PC is lagging

[Azy]

Ok, let me tell you what I know slows pc's down...spyware, viruses, temp
files, junk like that, registry problems and almost full HD.
I have deleted 1 of 4 user accounts to free more space. used clean up and
ccleaner, used ad-aware and AVG, used registry editor, etc.

my 8 yr old Dell has a sad 40 GB HD and the ram is 256 MB (nothing to jump
about). It runs XP home and the processor is 1.79 ghz with pentium 4.

I recently replaced a power supply. I rarely use this desktop becuase i use
my laptop. But, today when i turned it on it took 8 min to get out of
welcome screen and just as long to load desktop. and everything else
dragged. I restarted it and its doing better. but still lagging a bit.
BTW, I made sure that i only have necessary items at start up (msconfig).

So is it possible to replace the 1.79 GHZ processor with a higher one. Or is
it something that comes already on the pc and cant be changed.

Knowing what you know, what else can I do to help the pc function better. I
have high speed internet so even that was slow; but the internet is not the
prob....its the pc. I still have more than 50% free HD space.
Thanks in advance for your time

 

[williamtell]

You have already answered your question, maybe the 8 years old statement!
Replace it, not worth putting a dime in it, just my suggestion, mind you!

 

[John John - MVP]

Ok, let me tell you what I know slows pc's down...spyware, viruses, temp
files, junk like that, registry problems and almost full HD.
I have deleted 1 of 4 user accounts to free more space. used clean up and
ccleaner, used ad-aware and AVG, used registry editor, etc.

my 8 yr old Dell has a sad 40 GB HD and the ram is 256 MB (nothing to jump
about). It runs XP home and the processor is 1.79 ghz with pentium 4.

I recently replaced a power supply. I rarely use this desktop becuase i use
my laptop. But, today when i turned it on it took 8 min to get out of
welcome screen and just as long to load desktop. and everything else
dragged. I restarted it and its doing better. but still lagging a bit.
BTW, I made sure that i only have necessary items at start up (msconfig).

So is it possible to replace the 1.79 GHZ processor with a higher one. Or is
it something that comes already on the pc and cant be changed.

Knowing what you know, what else can I do to help the pc function better. I
have high speed internet so even that was slow; but the internet is not the
prob....its the pc. I still have more than 50% free HD space.
Thanks in advance for your time

I wouldn't bother with it, I think it's time to retire the old horse.
Even if you did upgrade the processor you would still be at the bare
minimum RAM wise. In my opinion you are better off putting the money in
another box, you can get a reasonably good 3 year old second hand box or
factory refurbished for about $200.

John

 

[Azy]

Well, it appears that I have done the basic maintenece needed for my pc, but
2 of you suggested i retire this pc. Basically its not worth the money to
put into it more.

what processor is a good one to look into. I dont do gaming or high end
stuff like that. Just need an idea of a nice faster processor. My daughter
has a macbook that i think is 2.4 Ghz.
So i guess that is way better than my 1.79 ghz??

thanks for the opinion
****************************

 

[TompangBuddy.Com]

Hello,

It is possible that your hard disk is running in PIO mode.

Try reinstalling the IDE Controller, by uninstalling the Primary and
Secondary IDE Channel in Device manager and restarting your system.

More info here:
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/817472 (see workaround)


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Share Cab, Carpool and Save Earth in Singapore
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Video Conversion Service VHS Video8 Hi8 miniDv Digital8 VHS-C S-VHS tapes to
VCD/DVD

 

[Mike Hall - MVP]

Well, it appears that I have done the basic maintenece needed for my pc,
but 2 of you suggested i retire this pc. Basically its not worth the money
to put into it more.

what processor is a good one to look into. I dont do gaming or high end
stuff like that. Just need an idea of a nice faster processor. My daughter
has a macbook that i think is 2.4 Ghz.
So i guess that is way better than my 1.79 ghz??

thanks for the opinion
****************************

Theoretically, it is possible to upgrade the processor. The reality is that
you will struggle to find a decent replacement as the type is so old..

You probably have integrated video, in which case XP is not getting all of
the 256mb. PC 100/133 SDRAM is not cheap these days.

As others have suggested, replace the whole box..

 

[John John - MVP]

The problem with upgrading the processor is twofold. One, you might not
even be able to put a much faster one on the socket that you now have on
the motherboard. We don't know the exact model of your computer so we
can't say what kind of processor upgrade is available for your
motherboard, to upgrade the processor you might need to use somthing
like a powerleap adapter, until we know more about your computer we just
don't know what can be done. Secondly, a minimal increase in speed from
say, 1.8GHz to 2.4GHz would not really make all that much difference,
increasing the RAM would probably make more of an impact. Added to that
are the rest of the components, the computer is 8 years old so
everything else on it is slow by todays standands, all the buses on the
motherboard are at par with what was available 8 years ago, newer
computers (even a 3 year old one) will have much faster components than
your old one.

What to get? Well, it depends on how much money you want to spend. If
you have a decent monitor and if you really don't want to break the bank
just go to the major manufacturer's web sites and see if they have any
refurbished machines, you would be surprised at what you can pick up for
$200!

John

 

[Dirk T. Verbeek]

Azy schreef:

Ok, let me tell you what I know slows pc's down...spyware, viruses, temp
files, junk like that, registry problems and almost full HD.
I have deleted 1 of 4 user accounts to free more space. used clean up and
ccleaner, used ad-aware and AVG, used registry editor, etc.

my 8 yr old Dell has a sad 40 GB HD and the ram is 256 MB (nothing to jump
about). It runs XP home and the processor is 1.79 ghz with pentium 4.

I recently replaced a power supply. I rarely use this desktop becuase i use
my laptop. But, today when i turned it on it took 8 min to get out of
welcome screen and just as long to load desktop. and everything else
dragged. I restarted it and its doing better. but still lagging a bit.
BTW, I made sure that i only have necessary items at start up (msconfig).

So is it possible to replace the 1.79 GHZ processor with a higher one. Or is
it something that comes already on the pc and cant be changed.

Knowing what you know, what else can I do to help the pc function better. I
have high speed internet so even that was slow; but the internet is not the
prob....its the pc. I still have more than 50% free HD space.
Thanks in advance for your time

Did you do a good defragmentation?
Extra memory is the only worth while option, providing you can get it
cheaply.

 

[Gerry]

Azy

The others may be right about the age of the computer?

Have a look in the System and Application logs in Event Viewer for
Errors and Warnings and post copies here. Don't post any more than 48
hours ago.

You can access Event Viewer by selecting Start, Control Panel,
Administrative Tools, and Event Viewer. When researching the meaning
of the error, information regarding Event ID, Source and Description
are important.

HOW TO: View and Manage Event Logs in Event Viewer in Windows XP
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/308427/en-us

A tip for posting copies of Error Reports! Run Event Viewer and double
click on the error you want to copy. In the window, which appears is a
button resembling two pages. Click the button and close Event
Viewer.Now start your message (email) and do a paste into the body of
the message. Make sure this is the first paste after exiting from
Event Viewer.


--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

[Patrick Keenan]

Ok, let me tell you what I know slows pc's down...spyware, viruses, temp
files, junk like that, registry problems and almost full HD.
I have deleted 1 of 4 user accounts to free more space. used clean up and
ccleaner, used ad-aware and AVG, used registry editor, etc.

my 8 yr old Dell has a sad 40 GB HD and the ram is 256 MB (nothing to jump
about). It runs XP home and the processor is 1.79 ghz with pentium 4.

I recently replaced a power supply. I rarely use this desktop becuase i
use my laptop. But, today when i turned it on it took 8 min to get out of
welcome screen and just as long to load desktop. and everything else
dragged. I restarted it and its doing better. but still lagging a bit.
BTW, I made sure that i only have necessary items at start up (msconfig).

So is it possible to replace the 1.79 GHZ processor with a higher one. Or
is it something that comes already on the pc and cant be changed.

Technically, it *can* be changed *if* the motherboard supports it.

The CPU fits in a socket, so the replacement CPU has to match the number of
pins on that socket, and work with the chipset that's on the board - that
part can not be changed.

You would also want to add memory, to the limit of the board, which
unfortunately won't be that high.

To get an idea of the absolute maximum speed, disable all startup items and
every service that isn't critical to the system just running.

The clock speed of the CPU itself is not the only factor in the speed of the
system, and a faster CPU frankly isn't likely to make a lot of difference on
that system.

So while this may be possible on a technical level, this is worthwhile on a
practical level is another story entirely. Compare the costs of the parts
and the results of the short test immediately above, with the approach
mentioned below.

Knowing what you know, what else can I do to help the pc function better.
I have high speed internet so even that was slow; but the internet is not
the prob....its the pc. I still have more than 50% free HD space.
Thanks in advance for your time

When I see clients with machines like this, now, I often suggest to the
client that they take a different approach, which yields vastly better
results for a comparable - and possibly lower - cost. Part of the reason
that the cost is lower is that they pay me for fewer hours if I am not
waiting for the PC.

That different approach is to purchase a used-but-good replacement unit.
Where I am, it's easy to get name-brand PCs, without keyboard or monitor but
with a valid XP Pro license, a CPU near 3gHz, between 512 and 2 gig RAM and
a 40 to 80 gig SATA hard disk, for a little over $150. I usually then
replace the hard disk, as a matter of policy - drives *do* have a life span,
and again where I am, a new 500-gig hard disk is in the $90 range.

HTH
-pk

 

[Patrick Keenan]

Well, it appears that I have done the basic maintenece needed for my pc,
but 2 of you suggested i retire this pc. Basically its not worth the money
to put into it more.

what processor is a good one to look into. I dont do gaming or high end
stuff like that. Just need an idea of a nice faster processor. My daughter
has a macbook that i think is 2.4 Ghz.
So i guess that is way better than my 1.79 ghz??

thanks for the opinion
****************************

Here are a couple of examples of what I have been buying to replace systems
like yours. This isn't an endorsement of the sellers, but I have found
these systems to be solid and reliable. The highest price I would pay for
such a system is about CDN$200, depending on exactly what it has - if it has
more memory and the faster processor, a slightly higher price might be
acceptable.

However, I don't tend to buy the "slim" models because it's harder to find
stock, replacement power supplies. The fullsize models take standard PS
units.

http://www.alibaba.com/product-tp/104806783/USED_HP_DC7600_DC7100_TOWER_SYSTEM.html
http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-buy-and-...-512MB-80GB-HDD-XP-Pro-COA-W0QQAdIdZ127471433

Many systems like this are from offices, which are usually smoke-free and
regularly cleaned environments. Get a can of compressed air (to blow dust
out of the heatsinks and power supply and fans), and a new SATA hard disk
and possibly a new DVD burner, and you'll have a fast, reliable system.

One thing to note is that these often do come with an XP Pro installation
and a valid XP Pro license COA. But since they are OEM XP versions, you
can generally use a "generic" XP install CD and the key from the COA, and
all is well. The license is represented by the COA, not by the CD.

HTH
-pk

 

[Azure]

Keep your old desktop Azy. As you said, it isn't your primary computer
anyway. I have a desktop about the same vintage as yours which I built and
I still use it every day. Although I'm ready to build a new one to take
advantage of at least a dual but perhaps a quad-core CPU, what I have is not
noticeably slow and it sure doesn't take 8mins to bootup. My system has a
single core 1.5GHz CPU but it does have 1G of RAM.

Something is wrong with your system and replacing the CPU won't fix that.
You should apply all the standard remedies; run antivirus scans, spyware
scans, remove all temp files, defrag HD, repair Windows, etc. Make sure all
your peripherals work and that a lack of response isn't hanging your system.

By far the biggest improvement you can make is to increase the RAM. I'd go
as high as your budget (and your motherboard) allow and you should shoot for
1GB.