How are you on Housekeeping?
Poor system performance can be the result of a single problem or a
combination of factors. Listed
below are issues, which you may wish to examine if you are experiencing
poor performance after
the boot process has completed. Some items may help with slow starting
of Windows XP but the
list has not been prepared for tackling that problem. Work through the
list until you achieve an
acceptable result.
Regular and effective housekeeping is essential. What you do and how
often you do it will depend
on how you use your computer. A suggested routine may include:
1. In Outlook Express empty your Deleted Items folder.
2. In Outlook Express run File, Folder, Compact All whilst OFFLINE.
3. Run Disk Cleanup. Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Disk
Cleanup with
Temporary Internet Files, Offline Web Pages (optional), System Restore
( more Options tab )
and Recycle Bin selected for deletion. If you have more than one drive /
partition you may
need to do this operation for each drive / partition.
4. Remove Cookies. Start, Control Panel, Internet Options, General,
Delete Cookies.
5. Run Disk Defragmenter.
Check whether you could reduce the number of days the History of sites
visited is retained. Start,
Control Panel, Internet Options, General, History.
Spyware causes many problems. If not installed download Adaware and / or
update Reference file
from
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/support/download/ and use it to remove
parasites. If Spyware
persists as a problem try a Hosts file.
http://www.accs-net.com/hosts/what_is_hosts.html
Slow performance resulting from insufficient memory, causing over
reliance on virtual memory,
may be especially noticed by those upgrading to Windows XP from an
earlier version of Windows.
Windows XP will run with 64 MB of RAM memory. However, a minimum of 256
MB is
recommended and many users will recommend 512 MB. You may check on
pagefile (virtual
memory) usage with Page File Monitor for XP:
http://www.dougknox.com/
Check how much free space you have on the hard drive / partition where
your pagefile is located.
You need a minimum of 15% but 20% or more is better.
Check your setting for the Indexing Service. Start, Administrative
Tools, Services, Indexing
Service. The default setting is Manual. Check that it is not running.
More information here:
http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/service411.htm#Indexing_Service
You can have too many programmes running in the background. Close
programmes/windows after
use. Check whether all the programmes loading when Windows is started
are really necessary.
http://aumha.org/a/loads.htm
Check whether you can identify slow performance with a particular
programme. Look in Google to
see whether others have encountered the same problem and found a
solution.
http://groups.google.com/
Are there any error messages in Event Viewer? You can access Event
Viewer by selecting Start,
Administrative Tools, and Event Viewer. When researching the meaning of
the error, information
regarding Event ID: and Source Description is important.
HOW TO: View and Manage Event Logs in Event Viewer in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;en-us;308427&Product=winxp
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Hope this helps.
Gerry
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FCA
Stourport, Worcs, England
Enquire, plan and execute.
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