XP desktop load

[Fred]

When I get to the welcome screen on my home xp machine,
it takes at least 30-40 seconds for my desktop to load
after I click on any of the accounts on my machine. This
just started happening within the last two weeks. I've
removed a few items from startup hoping that would
resolve the problem but no luck. I'm running a firewall
and have no viruses. After the initial boot, when I
switch accounts the desktop loads fine. It's just on the
initial boot. Thanks for any thoughts.

 

[Quaoar]

When I get to the welcome screen on my home xp machine,
it takes at least 30-40 seconds for my desktop to load
after I click on any of the accounts on my machine. This
just started happening within the last two weeks. I've
removed a few items from startup hoping that would
resolve the problem but no luck. I'm running a firewall
and have no viruses. After the initial boot, when I
switch accounts the desktop loads fine. It's just on the
initial boot. Thanks for any thoughts.

The standard of performance for loading XP is that the desktop appear in
one minute or less. I have none of my 5 XP pro/home that boot any
faster than about 50 seconds and they are all tuned frequently. It's
just enough time to let out the dog and pour a new cup of coffee.

Q