Bare Bones Win XP

[Alex McFarlane]

Dear All,

I am setting up an old computer with Win XP for a friend.

She only wishes to use it for Word (either Microsoft Office 2007 version
or Open Office version) and Mozilla Firefox.

I will install antivirus software as well.

Win XP with SP 2 has been installed, I have not set it to collect
automatic updates but the firewall is active.

IE has been removed.

My friend does not require the games or accessories for those with
disabilities.

What other things can I remove without danger of causing XP to grind to
a halt?

The computer has only 258 Mb Ram with a 10 Gb C drive.

Any ideas what to remove and how to do this gratefully received.

 

[JS]

Services are hard to weed out as far as which are needed
and those that may not be required.
That said, you may be able to eliminate some unnecessary services
and perhaps gain a little speed.

Services Startup Type Descriptions:
Disabled - This service will never start.
Manual - May be started when needed by an application or another service.
Automatic - Started when Windows boots.

For more info on what services are needed or can be stopped see:
Optimize XP Services:
http://www.beemerworld.com/tips/servicesxp.htm
Services Guide for Windows XP
http://www.theeldergeek.com/services_guide.htm#Services

Windows XP Service Pack 2 Service Configurations
(should be the same for SP3)
http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm

Any reason why you have not installed any updates
or why not updating to XP SP3?

 

[olfart]

Dear All,

I am setting up an old computer with Win XP for a friend.

She only wishes to use it for Word (either Microsoft Office 2007 version
or Open Office version) and Mozilla Firefox.

I will install antivirus software as well.

Win XP with SP 2 has been installed, I have not set it to collect
automatic updates but the firewall is active.

IE has been removed.

My friend does not require the games or accessories for those with
disabilities.

What other things can I remove without danger of causing XP to grind to a
halt?

The computer has only 258 Mb Ram with a 10 Gb C drive.

Any ideas what to remove and how to do this gratefully received.

you might have a look at XPLite at http://www.litepc.com/xppreview.html

 

[Mark Adams]

Dear All,

I am setting up an old computer with Win XP for a friend.

She only wishes to use it for Word (either Microsoft Office 2007 version
or Open Office version) and Mozilla Firefox.

I will install antivirus software as well.

Win XP with SP 2 has been installed, I have not set it to collect
automatic updates but the firewall is active.

IE has been removed.

My friend does not require the games or accessories for those with
disabilities.

What other things can I remove without danger of causing XP to grind to
a halt?

The computer has only 258 Mb Ram with a 10 Gb C drive.

Any ideas what to remove and how to do this gratefully received.

If the ram can be increased at all, start there. 512MB would be much better
than 256MB. Put SP3 on and set Automaic Updates to notify but do not download
or install. SP3 and updates are mostly about security for the operating
system, you do want them on the machine. Review the updates offered and
refuse Windows Genuine Advantage Notifications and tell it not to offer this
update again. IE can't be uninstalled as far as I'm aware, as it's integrated
into the operating system; but you don't have to use it. Use AVG Free for
antivirus, and install Malwarebytes and Spybot Search and Destroy BEFORE the
machine gets infected. Don't install Tea Timer for Spybot, it may conflict
with antivirus applications. Use CCleaner to clean junk out of temp files,
etc. This machine doesn't have a lot of disk space or resources; be careful
where you surf.

 

[Lil' Dave]

Dear All,

I am setting up an old computer with Win XP for a friend.

She only wishes to use it for Word (either Microsoft Office 2007 version
or Open Office version) and Mozilla Firefox.

I will install antivirus software as well.

Win XP with SP 2 has been installed, I have not set it to collect
automatic updates but the firewall is active.

IE has been removed.

My friend does not require the games or accessories for those with
disabilities.

What other things can I remove without danger of causing XP to grind to a
halt?

The computer has only 258 Mb Ram with a 10 Gb C drive.

Any ideas what to remove and how to do this gratefully received.

The stated minimum requirements for RAM are for the application itself. Get
more RAM. XP has to run too.