OT: How much would switching back to XP speed up my PC?

[Chocolate Lab]

Another question from a non-techhie. I know you guys know your stuff, though.

I have a XP2 4200+ with 1.5 GB of ram. Should be plenty fast for most tasks, but the Vista Basic that came installed on the PC (just a few months old) still keeps hanging. It's not unusable, but every five minutes or so, my PC will hang for a few seconds. Very annoying.

Would switching back to XP help? I can get XP off an old laptop that's no longer being used. Would it be worth the trouble?

I'm assuming it would help a lot, because my Pentium 2.4 with 1.0 GB of ram at home is at least as fast, even though this PC has better specs.

What do you guys think?

 

[Duane]

I'm not nearly the tech guru that some of these guys are but I have built my own PC and do repairs when needed.

The first thing I can think of is your video drivers for Vista. Are they up to date? Next do you have a lot of things loaded in the back ground? While 1.5GB of RAM is fine for XP I've heard that most people use 2GB. So you may be running into memory problems.

As for switching from Vista to XP on a new PC. I'd suggest going to the manufacturer's forums and reading about it. Sometimes it can be quite tricky to get all the drivers and componenets to work right on a OS switch like that.

 

[Chocolate Lab]

Thanks, Duane...

My PC was a very basic, barebones kind of system without all the crap loaded on it like you typically find at a big-box store. And I run antivirus and anti-spyware programs regularly. So I don't *think* a bunch of nonsense running in the background is the problem.

I think the switch would be pretty easy... I've installed XP several times, and I don't have any unconventional hardware in my setup.

Actually, I was doing more research and was just thinking of installing Linux on my home PC so I could move my XP Pro here. (A program I really need is available for Linux... I didn't think it was until I checked further.)

But I guess the Linux question is a whole 'nother can of worms. Still, I might ask it. From a friend I've talked to who has tried it, Ubuntu or one of those is relatively easy to install and would be a lot faster. Anyone want to comment on that?

 

[BrAinPaiNt]

Thanks, Duane...

My PC was a very basic, barebones kind of system without all the crap loaded on it like you typically find at a big-box store. And I run antivirus and anti-spyware programs regularly. So I don't *think* a bunch of nonsense running in the background is the problem.

I think the switch would be pretty easy... I've installed XP several times, and I don't have any unconventional hardware in my setup.

Actually, I was doing more research and was just thinking of installing Linux on my home PC so I could move my XP Pro here. (A program I really need is available for Linux... I didn't think it was until I checked further.)

But I guess the Linux question is a whole 'nother can of worms. Still, I might ask it. From a friend I've talked to who has tried it, Ubuntu or one of those is relatively easy to install and would be a lot faster. Anyone want to comment on that?

Someone on here uses Ubuntu, I see it in his sigline but I can not remember the users name.

You may wish to PM JTerrell I know he uses Linux but not sure if it is the Ubuntu version. However I am sure he can probably direct you to some good linux links either way.

 

[Yeagermeister]

Thanks, Duane...

My PC was a very basic, barebones kind of system without all the crap loaded on it like you typically find at a big-box store. And I run antivirus and anti-spyware programs regularly. So I don't *think* a bunch of nonsense running in the background is the problem.

I think the switch would be pretty easy... I've installed XP several times, and I don't have any unconventional hardware in my setup.

Actually, I was doing more research and was just thinking of installing Linux on my home PC so I could move my XP Pro here. (A program I really need is available for Linux... I didn't think it was until I checked further.)

But I guess the Linux question is a whole 'nother can of worms. Still, I might ask it. From a friend I've talked to who has tried it, Ubuntu or one of those is relatively easy to install and would be a lot faster. Anyone want to comment on that?

You can download ubuntu then burn it to a cd and boot it from the cd to try it out before installing it.

I have installed it a few times and had a few small issues but have rarely kept it for long. I just don't know enough about it to actually do anything more than surf the web. lol

 

[Blake]

There could be alot more to this than just windows vista. Get "spysweeper" and "ad-aware" and do a scan on your computer. You may have spyware on your computer slowing you down. Also do a virus scan. I would also suggest going out and buying "fixit utilities". With it you can do many things like speeding up your drives, defraging, deleting uncessary files...etc...etc.. Before you make a desicion on changing operating systems have a computer technician in your area take a look at it. Try the guys at "geeksquad" which should be located inside Circuit City if I remember correctly.

 

[adamknite]

You can download ubuntu then burn it to a cd and boot it from the cd to try it out before installing it.

I have installed it a few times and had a few small issues but have rarely kept it for long. I just don't know enough about it to actually do anything more than surf the web. lol

You can also request a CD from their site and they will send you one free of charge.

 

[adamknite]

Someone on here uses Ubuntu, I see it in his sigline but I can not remember the users name.

You may wish to PM JTerrell I know he uses Linux but not sure if it is the Ubuntu version. However I am sure he can probably direct you to some good linux links either way.

nyc is who you're thinking of I believe.

 

[silverbear]

Thanks, Duane...

My PC was a very basic, barebones kind of system without all the crap loaded on it like you typically find at a big-box store. And I run antivirus and anti-spyware programs regularly. So I don't *think* a bunch of nonsense running in the background is the problem.

I think he was asking if you've got a lot of things running in your system tray... in particular, chat programs can REALLY slow down your PC...

I had a lady friend who once complained about how slow her PC was running, and I went over to look it over, thinking that we might be looking at a format... when I got there, her system tray ran like 2/3 of the way across her taskbar... she had AIM, MSN Messenger, ICQ, Yahoo Messenger... she had RealPlayer set to load automatically, etc., etc., ad infinitum...

I spent about 3 minutes in MSCONFIG, set it up so over half of the programs she had running would not load automatically at startup, restarted it, and voila-- one MUCH faster PC...

She was VERY grateful... to the tune of dinner and some adult misbehavin'...

I have three icons down in my system tray, two for my Norton Internet Security, one for the Weatherbug... don't feel the need for anything else to load automatically at startup, I know where to find those other programs when I want them...

I'll bet you're knowledgeable enough not to have a mess down in your system tray, but I figured some of the newbies that might be reading this thread might profit from that advice...

 

[Yeagermeister]

I think he was asking if you've got a lot of things running in your system tray... in particular, chat programs can REALLY slow down your PC...

I had a lady friend who once complained about how slow her PC was running, and I went over to look it over, thinking that we might be looking at a format... when I got there, her system tray ran like 2/3 of the way across her taskbar... she had AIM, MSN Messenger, ICQ, Yahoo Messenger... she had RealPlayer set to load automatically, etc., etc., ad infinitum...

I spent about 3 minutes in MSCONFIG, set it up so over half of the programs she had running would not load automatically at startup, restarted it, and voila-- one MUCH faster PC...

She was VERY grateful... to the tune of dinner and some adult misbehavin'...

I have three icons down in my system tray, two for my Norton Internet Security, one for the Weatherbug... don't feel the need for anything else to load automatically at startup, I know where to find those other programs when I want them...

I'll bet you're knowledgeable enough not to have a mess down in your system tray, but I figured some of the newbies that might be reading this thread might profit from that advice...

Who was the lucky fella that received the misbehavin?

 

[silverbear]

Who was the lucky fella that received the misbehavin?

Don't go gettin' jealous on me, Yeag, I told you I wasn't the relationship type...

 

[WoodysGirl]

I spent about 3 minutes in MSCONFIG, set it up so over half of the programs she had running would not load automatically at startup, restarted it, and voila-- one MUCH faster PC...

Speaking of msconfig, I've been cleaning out my sys tray and a bunch of other things to speed up my start up time.

How do I access msconfig, so I can do some cleanup? I see it in the background, but I'm kinda leery about poking around with my 'puter innerds w/o some assistance.

I've got a slow 'puter in general and I can't add more memory right now, so I'm trying to get rid of some other stuff, so it doesn't load on startup. I've gotten rid of some things, but I know there's more, because I know shouldn't have 40-50 processes running in the background and I haven't opened one application.

 

[Yeagermeister]

Speaking of msconfig, I've been cleaning out my sys tray and a bunch of other things to speed up my start up time.

How do I access msconfig, so I can do some cleanup? I see it in the background, but I'm kinda leery about poking around with my 'puter innerds w/o some assistance.

I've got a slow 'puter in general and I can't add more memory right now, so I'm trying to get rid of some other stuff, so it doesn't load on startup. I've gotten rid of some things, but I know there's more, because I know shouldn't have 40-50 processes running in the background and I haven't opened one application.

Click on start then run and type in msconfig

 

[silverbear]

Speaking of msconfig, I've been cleaning out my sys tray and a bunch of other things to speed up my start up time.

How do I access msconfig, so I can do some cleanup? I see it in the background, but I'm kinda leery about poking around with my 'puter innerds w/o some assistance.

I've got a slow 'puter in general and I can't add more memory right now, so I'm trying to get rid of some other stuff, so it doesn't load on startup. I've gotten rid of some things, but I know there's more, because I know shouldn't have 40-50 processes running in the background and I haven't opened one application.

Go to Start, click on Run, type in msconfig in the box... click on the Startup tab, then go down the list and uncheck the programs you don't want loading at startup...

 

[WoodysGirl]

Click on start then run and type in msconfig

Go to Start, click on Run, type in msconfig in the box... click on the Startup tab, then go down the list and uncheck the programs you don't want loading at startup...

I thought that was the way, wasn't sure. Will test it out when I get home.

If not, I'll just do a search for it.

 

[ZeroClub]

Thanks for the msconfig information, folks!

I was unaware of that program, but messed around with it this morning (after reading this thread), with outstanding results.

 

[silverbear]

Thanks for the msconfig information, folks!

I was unaware of that program, but messed around with it this morning (after reading this thread), with outstanding results.

It does help a lot, doesn't it??

Basically, the programs you see in the system tray are constantly running in the background, demanding a certain percentage of your PC's memory... so all you should have running in there are your antivirus programs, or your firewalls (if you're not running an integrated package like the Norton Internet Security, which combines those programs)... I make an exception for the Weatherbug, because I like the National Weather Service alerts of bad weather, and it's a small program that really doesn't demand much memory...

No need to have RealPlayer running all the time, when it loads automatically when you click on a video clip that uses RP... no need to have ANY chat program running, when you're not using it... or if you must, select ONE chat program, and tell the folks you like to talk to in chat that's the one you'll be using... there are all manner of programs that would have you load them automatically if you let them, but you can always access them through the Start/Programs list, or if you prefer, you can create a shortcut to those programs on your desktop...

Keep the number of icons in your system tray to a bare minimum, and your PC will thank you for it...

Just one word of advice about using msconfig-- if you're not sure what a given program in that list does, do NOT uncheck it... it might turn out to be something you really need to make your computer run...

 

[WoodysGirl]

It does help a lot, doesn't it??

Keep the number of icons in your system tray to a bare minimum, and your PC will thank you for it...

Just one word of advice about using msconfig-- if you're not sure what a given program in that list does, do NOT uncheck it... it might turn out to be something you really need to make your computer run...

Ditto what Zero said.

And I agree about unchecking something and you don't know what it is. I opened up my task manager and sorted the processes that had my name under it and then matched them up to what was on the Startup tab. Also expanded it so I could see the full file location name.

It's running better already, even tho I know I still need more memory. It was hemorraghing during the startup.

 

[silverbear]

Ditto what Zero said.

And I agree about unchecking something and you don't know what it is. I opened up my task manager and sorted the processes that had my name under it and then matched them up to what was on the Startup tab. Also expanded it so I could see the full file location name.

Which is exactly what you should have done... good for you...

It's running better already, even tho I know I still need more memory.

Memory is rather inexpensive, and is the most efficient way of improving your PC's performance... just make sure you get somebody really knowledgeable to help you select your memory, there are like a jillion different kinds out there, and they are not interchangeable... if your computer uses PC-3200 RAM (to choose an example entirely at random), you must make sure to get PC-3200 chips to add on...

I'm glad that using msconfig helped you guys improve your computers' performance...

It was hemorraghing during the startup.

That's a neat turn of phrase, descriptive and accurate...

 

[WoodysGirl]

Memory is rather inexpensive, and is the most efficient way of improving your PC's performance... just make sure you get somebody really knowledgeable to help you select your memory, there are like a jillion different kinds out there, and they are not interchangeable... if your computer uses PC-3200 RAM (to choose an example entirely at random), you must make sure to get PC-3200 chips to add on...

I'm a pseudo IT person. I know just enough to be dangerous.

As for memory, I know it's cheap, just have different priorities right now. One way to get around selecting memory is go to bestbuy.com. They allow you to put in your computer specs, so you know what to ask for before you go in or if you choose to order it online.

I bought a bare bones laptop 4 years ago, so while it had good specs at the time, I've loaded a number of ram-intensive applications since then. So I need more memory for it to run a max performance.