chuckher said:
In answer to the questions asked, the computer has 256MB ram, I have
been thinking of upgrading to 512MB.
Before you do that, read the following:
How much RAM you should have is *not* a one-size-fits-all situation. You get
good performance if the amount of RAM you have keeps you from using the page
file, and that depends on what apps you run. Most people running a typical
range of business applications find that somewhere around 256-384MB works
well, others need 512MB. Almost anyone will see poor performance with less
than 256MB. Some people, particularly those doing things like editing large
photographic images, can see a performance boost by adding even more than
512MB--sometimes much more.
If you are currently using the page file significantly, more memory will
decrease or eliminate that usage, and improve your performance. If you are
not using the page file significantly, more memory will do nothing for you.
Go to
http://billsway.com/notes_public/winxp_tweaks/ and download
WinXP-2K_Pagefile.zip and monitor your pagefile usage. That should give you
a good idea of whether more memory can help, and if so, how much more.
The processor is a 600 Mz
Pentium III. If it makes a difference, the processor has 32kb primary
memory cache and 256kb secondary memory cache.
As an update, the processor ran continusly for about 20 minutes, then
quit and now just seems to run normally. Things open s-l-o-w-l-y, but
that is fairly normal for a machine that needs to be defraged. I was
thinking of wiping the hard drive clean and re-installing everything
before I got this XP Home edition package (I bought it on EBay),
because the machine was getting slow and clogged up wit junk.
I have run CA's AntiVirus program on it since I got it and lately
(about a year ago, installed Zone Alarm firewall.
You don't say anything about anti-spyware software, and assuming that that
means you don't run any, I'd almost be willing to bet that you have multiple
spyware infestations. I strongly urge you to follow the recommendations at
Malke's site I mentioned below.
The machine has
never acted like it had malware or a virus till I installed XP.
Your answers are all helpful, and I really appreciate the help and
advice given.
You're welcome. Glad to help.
--
Ken Blake - Microsoft MVP Windows: Shell/User
Please reply to the newsgroup