I tried to get rid of some programs that I did not think I needed, yet it
turned out that I needed them.

I don't think I ended programs that were labeled "SYSTEM"

Can I get these back?

Are there some ways to have less programs running so that it does not take
so long to start up the computer as well as shut it down?

THanks!

type msconfig into the run dialog ad go to the last two tabs. deselect any
programs from that list you dont want at startup.

for your missing taskbar issue Im not sure what you did, did you have some
dort of desktop application like rocket dock or a vista 2 XP program
installed?

sounds like you uninstalled this app
http://www.mp3car.com/vbulletin/atta...de-taskbar.rar

its a tiny exe file that when clicked it hides the taskbar, click again and
its restored. meant to be used with a "dock" that replaces the taskbar
--
Brandon Dub., TO canada, Shell ''explorer''


"jcirrus" wrote:

> I tried to get rid of some programs that I did not think I needed, yet it
> turned out that I needed them.
>
> I don't think I ended programs that were labeled "SYSTEM"
>
> Can I get these back?
>
> Are there some ways to have less programs running so that it does not take
> so long to start up the computer as well as shut it down?
>
> THanks!

=?Utf-8?B?amNpcnJ1cw==?= added these comments in the current
discussion du jour ...

> I tried to get rid of some programs that I did not think I
> needed, yet it turned out that I needed them.
>
> I don't think I ended programs that were labeled "SYSTEM"
>
> Can I get these back?
>
> Are there some ways to have less programs running so that it
> does not take so long to start up the computer as well as shut
> it down?
>
Can't help with your first problem, but wrt to start up time, you
can look in msconfig to see what systems programs start when you
re-boot - but be VERY careful of turning off things you don't
understand. Then, take a look in your Programs>Startup folder for
your account and see if there's anything there you don't want.

Keep in mind that drivers and "hidden" apps/utilities like
malware protection do not show up as normal programs you would
recognize but are entirely required for your system to run as
you've set it up to do. So, again, be very careful if you take
anything out of anyplace.

Now, other factors such as a badly fragmented HD may be a factor
or simply a slow HD with an older motherboard, perhaps a not-so-
fast CPU and not enough memory can also slow things down over
time as well as make your PC seem less responsive on everyday
tasks than you may remember.

Exactly how slow is slow, however? Windows XP takes about 45-60
seconds to start just by itself compounded by things I talk about
above. Are you seeing 2 minutes or 20 minutes? Ditto for
shutdown. In my case, I have more than a dozen standard apps I
want to start and minimize to my Taskbar so a restart is many
minutes, but since my PC is so stable, I don't have to restart
more than maybe once a month or less so it is no big deal. I
leave it on 24x7 to ease the wear and tear from constant
shutdown/startup load electrically, on the HD, etc. Thus, neither
of your problems are biggies to me. You may find others who also
run 24x7 and are not bother by perceived slowness, but you are
the final judge of all of this.

--
HP, aka Jerry

"Never complain, never explain" - Henry Ford II

) Anytime you suspect windows system file corruptions use WFP to correct
issues. It doesn't always run right but sometimes does the trick. Insert the
XP CD and at Run "sfc /scannow".

) If the taskbar does not return there is a tweak at Kelly's Korner for
that. It may not work but it's worth a try.

) If neither of those work try a WinXP repair. Sometimes that works if the
option is available when you reboot to the CD.

) You can't end SYSTEM processes. In the old days you could and it
immediately crashed your system.

) Slow shutdown and startup - could write a book on that. Beyond the scope
here.

"HEMI-Powered" wrote:

> =?Utf-8?B?amNpcnJ1cw==?= added these comments in the current
> discussion du jour ...
>
> > I tried to get rid of some programs that I did not think I
> > needed, yet it turned out that I needed them.
> >
> > I don't think I ended programs that were labeled "SYSTEM"
> >
> > Can I get these back?
> >
> > Are there some ways to have less programs running so that it
> > does not take so long to start up the computer as well as shut
> > it down?
> >
> Can't help with your first problem, but wrt to start up time, you
> can look in msconfig to see what systems programs start when you
> re-boot - but be VERY careful of turning off things you don't
> understand. Then, take a look in your Programs>Startup folder for
> your account and see if there's anything there you don't want.
>
> Keep in mind that drivers and "hidden" apps/utilities like
> malware protection do not show up as normal programs you would
> recognize but are entirely required for your system to run as
> you've set it up to do. So, again, be very careful if you take
> anything out of anyplace.
>
> Now, other factors such as a badly fragmented HD may be a factor
> or simply a slow HD with an older motherboard, perhaps a not-so-
> fast CPU and not enough memory can also slow things down over
> time as well as make your PC seem less responsive on everyday
> tasks than you may remember.
>
> Exactly how slow is slow, however? Windows XP takes about 45-60
> seconds to start just by itself compounded by things I talk about
> above. Are you seeing 2 minutes or 20 minutes? Ditto for
> shutdown. In my case, I have more than a dozen standard apps I
> want to start and minimize to my Taskbar so a restart is many
> minutes, but since my PC is so stable, I don't have to restart
> more than maybe once a month or less so it is no big deal. I
> leave it on 24x7 to ease the wear and tear from constant
> shutdown/startup load electrically, on the HD, etc. Thus, neither
> of your problems are biggies to me. You may find others who also
> run 24x7 and are not bother by perceived slowness, but you are
> the final judge of all of this.
>
> --
> HP, aka Jerry
>
> "Never complain, never explain" - Henry Ford II
>

=?Utf-8?B?a2JpdHMubmV0?= added these comments in the current
discussion du jour ...

> ) Anytime you suspect windows system file corruptions use WFP
> to correct issues. It doesn't always run right but sometimes
> does the trick. Insert the XP CD and at Run "sfc /scannow".

Interesting! I'm not the OP but thank you anyway. I didn't really
know this and had I known it, perhaps I'd have had less trouble
on rare occasions.

> ) If the taskbar does not return there is a tweak at Kelly's
> Korner for that. It may not work but it's worth a try.
>
> ) If neither of those work try a WinXP repair. Sometimes that
> works if the option is available when you reboot to the CD.

I assume you're talking primarily to the "lost taskbar" part of
this thread. I wouldn't have thought of a repair install, but it
is a good idea to put in the back of my mind. Had my attempts to
solve the increasing shutdown of my PC I suffered with for a
week, perhaps I could've tried that. I did manage to save my
bacon, though, by rolling my system back in Safe mode to a date
prior to some MS and other updates which I suspected caused the
gross instability and that appears to have fixed my problem.

> ) You can't end SYSTEM processes. In the old days you could
> and it immediately crashed your system.

I almost entirely agree with you. Certainly your advise is 100%
correct for folks not too XP savvy. However, on RARE occasions,
but AFTER setting a manual RP, I have successfully used
Taskmanager to shut down system functions, but ONLY those I
believed (rightly or wrongly) would be safe or "safe". Maybe I
was lucky, but I think I'm on solid ground shutting down
application systems that I know are really not in use. A couple
examples are Roxio Easy Media Creator, a Maxtor external HD
backup routine that supports the utility I never even installed,
and a couple other side-bars to apps or utilities I know are not
really in use. All of that said, as you so correctly say, I would
NEVER shut down a for-real Windows file.

I do make TWO exceptions to my "rule": 1) when I cannot get
something which depends on Windows Explorer to work such as
Explorer itself, dialog boxes and the like. Of course, when I
shut down explorer, my task bar goes away and some of my desktop
icons, but I can get it all back 100% by launching explorer.ext
as a new task in Taskmanager, and 2) I often have to shut IE6
down when it refuses to close on its own. Technically, IE isn't a
system file at all, or at least no where near as important as
Explorer is that virtually all of Windows depends on. But, if
doing either of thesee things crashes or hangs my system, a
simple restart gets me out of trouble. However, I NEVER recommend
doing what I just described to people that aren't desperate.

> ) Slow shutdown and startup - could write a book on that.
> Beyond the scope here.

Agreed. I see you quoted some of my ideas which are barely
scratching the surface. Whenever somebody says that this, that,
or the other thing is slow or getting slower, I fall back on the
same set of possible "culprits". But, if the obvious doesn't
work, then yes, I DO have 3 or 4 techie books from Que and
Microsofft that I refer to. Luckily, absent the self-inflicted
pain of wanting to launch a dozen often used apps when I restart,
my start-up times with a reasonably fast, defragged HD and a 2.6
GHz AMD CPU are not at all objectionable.

Again, my thanks for some very useful info.

>> > Are there some ways to have less programs running so that
>> > it does not take so long to start up the computer as well
>> > as shut it down?
>> >
>> Keep in mind that drivers and "hidden" apps/utilities like
>> malware protection do not show up as normal programs you
>> would recognize but are entirely required for your system to
>> run as you've set it up to do. So, again, be very careful if
>> you take anything out of anyplace.
>>
>> Now, other factors such as a badly fragmented HD may be a
>> factor or simply a slow HD with an older motherboard, perhaps
>> a not-so- fast CPU and not enough memory can also slow things
>> down over time as well as make your PC seem less responsive
>> on everyday tasks than you may remember.
>>
>> Exactly how slow is slow, however? Windows XP takes about
>> 45-60 seconds to start just by itself compounded by things I
>> talk about above. Are you seeing 2 minutes or 20 minutes?
>> Ditto for shutdown. In my case, I have more than a dozen
>> standard apps I want to start and minimize to my Taskbar so a
>> restart is many minutes, but since my PC is so stable, I
>> don't have to restart more than maybe once a month or less so
>> it is no big deal. I leave it on 24x7 to ease the wear and
>> tear from constant shutdown/startup load electrically, on the
>> HD, etc. Thus, neither of your problems are biggies to me.
>> You may find others who also run 24x7 and are not bother by
>> perceived slowness, but you are the final judge of all of
>> this.

--
HP, aka Jerry

"Never complain, never explain" - Henry Ford II