XP - Running Slow

G

Gerry

Ginnie

No software is 100% effective. However, I do not choose to criticise the
detection rate of McAfee, or Norton for that matter. That is not the
issue. The point is that the freeware alternatives can do as good a job
at no expense without the system performance issues McAfee and Norton
create.

--



Hope this helps.

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

R. McCarty

Just today I replaced a McAfee install with Kaspersky 2009. A full
scan of the computer found 17 different infectors. Not a good score
for a recent version of McAfee, fully updated.
 
G

Gerry

Isn't the problem that if one gets in it can disable the security
programe and then the others can get on board. Had McAfee been disabled?
Was it McAfee Internet Security or the Anti-Virus? What was the
infection that started the problem?

--



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

R. McCarty

It was the Security suite. I'm not sure about when the problems
began. As with Norton, the uninstall required the McAfee tool
to get the remnants off the PC. I didn't take the Kaspersky log
with me but it was a common mix of infectors. Between the new
AV/Malwarebytes and Windows Defender it's back online. The
customer usually tips you off to infections with the comment "It
takes forever ( or a long time ) for web pages to load."
 
G

Ginnie

Thanks - I never had a problem with McAfee - just that my system was running
slow - from what I have read - I guess instead of renewing go to a free one -
 
G

Ginnie

Computer is 4 years old - has 512 ram
Gerry said:
What are your anti-virus and anti-soyware arrangements?

What is the CPU and how much RAM does your computer have? Right click on
the My Computer icon on your Desktop and select Properties to get this
information.

Try Ctrl+Alt+Delete to select Task Manager and click the Performance
Tab. Under Commit Charge what is the Total, the Limit and the Peak?


--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Click to expand...
 
G

Ginnie

No he didn't - guess assumed it was - just actually how does one know what
security program to subscribe to!!!!
 
R

R. McCarty

Programs always evolve and change. One example is AdAware. I used
to globally install it on machines. Now I use a mix of Windows Defender,
MalwareBytes and Spybot Search & Destroy.
Anti-Virus software is very difficult to choose. Many folks opt for a free
product like AVG Free, Avast, ClamWin. Of the fee based ones I prefer
Eset's NOD32, Kaspersky and BitDefender. McAfee & Norton ( Home )
are just living off their market share. In days gone by both were better
than their current offerings.
The same can be said for Roxio and Nero. In their days both were good
Optical disk burning apps. These days they are both bloated and shabby.
You can accomplish burning with apps like CD Burner XP Pro and one
for .Iso's called ImageBurn for free.
Part of the problem with software is marketing. Only the major players
get shelf space at retail stores like Best Buy. ( Not that I would ever
recommend Best Buy ). For customers who are looking for a product in
a traditional box they don't get exposed to new & improved choices since
many software products are distributed by web purchase and download.
 
G

Gerry

In your review you overlooked the cosy deals McAfee and Norton have with
large computer suppliers. Also with some ISPs.

--



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

Daave

In another post you gave these figures:

Total = 573132
Limit = 1274764
Peak = 790824

Your PC has 512 MB RAM

The Total figure represents the amount of memory you are using at that
very moment. The Peak figure represents the highest amount of memory you
used since last bootup.

512 MB RAM equals 524, 288 KB RAM. Since the Total figure is *higher*
(573,132), you clearly don't have enough RAM for how you use your PC.
What is happening is that because you don't have enough physical memory
(RAM), your PC is heavily using the pagefile, which slows everything
down. You need to either run more lean (by switching to programs that
don't have as large of a footprint as McAfee) or purchase and install
additional RAM. Or perhaps you may choose to do both.
 
G

Ginnie

Free i 131 GB
Used 14.4 GB
Thanks for any help

Gerry said:
Ginnie

What is the CPU and how much RAM does your computer have?

However, even without confirmation of your installed RAM, I would say
that your system is over dependent on use of the pagefile. Solution
increase RAM or reduce memory usage.

McAfee commonly causes problems of this sort. It has a very heavy
footprint. It can readily be replaced with freeware alternatives.

System Requirements McAfee Internet Security 2008

Windows 2000, XP
300 MHz or higher Pentium-compatible processor
256 MB RAM for Windows XP; 128 MB RAM for Windows 2000
160 MB hard-disk space before download
125 MB hard-disk space after installation
These are Minimum Requirements.

How large is your hard disk and how much free disk space?

--



Hope this helps.

Gerry
~~~~
FCA
Stourport, England
Enquire, plan and execute
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Click to expand...
 
G

Ginnie

Thanks as I said computer is 4 years old - to increase the ram would I go to
a store such as Staples - or from Dell and increase -
Thanks
 
K

Ken Blake, MVP

Run Windows Defender every day = and AdWare once a week - besides the full
scan with McAfee
Click to expand...


Several points:

1. "Some software to speed things up" is almost always both
ineffective and dangerous. I strongly recommend your staying far away
from anything that advertises itself as such.

2. The most common cause of a slow computer these days is malware
infection, and unless you use really good software to give you
confidence that you are not infected, malware infection would be my
first guess as to what your problems are. Unfortunately, the software
you are using does not give me confidence that you are free of
malware.

3. McAfee is the second worst anti-virus program available; only
Norton is worse. I would strongly recommend your uninstalling it and
replacing it with NOD32, if you are willing to spend the money, or, if
you want a free product, Avast or Avira (neither is quite as good as
NOD32, but both are decent products).

4. Regarding anti-spyware software, you mention "Adware." Did you mean
"Adaware"? I hope so.

Adaware and Defender aren't terrible, but both are nowhere near the
top level available. Moreover, no anti-spyware program is anywhere
near perfect, and you should have at least two or three good ones
installed for real protection. I recommend that you add the
MalwareBytes program and also SuperAntiSpyware. If you want still more
(it wouldn't hurt), add Spyware Blaster and Spybot Search and Destroy.
 
G

Gerry

Ginnie

I would not go to Staples for memory. If your computer is a Dell it is
logical to go Dell. What is your computer make and model?


--



Hope this helps.

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

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