How can I speed up my computer's processing?

[Cy4Patriots]

A reformat will clean up things and help you out a little bit, but with those specs, it's still going to be quite slow compared to today's standards.

How Does Formatting a Hard Drive Help Speed Up a Computer? | eHow.com

I agree, reformatting will obviously help to a degree, but, you can't get past the lack of hardware.

nowadays, I recommend min 4gb mem, 64bit OS, and quad core processor..

Most computers nowadays are loaded with 64bit. You would recommend a quad core?

Man, coming from what he has now to a quad core is like going from a 1980's Ford Fiesta to a Lamborghini Diablo (See attached).

yea man that thing is really old

nowadays you can get 4GB RAM, 500GB hard drive and some really fast processors for around $1000

thats light years ahead of your current computer

With those specs, the price would be around 500 or maybe 600.

 

[dualthreat]

i guess i assumed he meant laptop lol

 

[weisr2002]

My computer is actually a desktop. Running windows XP.

I see the consensus here is to get a new computer. I have been thinking about it, but haven't seriously looked yet. I mean, it is serviceable for the little bit of home computing I do, so I have just been sticking with it. I am on the computer all day at work anyway, so when I get home I usually don't do a whole lot. Just burn some DVD's, some internet, and itunes.

I have noticed my print jobs are the main thing that has slowed down recently. Internet is not bad. Itunes and DVD burning can get annoyingly slow at times. But my work computer is about the same way so I haven't thought much of it.

 

[Pitt_Clone]

My computer is actually a desktop. Running windows XP.

I see the consensus here is to get a new computer. I have been thinking about it, but haven't seriously looked yet. I mean, it is serviceable for the little bit of home computing I do, so I have just been sticking with it. I am on the computer all day at work anyway, so when I get home I usually don't do a whole lot. Just burn some DVD's, some internet, and itunes.

I have noticed my print jobs are the main thing that has slowed down recently. Internet is not bad. Itunes and DVD burning can get annoyingly slow at times. But my work computer is about the same way so I haven't thought much of it.

If that's all you're using it for it might be worth a shot to add more RAM and reformat to see if it works well enough for you. It would be quite a bit cheaper as long as you can find a good deal on the memory. Of course I'm always much more reluctant to throw stuff away just because it's old, as long as it still serves its purpose. Maybe that's just me.

 

[titleist]

My computer is actually a desktop. Running windows XP.

I see the consensus here is to get a new computer. I have been thinking about it, but haven't seriously looked yet. I mean, it is serviceable for the little bit of home computing I do, so I have just been sticking with it. I am on the computer all day at work anyway, so when I get home I usually don't do a whole lot. Just burn some DVD's, some internet, and itunes..

That may be the case, but I wouldn't sink ANY money into it. You need a new one.

 

[hawkeyeh8r]

in xp run the defragmenter that should help a little bit. my parents just tossed their 9 year old computer that was similar to yours...it killed me to use the few times i did after i got my new one. just do what im doing...spend your tax refund on new parts (or in your case a new computer)

 

[AirWalke]

Definitely consider getting a new computer. One better than yours could be had for even $300-400. If all you do is some minor things like listen to iTunes, surf the internet, etc. you shouldn't spend more than $400 on a respectable brand.

A quick search on NewEgg brought up this sub-$400 beauty.
Newegg.com - DELL Vostro 230(468-8400) Core 2 Duo E7500(2.93GHz) 2GB DDR3 250GB HDD Capacity Intel GMA X4500 Windows 7 Professional 32-bit

Intel Core 2 Duo 2.93 GHz processor
2 GB RAM
250 GB Hard Drive
And Windows 7 Profession is preloaded.

One of the comments said it was $599 on Dell's site WITHOUT Windows 7 already on there.

Don't expect to do any serious 3D gaming on it, as it comes with an integrated graphics chip... but sounds like you won't be doing any of that.

 

[CoachBob]

Linux.

Agree with this, run ubuntu, jolicloud or something... Get more Ram.

 

[Iastfan112]

Definitely consider getting a new computer. One better than yours could be had for even $300-400. If all you do is some minor things like listen to iTunes, surf the internet, etc. you shouldn't spend more than $400 on a respectable brand.

A quick search on NewEgg brought up this sub-$400 beauty.
Newegg.com - DELL Vostro 230(468-8400) Core 2 Duo E7500(2.93GHz) 2GB DDR3 250GB HDD Capacity Intel GMA X4500 Windows 7 Professional 32-bit

Intel Core 2 Duo 2.93 GHz processor
2 GB RAM
250 GB Hard Drive
And Windows 7 Profession is preloaded.

One of the comments said it was $599 on Dell's site WITHOUT Windows 7 already on there.

Don't expect to do any serious 3D gaming on it, as it comes with an integrated graphics chip... but sounds like you won't be doing any of that.

I'd avoid getting a new OS that is only 32 bit.

 

[AirWalke]

I'd avoid getting a new OS that is only 32 bit.

$389 is still a heck of a deal for the computer alone. Windows 7 Professional is just extra. He can upgrade to a 64-bit version later if he chooses to take advantage of the 64-bit processor.

 

[clone0]

If you have Norton or McAffee, they slow down your computer. Remove them, try AVG free instead.

 

[Iastfan112]

If your a DIY type of person you could go with upgrading individual parts, something like this would work well for you and keep you going for another 5 years anyway.
Hard Drive:
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Power Supply:
Newegg.com - Rosewill RV350 350W ATX 1.3 Power Supply
Memory:
Newegg.com - G.SKILL NS 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-4GBNS
CPU:
Newegg.com - AMD Athlon II X2 255 Regor 3.1GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor ADX255OCGMBOX
Motherboard and OS:
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

Total price with shipping: $336 dollars

 

[Cy4Patriots]

Agree with this, run ubuntu, jolicloud or something... Get more Ram.

:yes: I like your thinking, but that shouldn't be his stand alone OS. He could put that OS on a flash drive or something.

 

[Cy4Patriots]

If you have Norton or McAffee, they slow down your computer. Remove them, try AVG free instead.

I work with computers everyday and I have had some issues with AVG over the past year or two. I HIGHLY recommend Avast! and MSE (Microsoft Security Essentials).

 

[CoachBob]

:yes: I like your thinking, but that shouldn't be his stand alone OS. He could put that OS on a flash drive or something.

That could be an option --- I assume the little guy is going to be doing flash games online and things like tuxmath etc... Ubuntu comes with a nice educational game package... Jolicloud is light and can run those things as well. Not sure how it would do from a flash --- worth a shot...

 

[cytech]

If your a DIY type of person you could go with upgrading individual parts, something like this would work well for you and keep you going for another 5 years anyway.
Hard Drive:
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Power Supply:
Newegg.com - Rosewill RV350 350W ATX 1.3 Power Supply
Memory:
Newegg.com - G.SKILL NS 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-4GBNS
CPU:
Newegg.com - AMD Athlon II X2 255 Regor 3.1GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor ADX255OCGMBOX
Motherboard and OS:
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

Total price with shipping: $336 dollars

or he can spend $60 more and get a 22 inch lcd and get a new system from dell.

 

[Alswelk]

There's nothing inherently wrong with using an older box. The two desktops I use are a Power Macintosh G4 (~2002) and a Dell Precision 420 (~1999/2000). Both are quite usable for relatively modern OSes (The Mac is running 10.5, which is as high as it can due to it's processor architecture and the Dell has run XP, but is running Debian 6 right now).

I'm not really a Windows kind of guy, but to me the best solution would be to determine what you want to do with the machine (which you've already done--light internet usage and music) and pick a clean-up plan. Defraging is a good idea. Uninstalling software that you're no longer using is also a good idea. Those are both relatively painless and free things that would be beneficial.

Adding RAM is easily the most cost-effective means of increasing your system's speed. And it's usually pretty easy (I say usually after some bad experiences with a PowerMac 8500). A little research online with your machine's brand and model number will usually yield the correct type of memory.

Hope that helps. I'm pretty much reiterating what's already been said, but I wanted to defend your choice of older hardware, since it's not entirely necessary to just replace it.

 

[jdoggivjc]

I'm with the "get a new machine" group as well.

Yeah, there's a lot of things you can do to help speed up that machine - install more RAM, remove unnecessary programs and/or junk files from your (rather small by today's standards) hard drive, defrag the hard drive, reformat the hard drive, etc. All of which is great, all of which will help. But the bottom line is you're still fighting the obsolescence regardless. Eventually something is going to break in that machine (for me it was my GPU - the graphics chip), and because your PC is no longer compatible with a lot of hardware out there (it was almost impossible for me to put a new graphics card in my dinosaur machine because today's graphics cards are PCI-E, something my machine from 2000 wasn't compatible with), when it does die you'll eventually have to get a new machine anyway.

Bottom line is you can get a new laptop or desktop for as low as $350 that will completely blow your old machine out of the water.

 

[mred]

Old RAM can be expensive. 8 years old might be old enough to require the lower-density PC100 RAM. Not all PC133 RAM is compatible with that. You're probably fine and any PC133 RAM will work, but be sure to check before buying any RAM. I assume the computer predates DDR.

You're only going to have more problems with that computer anyway. The power supply might go out. The hard drive might die. The video card might die. As parts get more obsolete, replacement parts will get expensive. You're much better off buying a cheap new desktop.

 

[IcSyU]

If your a DIY type of person you could go with upgrading individual parts, something like this would work well for you and keep you going for another 5 years anyway.
Hard Drive:
Newegg.com - Western Digital Caviar Blue WD5000AAKS 500GB 7200 RPM 16MB Cache SATA 3.0Gb/s 3.5" Internal Hard Drive -Bare Drive
Power Supply:
Newegg.com - Rosewill RV350 350W ATX 1.3 Power Supply
Memory:
Newegg.com - G.SKILL NS 4GB (2 x 2GB) 240-Pin DDR3 SDRAM DDR3 1333 (PC3 10666) Desktop Memory Model F3-10666CL9D-4GBNS
CPU:
Newegg.com - AMD Athlon II X2 255 Regor 3.1GHz 2 x 1MB L2 Cache Socket AM3 65W Dual-Core Desktop Processor ADX255OCGMBOX
Motherboard and OS:
Newegg.com - Computer Parts, PC Components, Laptop Computers, LED LCD TV, Digital Cameras and more!

Total price with shipping: $336 dollars

Or for another couple bucks, a brand new computer with a fancy new screen, all new parts, no personal time wasted, and a warranty! This is probably the worst option of those presented so far (no offense Iastfan112...this just isn't a good option)