Windows XP slow to start

[Guest]

When I turn the computer on or when I reboot the first screen for the Gateway
logo flashes up quickly, then the screen goes black for about one full
minute, then a row of white bars show across the bottom of the black screen
for about one full minute, then the bars begin to solidify into a solid white
bar slowly from the left for another full two minutes before this screen
vanishes and the Windows XP screen comes on.

At that point everything works fine.

This just started a week ago. The pc is over 2 years old. Gateway Pentium 4.

Tried Registry Mechanic program to clean up the registry. Tried degragging.
Tried Spy Sweeper. Tried McAfee virus scan.

Anybody ever see this happen before? I just need to know if I have a
hardware problem.

Thanks,

 

[Guest]

Hardware problem? Maybe, but I believe you have too many apps in
your startup slowing the system. Here's what you can do to make it
boot a lot faster and save system resources. Go to:
Start>Run>type MSCONFIG and click OK>click the Startup tab
Now look at all the items that are checked/enabled at startup. You
can uncheck/disable many of them, except your anti-virus program.
When finished, click Apply>Close>and reboot. Close the window after
reboot that you've changed your startup. It should boot at 1/4 the
time it did before. Nothing is deleted, all icons work. If you have doubts -
Edit MSCONFIG/startup
http://www.mlin.net/StartupCPL.shtml

 

[Guest]

Thanks, Byte. I appreciate your reply. I apologize for the typo in the
original post. Of course I meant 'defragging' and not 'degragging'.

The reason I know it's not that there are too many apps in startup is that:
1. This problem just started suddenly one day a week ago when no new apps
had been added to startup for some time and,
2. Since I posted my question I did do MISCONFIG and had 23 apps in startup
and I deleted 4 that didn't seem necessary and a few more that I figured I
could do without. The rest have been in startup at least a year and I don't
want to delete them. But these items shouldn't be slowing down startup at
all.

I didn't mention in my first post that I also had Restored back to a month
before the problem, and I checked all plugins to the computer and to the
power strip, and I checked to be sure both fans were working because I
noticed the top back of the computer case is a little warm to touch. I don't
think it has always been that way but I'm not sure.

I don't shut down my pc normally unless there's a thunderstorm or I'm
leaving the house for some time -- or when downloads require a reboot -- so
taking 3 minutes to boot up isn't a big problem for me. I'm just afraid the
whole thing is going to crash and I hate having that mess to deal with so I'm
trying to find the problem and fix it before that happens.

Again, thanks so much for the reply. I wasn't sure my question had even been
posted. I couldn't find it the next day. I'm new to the site.