said before check how much physical memory you have (control panel, system, bottom of 1st tab) and what processor you have.

[gergery]

Ok, I have a Pentium 2.40 GHz, 256MB of RAM

let me guess, that sounds like crappy RAM, right?
if so, how do i get more RAM in -- take the computer to BestBuy and buy more and have them install it?
how much more should i buy?
how much should it cost?

Also, I went thru the process website and unchecked several more boxes. This did not seem to help however.

Anything more i can do?

--thanks for help,
Greg

[cwsiggy]

If you have a system restore function, it takes up a lot! of memory. Some disable this but do it at your own risk or only if you back up your stuff manually and frequently.

check your services and google some recs for these settings -
here is one example - use at your own risk.

http://www.tweakxp.com/article37040.aspx

More ram for sure.

[gergery]

[ QUOTE ]
If you have a system restore function, it takes up a lot! of memory. Some disable this but do it at your own risk or only if you back up your stuff manually and frequently.

check your services and google some recs for these settings -
here is one example - use at your own risk.

http://www.tweakxp.com/article37040.aspx

More ram for sure.

[/ QUOTE ]

Once I've disabled something, how to i re-enable it -- it doesn't seem to appear in the little window as an option once its gone?

-g

Additional memory will speed up your computer dramatically. Assuming you are running Windows XP, 256mb RAM is about the minimum you can have without crashing your machine. I'd recommend a 512mb RAM upgrade for a total of 768mb. You can find 512mb sticks of RAM fairly cheap online (less than $40)... In fact, I recently purchased a new 512mb stick from newegg.com and am totally satisfied.

Make sure you get the right kind of memory. If you have a PC that was made by a major manufacturer, like Dell, Gateway, Compaq, etc. you should be able to google the model to find out what kind of RAM it takes. You can always talk to the people at stores like Best Buy about your computer and they can look up what kind of RAM you need for you, but for older memory models (PC2100 or less, which is likely what your machine supports), they charge a lot more than you can find online.

Installing memory is one of the easiest things to do, so paying somebody to do it is not a good idea. It literally consists of plugging it into the motherboard and snapping it in place.

MisterW

[Nomad84]

[ QUOTE ]
for older memory models (PC2100 or less, which is likely what your machine supports), they charge a lot more than you can find online

[/ QUOTE ]

Can't you run faster ram, like PC3200, in this case? I thought it would just operate at the lower speed of the motherboard. Or is this backwards?

[cwsiggy]

[ QUOTE ]
Once I've disabled something, how to i re-enable it -- it doesn't seem to appear in the little window as an option once its gone?


[/ QUOTE ]

just type in services.msc in the run box and the whole list appears - you can then double click on one and change it back if need be.

Extra ram is going to make the biggest difference though.