|
|
|
|
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/17/2009 11:38:18 AM |
On Windows,
I found that it slows down a lot after about 6 months to a year (depending on what you do with it)
and the best way to keep it running smoothly (in my opinion) is to backup, format, and reinstall about every 6 months.
(windows self destructs over time even without malware problems and since at least 90% of Windows Desktops are infected with spyware
>External hard drive -or- flash drive (depending on how much data you want to back up)
>Windows Backup software -or- something like cobain backup -or- copy & paste
>SIW (system info, saves license keys/serial #'s, etc.) http://www.gtopala.com/
>GParted Live CD (---optional---, helps partition disk, format drive etc.) http://gparted.sourceforge.net/
>download drivers for your system from manufacturers website
>Service Pack Download:
--------------------XP-----------------------
http://www.microsoft.com/downloadS/details.aspx?familyid=2FCDE6CE-B5FB-4488-8C50-FE22559D164E&displaylang=en
------------------Vista----------------------
http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyId=B0C7136D-5EBB-413B-89C9-CB3D06D12674&displaylang=en
*** And Remember antivirus/antimalware software ***
ANTIVIRUS-Only Use 1-
>Avast Home is good for systems with 1GB+ Memory(Free)
http://www.avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html
>And AVG or PC-Tools AV (free) for less than 1GB Memory
ANTIMALWARE (use multiple for best results & scan weekly)
>Malwarebytes- MBAM
http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php
&
>Spybot, SuperAntispyware are both good
&&&
>OpenOffice is a great free alternative to MS Office
http://www.openoffice.org/
___________________________________________________
*With a Fresh Installed System, its a good idea to get it to how you like it then do a FULL BACKUP
W00t for more complete instructions!  | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/18/2009 4:42:15 AM | | If it is 4-5 years old I would expect it to be slow. IE is crap, I hate it. As far as I know if you want to edit videos you would need a newer/better computer. | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/18/2009 9:32:30 AM | N3T since I didn't assume that OP had nothing better to do than sit at her computer and inhale cheetoos all day like some people I offered her the ONLY solution that would take care of her problem. Instead of offering advise with things that might fix , might not or make her problem even worse.
And Don thank you for going at legnths about how I don't have the only fix and then writing this....
"On Windows,
I found that it slows down a lot after about 6 months to a year (depending on what you do with it)
and the best way to keep it running smoothly (in my opinion) is to backup, format, and reinstall about every 6 months.
(windows self destructs over time even without malware problems and since at least 90% of Windows Desktops are infected with spyware "
Oh really...and did she not say she had the thing for 5 yrs to 6 yrs.
Why don't you also let her know that if she learns how to do this she won't have to waste time and money on useless software and updates (windows , the biggest virus of them all) which caused the problem to begin with like anti-virus (how many virus has your software ever detected before it was too late and who comes up with a virus that can be detected anyways) etc....etc....etc.... please continue the argument amonst yourselves cause it's
OVER AND OUT OF HERE | |
|
- don
|
Joined: 4/23/2009
Msg: 29 | |
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/18/2009 10:17:08 AM |
And Don thank you for going at legnths about how I don't have the only fix and then writing this....
"On Windows,
I found that it slows down a lot after about 6 months to a year (depending on what you do with it)
and the best way to keep it running smoothly (in my opinion) is to backup, format, and reinstall about every 6 months.
(windows self destructs over time even without malware problems and since at least 90% of Windows Desktops are infected with spyware "
Oh really...and did she not say she had the thing for 5 yrs to 6 yrs.
Why don't you also let her know that if she learns how to do this she won't have to waste time and money on useless software and updates (windows , the biggest virus of them all) which caused the problem to begin with like anti-virus (how many virus has your software ever detected before it was too late and who comes up with a virus that can be detected anyways) etc....etc....etc.... please continue the argument amonst yourselves cause it's
Dude...
I thought you might be somewhat intelligent but it looks like you're just another Jive Turkey (full of bluster; in other words, a moron). --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jive_turkey
If you actually read my previous post, you could have saved yourself some time (You could have even been humping something instead of typing)
&
I said that if she was interested enough to post back, I would supply more detailed instructions for the 'Long-Term Fix' with Ubuntu and Windows doesn't always have the best solution... apparently Dell/HP Techs don't either...are you sure you were really a tech (Fixing mom's Dell/HP doesn't count)
I said I noticed that Windows slows down after 6 months, not that it was unusable after 6 months. Looks like it comes to a grinding halt at around 5 years & I cant make much sense out of the rest of your post...looks like you're really trying to say something about viruses but I can't tell what.
--Maybe the bing translator can help...does it have a Jive Turkey support ??? I might need to google it to find out.
 | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/18/2009 3:56:11 PM |
N3T since I didn't assume that OP had nothing better to do than sit at her computer and inhale cheetoos all day like some people I offered her the ONLY solution that would take care of her problem. Instead of offering advise with things that might fix , might not or make her problem even worse.
What the hell is cheetoos? I know there are cheetos, but what are cheetoos? Is that some new food that Dell/HP created to make it so that their techs don't understand there are more than one way to fix a computer that is just as EFFECTIVE as a full format without having to waste time doing the format itself?
And Don thank you for going at legnths about how I don't have the only fix and then writing this....
"On Windows,
I found that it slows down a lot after about 6 months to a year (depending on what you do with it)
and the best way to keep it running smoothly (in my opinion) is to backup, format, and reinstall about every 6 months.
(windows self destructs over time even without malware problems and since at least 90% of Windows Desktops are infected with spyware "
Oh really...and did she not say she had the thing for 5 yrs to 6 yrs.
Why don't you also let her know that if she learns how to do this she won't have to waste time and money on useless software and updates (windows , the biggest virus of them all) which caused the problem to begin with like anti-virus (how many virus has your software ever detected before it was too late and who comes up with a virus that can be detected anyways) etc....etc....etc.... please continue the argument amonst yourselves cause it's
OVER AND OUT OF HERE
What? Ok, Bing to the rescue. Lets slap some actual quote formatting on this and correct the mistakes.
Bing translated:
On Windows,
I found that it slows down a lot after about 6 months to a year (depending on what you do with it)
and the best way to keep it running smoothly (in my opinion) is to backup, format, and reinstall about every 6 months.
(windows self destructs over time even without malware problems and since at least 90% of Windows Desktops are infected with spyware
Don, thank you for going through all the trouble to correct my format instruction (well, some website's format instructions that I found) mistakes and further give one of the ways a person could go about fixing their computer. Is this not what I posted before? Does this make me right? I feel a hard on coming. :::Geekgazim:::
Oh really...and did she not say she had the thing for 5 yrs to 6 yrs.
Why don't you also let her know that if she learns how to do this she won't have to waste time and money on useless software and updates (windows , the biggest virus of them all) which caused the problem to begin with like anti-virus (how many virus has your software ever detected before it was too late and who comes up with a virus that can be detected anyways) etc....etc....etc.... please continue the argument amonst yourselves cause it's
OVER AND OUT OF HERE
Translation:
That is interesting, did she not say she had the thing for 5 to 6 years? (Whoops, correction: 4 to 5 years! after bing read the post, but I guess they're too lazy to read.) Why don't you also let the OP know that if she learns how to format her computer, she won't have to waste her time and money on useless software updates eg: windows, the biggest virus of them all. Which caused the problem to begin with like anti-viruses eg: how many virus (whoops viruses, bing caught, thanks bing!) your software ever detected before it was too late and who comes up with a virus that can be detected anyways. (um, bing tossed out an error message at this point, that said: Oh, Dell/HP tech huh? /cry)
Etc...etc...etc... (The king and I must have been on their tv)
Please continue to actually help this person amonst (bing caught spelling error: amongst) yourselves because I'm out of here to go eat cheetoos.
Hope that helps Don.
PS: This could have all been avoided if you would have been civil in your original reply to the OP.
Thank you, drive through
A B A C A B B | |
|
- don
|
Joined: 4/23/2009
Msg: 31 | |
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/19/2009 2:04:39 PM | Wowie...
Thanks N3T, I had trouble getting a good translation from the 'Jive Turkey Plugin', maybe I need to update my browser.
That bing is really somthin'
:::Geekgazim:::  | |
|
| |
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 5:25:14 AM | Hello fellow Fish:
Further update: my laptops is an Inspiron 5100, Win XP Home edition, which I would not recommend to anyone wanting to work in/on media/entertainment work....wish I'd known about the Media Edition.... I have live one on a trial basis, also have PC Tools Spyware Doctor,also an AVG trial version-now defunct, can't get rid of the turkey..I have F secure on hold, no idea if its worth trying or not, a nervous pc friend in Europe recommended it .Also have Ad Aware, too...Did have McAfee, probably will renew after I get this rascal straightened out. I ended up with 384 memory? ram? instead of the 512 I need to do a bunch of stuff online, as well as adding WiFi...I'll read everything here, and probably start by clearing out the recycle bin, and then checking out the other things as well. I have Mozilla Firefox and IE, Windows is weird about doing anything on Firefox....I do prefer using Mozilla on a whole, though...
Many Thanks!
Marta S.  | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 5:49:40 AM |
Hello fellow Fish:
Further update: my laptops is an Inspiron 5100, Win XP Home edition, which I would not recommend to anyone wanting to work in/on media/entertainment work....wish I'd known about the Media Edition.... I have live one on a trial basis, also have PC Tools Spyware Doctor,also an AVG trial version-now defunct, can't get rid of the turkey..I have F secure on hold, no idea if its worth trying or not, a nervous pc friend in Europe recommended it .Also have Ad Aware, too...Did have McAfee, probably will renew after I get this rascal straightened out. I ended up with 384 memory? ram? instead of the 512 I need to do a bunch of stuff online, as well as adding WiFi...I'll read everything here, and probably start by clearing out the recycle bin, and then checking out the other things as well. I have Mozilla Firefox and IE, Windows is weird about doing anything on Firefox....I do prefer using Mozilla on a whole, though...
Many Thanks!
Marta S.
Wow, 512MB in my opinion is a WAY too low amount of ram to have. You have 384MB because 128MB is probably being used for your on-board graphics card. You can verify this by going into your display options > settings > advanced > graphics card.
or by going into System > Hardware > Device Manager > Video card.
384MB would probably be a good reason why your computer is running slow since that is barely enough to run Windows XP let alone any applications that are graphic or processor-intense.
At this point, it might be best to just upgrade your laptop so you can get one which meets your needs. Your laptop's model can only handle a maximum of 1GB, so if you were to upgrade to the maximum, you'd probably still be running too slow for your liking. | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 6:17:22 AM | | Oh is that all you have....just 3 browsers, 4 antivirus.....then absolutely don't do what I told you just follow the computer guru's reccomendations...yeah that 's it emptying the recycle bin...,.free up some space before you start wondering why it's in there to begin with and you start putting them back......next I would try going into the registry and just delete whatever you feel doesn't belong like they tell yeah! Run a few defrags cause one might not do much and you want to give it the cummulative effect.....but before trying any of this I would definitely try installing more anti virus ,spyware and malware software to keep these guys and your nervous friend in Europe happy since they have to put up with your slow typing all the time. Hey I know....you'll have to live at least on the second floor or higher but you can always fling the Inspiron 5100 out a window or balcony to chech out its flying capacity. I betcha it will never move any faster..... | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 6:47:05 AM |
Oh is that all you have....just 3 browsers, 4 antivirus.....then absolutely don't do what I told you just follow the computer guru's reccomendations...yeah that 's it emptying the recycle bin...,.free up some space before you start wondering why it's in there to begin with and you start putting them back......next I would try going into the registry and just delete whatever you feel doesn't belong like they tell yeah! Run a few defrags cause one might not do much and you want to give it the cummulative effect.....but before trying any of this I would definitely try installing more anti virus ,spyware and malware software to keep these guys and your nervous friend in Europe happy since they have to put up with your slow typing all the time. Hey I know....you'll have to live at least on the second floor or higher but you can always fling the Inspiron 5100 out a window or balcony to chech out its flying capacity. I betcha it will never move any faster.....
Nice little rant there, I especially like the whole flying capacity thing.
I hope you and everyone else now sees why it is important to probe for more information before offering an extreme solution. (Formatting, installing new applications, cleaning the registry, etc..) The fact that the OP only has 384MB of usable memory is a clear sign that there is a bigger problem that needs to be solved, and that is, even if they formatted or if it turned out it was virus/malware that they were able to get rid of, they'd still be in the same situation considering they need/desire a more powerful and up to date computer to handle the graphic and video applications they wish to run. | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 8:26:30 AM | So you think using the supplied Dell CDs would be of no use because nothing would change?
On what front do you think nothing would change?
Of course the hardware wouldnt change, she should still have 384Mb of RAM and all the rest of it but what do you see as the best option for her? | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 9:31:21 AM | | No rant "Derry King"...If the woman wants to keep the damn thing learns to back up her stuff and format the sucker not only takes care of her problem and since it's advisable you do it at least once a year...there's no need for all the other crap to cause the same problem.......but then again what do they say about "a sucker born......" | |
|
- don
|
Joined: 4/23/2009
Msg: 39 | |
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 11:38:56 AM |
Further update: my laptops is an Inspiron 5100, Win XP Home edition, which I would not recommend to anyone wanting to work in/on media/entertainment work....wish I'd known about the Media Edition.... I have live one on a trial basis, also have PC Tools Spyware Doctor,also an AVG trial version-now defunct, can't get rid of the turkey..I have F secure on hold, no idea if its worth trying or not, a nervous pc friend in Europe recommended it .Also have Ad Aware, too...Did have McAfee, probably will renew after I get this rascal straightened out. I ended up with 384 memory? ram? instead of the 512 I need to do a bunch of stuff online, as well as adding WiFi...I'll read everything here, and probably start by clearing out the recycle bin, and then checking out the other things as well. I have Mozilla Firefox and IE, Windows is weird about doing anything on Firefox....I do prefer using Mozilla on a whole, though...
Just my Opinion/Preference/Suggestion
Buy a new computer
-or-
_______________________________________________________________
1) I would browse to www.crucial.com and buy the maximum amount of memory/ram supported by the hardware (looks like N3T checked and it is 1GB)
2) Install the RAM (very easy, the average person can do it)
3)Get a hardware router (if you don't already have one)
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
From here you have a few options:
========================
Option 1: Fix Existing Installation
Remove all Antivirus Apps and JUST USE ONE ANTIVIRUS PROGRAM(they conflict with each other)
->I recommend installing Avast Home Edition (free)
& scheduling a bootscan with after removing the other Antivirus Programs
http://www.avast.com/eng/download-avast-home.html
http://www.avast.com/eng/home-registration.php?page=finish
Then get AntiSpyware:
Get Malwarebytes MBAM (free) http://www.malwarebytes.org/mbam.php
Get SuperAntiSpyware (free) http://www.superantispyware.com/
& maybe Adaware (free) http://www.lavasoft.com/products/ad_aware_free.php
Then get a System Cleaner/Optimizer:
Get CCleaner & Defraggler (Piriform)(free) http://www.piriform.com/
=======================
Option 2: Format & Reinstall XP
(maybe more work than you're up for)
backup,format,reinstall
& install drivers, service pack, anti-malware programs, update, & whatever else you want on it
=======================
Option 3: Install Ubuntu (In my opinion, the best choice)
Order a free cd -or-Download & burn it from a friends computer
To burn it:
I use ISORecorder http://isorecorder.alexfeinman.com/isorecorder.htm
(right-click downloaded file & select "Burn Image To CD"
The Download & Info about Ubuntu is here:
http://www.ubuntu.com/
| |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 1:02:17 PM | Dont buy a new computer just yet, Windows 7 will be out in a matter of weeks.
If you are going down that route wait a while, it will be worth it | |
|
| What DoI Do Next?WinXP Issues
Posted: 7/26/2009 1:59:48 PM |
So you think using the supplied Dell CDs would be of no use because nothing would change?
On what front do you think nothing would change?
Of course the hardware wouldnt change, she should still have 384Mb of RAM and all the rest of it but what do you see as the best option for her?
1) Do they even have the restore cds after that long? That has yet to be seen.
2) 384MB is barely enough to run Windows XP in my opinion let alone any editing software. This causes the paging file to work 10 times harder, which means the machine is going to be extremely slow regardless.
If the user were to format, once they install their applications again (minus the excessive anti-virus / anti-malware programs), they'll end up in the same boat sooner than later due to the low amount of available memory.
No rant "Derry King"...If the woman wants to keep the damn thing learns to back up her stuff and format the sucker not only takes care of her problem and since it's advisable you do it at least once a year...there's no need for all the other crap to cause the same problem.......but then again what do they say about "a sucker born......"
Oooo "Derry King", I like that, especially the King part.
Another fat comment? W00t! Learn to use better outlets than this, it won't get you anywhere with me.
Mocking the OP isn't going to make them listen to you anymore than they already would. Learn to be a little less arrogant and people might actually listen to what you have to say.
Lets go back to the original post...
My Dell Inspiron laptop is so slow, I don't know whether to retire it-its 4-5 years old, and so slow, its ridiculous. I get the hourglass. error pages on IE, just plain nothing or frozen screens/sites way too much....Is it time for the office supply store tune up or time to save for/buy a new pc? Its really frustrating me...I need something electronic to edit videos, in addition to email social sites and other info. I already clear the caches and do disk cleanup...
Specifically this line:
Is it time for the office supply store tune up or time to save for/buy a new pc?
Due to her system specs, it IS time to save up and buy a new computer.
Especially if she's going to start editing video a lot.
If she does want to keep her computer in the meantime, she is free to do what she wants with it to fix it. This includes doing things OTHER than formatting. The first step would be to get rid of all the excess anti-virus programs and stick with one. Keeping in mind that anti-virus programs like Norton and McAfee are extremely bloated in memory usage, and with only 384MB of memory, they need to keep that in mind when making a choice.
I have a computer running Windows XP Professional w/SP3 that hasn't been formatted in over 5 years, and it is still running just as strong as the day it was installed. But then again, I have 2GB of memory available, not 384MB. Big difference.
But anyway, this topic has been beaten to death. The OP has enough information to go on and sift through which information they wish to use and which they don't. | |
|
|
|
Home
login 
