How to speed up my XP notebook
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
someone has to say it so... Take it to the roof of your building. Hold it over the edge. Let it go. It'll briefly accelerate at 9.8m/s. If you're in a short building it will then promptly decelerate several dozen to several hundred times as fast. IF you're in a tall building it'll temporarily stall at terminal velocity before doing the same. :laugh:
-- If you view money as inherently evil, I view it as my duty to assist in making you more virtuous.
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
Open "msconfig" or preferably "services.msc" from the Run command. Using msconfig you can disable the services at startup although the services manager is better. Things I never use like the print spooler (my printer is broke, so...) I set to load manually. When I want to print things I start the service rather than waiting on it at load time. Basically, go in and set things to load automatically but not at system startup. This improves boot time, but when you first run a program using these services it'll be a tad slower. As an example, I set the: Print Spooler, Help/Support, Fast User Switching, Indexing Service (disable if you don't need search), Removable Storage & Smart Cards, Task Scheduler, Windows Installer and the Wireless Zero Config (since I'm on an ethernet connection). Oh, and if (Norton != null) { delete Norton; } [Update] OK, missed an earlier post listing the services more definitively. Damn.
Ninja (the Nerd)
Confused? You will be... -
It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
A couple of things worth doing though they may seem a waste of time. System Properties Click System Restore tab Check Turn Off System Restore Click Apply Uncheck Turn Off System Restore Click Apply Change Disk space to use to be 2 - 3% Click OK Windows Explorer Delete everything in C:\Windows\Prefetch Delete everything in C:\Windows\Temp Delete everything in C:\Documents and Settings\Brady\Local Settings\Temp Internet Explorer Properties Delete All Cookies and Temporary Internet Files Change Temporary Internet File size to around 128MB Install CCleaner[^] and let it clean out pretty much everything it can, use the advanced settings as well. Do not click Post Message when you mean to click Italics.
Michael Martin Australia "I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible." - Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004
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Open "msconfig" or preferably "services.msc" from the Run command. Using msconfig you can disable the services at startup although the services manager is better. Things I never use like the print spooler (my printer is broke, so...) I set to load manually. When I want to print things I start the service rather than waiting on it at load time. Basically, go in and set things to load automatically but not at system startup. This improves boot time, but when you first run a program using these services it'll be a tad slower. As an example, I set the: Print Spooler, Help/Support, Fast User Switching, Indexing Service (disable if you don't need search), Removable Storage & Smart Cards, Task Scheduler, Windows Installer and the Wireless Zero Config (since I'm on an ethernet connection). Oh, and if (Norton != null) { delete Norton; } [Update] OK, missed an earlier post listing the services more definitively. Damn.
Ninja (the Nerd)
Confused? You will be...Ninja-the-Nerd wrote:
Oh, and if (Norton != null) { delete Norton; }
Not Norton, but Trend. I think it's slightly better, but my laptop is very seldom online. I think I can mitigate the risk there.
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
Check out Tweaktowns guides. I've used them the last few years and they work really great for me ;) Tweaktown[^] Also I would recommend using Sysinternal's Process Explorer[^] to find what hogs down your system. Incredibly nice tool to find processes running that you don't use. And under the properties of all the items you can even check which services the process uses if any ;) Have fun tweaking ^^
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
1. Set the page file to a flat size like min 2000mb max 2000mb. That way Winders don't have to try to manage it (stupid Winders). 2. Under the Performance options, set it to Adjust for Best Performance, but then check use Visual Styles on Windows and Buttons (Can't live wo/ Luna :))). 3. Remove Firefox, ITunes, Java Runtime and all other spyware/viruses.
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
image it into vmware, load image on dell precision with vmware and use your xp to RDC to image on vmware server
MrPlankton
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someone has to say it so... Take it to the roof of your building. Hold it over the edge. Let it go. It'll briefly accelerate at 9.8m/s. If you're in a short building it will then promptly decelerate several dozen to several hundred times as fast. IF you're in a tall building it'll temporarily stall at terminal velocity before doing the same. :laugh:
-- If you view money as inherently evil, I view it as my duty to assist in making you more virtuous.
ahhmmm ahhmmm, excuse me, there is no such thing as deceleration, only negative acceleration. Sorry, feeling like a troll today
MrPlankton
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I have a hypothesis that the registry gets internally fragmented over time which contributes to it taking longer to retrieve given keys and related keys if they were added at different times. There is no way to defragment the registry on-line, but it is possible to save and restore the registry by either: - Backing up System State with Windows Backup (or another compatible tool such as Backup Exec) and restoring it; - Using REG SAVE and REG RESTORE. As I say, it's just a hypothesis, but could help. Still, I'd probably take a full system backup before trying it, and ensuring you have everything required to reinstall the system in case it goes wrong.
DoEvents: Generating unexpected recursion since 1991There are programs to clean up the registry and defrag it. Check download.com. It made quite a difference for me. Also, check out tweakXP. Something else to do would be to change the performance and visual settings.
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
well, I used to use a program called system mechanic from iolo. fixed registry screw ups, could choose which apps i wanted running at start up, delete data permanently (military strength something or other) had a shiny looking super defrag that took 2 to 3 days, and a bunch of other nice little checks and optimizers.
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A couple of things worth doing though they may seem a waste of time. System Properties Click System Restore tab Check Turn Off System Restore Click Apply Uncheck Turn Off System Restore Click Apply Change Disk space to use to be 2 - 3% Click OK Windows Explorer Delete everything in C:\Windows\Prefetch Delete everything in C:\Windows\Temp Delete everything in C:\Documents and Settings\Brady\Local Settings\Temp Internet Explorer Properties Delete All Cookies and Temporary Internet Files Change Temporary Internet File size to around 128MB Install CCleaner[^] and let it clean out pretty much everything it can, use the advanced settings as well. Do not click Post Message when you mean to click Italics.
Michael Martin Australia "I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible." - Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004
Michael Martin wrote:
Delete everything in C:\Windows\Prefetch
Not a good idea. This can actually have the opposite effect: http://askbobrankin.com/windows_prefetch.html[^] http://www.edbott.com/weblog/archives/000619.html[^] Cheers,
WE ARE DYSLEXIC OF BORG. Refutance is systile. Your a$$ will be laminated.
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1. Set the page file to a flat size like min 2000mb max 2000mb. That way Winders don't have to try to manage it (stupid Winders). 2. Under the Performance options, set it to Adjust for Best Performance, but then check use Visual Styles on Windows and Buttons (Can't live wo/ Luna :))). 3. Remove Firefox, ITunes, Java Runtime and all other spyware/viruses.
wsoutherland wrote:
Remove Firefox, ITunes, Java Runtime and all other spyware/viruses.
You consider Firefox and Java to be spyware/viruses? :omg::wtf:;)
WE ARE DYSLEXIC OF BORG. Refutance is systile. Your a$$ will be laminated.
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
There are some good tips at http://tweakxp.com/performance_tweaks.aspx
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
1)Clean the registry. There are alot of free registry cleaning tools. Here is the last one I tried: http://www.eusing.com/free_registry_cleaner/registry_cleaner.htm[^] 2) system tool - Disk Cleanup (also pick option to remove all but latest system restore) 3) system tool - disk defrag 4) A spyware removal tool, such as spybot S&D (http://www.safer-networking.org/[^]) or Ad-Aware (http://www.lavasoftusa.com/[^]). I'd recommend doing all of these things at least once a month.
Michael Lang (versat1474) http://www.xquisoft.com/[^]
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
Go to Start|Run, type "msconfig" in the box and press "Enter". Go to the "Startup" tab and search online for every item listed in the "Startup" tab and deselect everything you possibly can. Navigate to the "Services" tab and do the same thing. Uninstall all unnecessary programs, install an anti-spyware utility (I like Zero Spyware but YMMV), make sure your anti-virus software is up to date, make sure you have 25% disk remaining, defragment, check your Event Viewer and clean it out and then check it often. Turn off auto updating of all software (MS, Norton, etc.) and make sure you make it part of your weekly routine to manually update. I recently went through this song and dance on my Dell 8250 with XP Pro and 512MB of memory and was able to claim some performance back (make it usable). Good luck, DR
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It's been over a year since it's last clean install, and its screen is broken so I hesitate to install again right now, so I was hoping someone could advise me on services to unload etc. to get a little responsiveness out of the old dear. I've been working solely on my 2.13GHz desktop for about a month, and now my notebook seems sooo slow. I know it can be faster than it is, unencumbered.
An Apple for Eve, A button for Steve, It never ends. . . bramster on Worse Than Failure
Theres a reg key to stop updating the date modified time. This is supposed to decrease disk access a bit. I think fresh ui has it as a checkbox somewhere if i remember correctly http://www.freshdevices.com/ Tim
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Michael Martin wrote:
Delete everything in C:\Windows\Prefetch
Not a good idea. This can actually have the opposite effect: http://askbobrankin.com/windows_prefetch.html[^] http://www.edbott.com/weblog/archives/000619.html[^] Cheers,
WE ARE DYSLEXIC OF BORG. Refutance is systile. Your a$$ will be laminated.
Tom Delany wrote:
Not a good idea. This can actually have the opposite effect:
Well I have cleaned it out on many systems and have yet to run into a problem. I recently cleaned out 117 items on my computer at home. Looking at it now Windows has put back 50 items and alhough it could be a figment of my imagination my computer boots faster now than it did a week ago.
Michael Martin Australia "I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible." - Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004
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Tom Delany wrote:
Not a good idea. This can actually have the opposite effect:
Well I have cleaned it out on many systems and have yet to run into a problem. I recently cleaned out 117 items on my computer at home. Looking at it now Windows has put back 50 items and alhough it could be a figment of my imagination my computer boots faster now than it did a week ago.
Michael Martin Australia "I controlled my laughter and simple said "No,I am very busy,so I can't write any code for you". The moment they heard this all the smiling face turned into a sad looking face and one of them farted. So I had to leave the place as soon as possible." - Mr.Prakash One Fine Saturday. 24/04/2004
Ok. I was just passing on a couple of items I had read that said "Don't do that." I admit, I personally have not tried it (mainly because I found those links before I ever did). If it helps your system, then go for it. Thanks for the information. Have a good one. :)
WE ARE DYSLEXIC OF BORG. Refutance is systile. Your a$$ will be laminated.
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I actually plan to install Ubuntu on it some time, just not now.
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Install Linux? Ok sorry , couldn't resist. (Uninstall virus scan, and gain 30%)
Need a C# Consultant? I'm available.
Happiness in intelligent people is the rarest thing I know. -- Ernest HemingwayHey, I guess you've never used any antivirus software. 30%? It's simply NOT true. And the biggest problem of Linux is productivity --- yeah, it's free; but that doesn't mean it's easier to operate for a non-software-enthausiast, or you get what you want faster, or you earn more time/money. Most computer users are not software engineer, and what they want is setup their OS and softwares, and start their works. Sure, OS and softwares may not be free, but they earn more and earn faster. Windows suits their needs way better than Linux, and that's why Windows wins at desktop. Fortunately, some Linuxes began to realize this fact, and try to keep up with Windows. The gap is still big, but it's a good start. As for security, are you sure Linux is bug-free or virus-free or even hacker-free? Plus, Linuxes do have their own problems. :cool: Return to the topic: XP is not slow! It (the OS) does need more memory than some Linux, however, that does never mean that every application takes more memory than its Linux counterpart (its simply not true), and the memory taken by OS is not big. Why when someone complain that her/his PC/Notebook is slow, then people just throw their stones to Windows? There're a lot of XP users, then why the majority enjoy while only a few complain? My suggestion is: 1. If you run a lot of applications simutaneously, then you need 1GB memory or more. No matter what OS you use, this is essential. 2. Make sure your OS is virus free. You can do a clean install, and then install softwares you use daily. You can use Norton Ghost or similar software to backup your clean install, so when you want to start over, it'll take you only a few minutes to restore. 3. If you're still not satisfied, then if you do a lot of computational work, upgrade your CPU; if you do a lot of disk access, then get another harddisk and put your work in the new disk, and don't forget to defrag your disk (know that Linux doesn't even have a defrag tool, but the fans just say it's better, psycho :wtf:). 4. As for security, run as a non-privilaged user then you're immune to most viruses.