my computer is so slow i don't know what to do its driving me crazy any idea how to make it faster?

Question

i have a emachines model W3410 with a DSL connection of 512k i don't use alot of space on my computer and its still so slow don't know what to do. here is more info System Specifications
Type of system Desktops/Servers
Bus Architecture PCI/PCI Express
Hard Drive Bus Serial ATA, Ultra ATA/133
Native OS Windows XP Home Edition SP2
CPU Type 2.2GHz AMD Athlon 64 3200+
Model Comments ATI RS480 Chipset
HDD Comments 100.0 GB
System Memory Specifications
Standard Memory 512 MB (removable)
Maximum Memory 2.0 GB
Memory Expansion 2 sockets
Memory Comments PC3200 DDR SDRAM DIMMs

i hope that help,please help me. ps thanks in advance

Answer 1

Your machine hardware is fast enough, so your problem is something else, software, or rather spy-ware, or maybe even a virus or you might just have some settings wrong. I would visit download .com http://www.download.com/PC-Starter-Kit/2001-12350_4-0.html?tag=dir and check out PC Starter kit there you will find Free programs useful in finding out what your problem is and how to fix it! and learn a little more on what makes your computer tic.Good Luck Frank

Answer 2

Well the first thing you can do is stop the computer from running a lot of programs that are not needed. You will need a little computer know how to do this thru the registry but if you have that go to the run menu and type is msconfig and stop some of them.

If you have little know how.. go to the programs menu and the start up folder, see if there is something in there you know you do not need running all the time, like adobe speed loader or others.

Also check for viruses and or spyware.

If you hit control and alt and delete all at the same time you can see your processes and click on the far right twice to see what is using up most of your memory. You will have to know what programs do what before going to msconfig to stop any you do not need though.

Get another 512 of memory.

Answer 3

There are two things that you can try. First, focus on software. Run a virus scanner and a scanner like Spyboy Search and Destroy or Ad-Aware to make sure there's no viruses or spyware slowing down the machine. Next, try defragmenting the hard drive. Click on the Start menu, go to All Programs, Accessories, and then System Tools. Select Disk Defragmenter and use it to clean up your discs.

If that doesn't help, buy more RAM. 512MB will cost you about $60 or so. Buy at least one more 512MB DIMM. That should speed things up.

Answer 4

You probably have a lot of junk on your hard drive. Go to the Start Menu. Click on Accessories, then System Tools. Do a Disk Cleanup. then Disk Defragmenter. Select the Show Details Option, to see the actions on you compter . After that is done, go back to the Accessories, then System Tools, and do Scandisk - if you have it.
You should also go to your toolbar and check Internet Options, Delete cookies and then Delete Offline Files. You should also have an anti-spyware program.

Answer 5

go to start/run... type in msconfig. this will bring up a window with tabs across the top. click on the startup tab. uncheck anything that is not your virus scanner or firewall. if you have questions as to what belongs to what, you can go to www.answersthatwork.com and click on the task list. just look up whatever you arent sure about. when you have only the firewall and/or virus scanner things checked, then click apply and continue. it will ask you to restart. when it comes back up you will get a box telling you that you have made changes to the system configuration. check the box and tell it to go away. then if you restart your computer again you will notice a speed difference. if it still seems slow, or if you have any questions, send me an email and i will help you and send you the links for free spyware removers.

Answer 6

Try running a spyware removal tool such as Spybot or Adaware. Also if you have an antivirus program, run a virus scan. If you do not have an antivirus program, you can download one for free from www.avg.com.
If this does not solve the issue, try defragmenting your harddrive or deleting unneeded files. If your harddrive is full, it can make the PC run slow.
You can also try checking that all fans and blower fans are working correctly. PCs that are too hot, run slow as well.

Answer 7

OK.

You should have 1 (one) installed and CURRENT system anti virus checker & at least 3 antispyware programs -- Windows Defender, Spybot S&D and Ad-Aware.

If you are broadband using Kerio OR ZoneAlarm, etc., be certain the Windows firewall is 'off' - it is 'on' from the factory -- 1 firewall per PC.

When was the last time you ran Defrag?

Answer 8

emachines suck in general.

the components inside should be kept up to date.

and dont look up any porno. cause thats a sure way to get viruses which can slow down your computer.

another thing that will drastically slow your computer down is if you run lots of programs at once, or a big program and a few other programs. the larger program will take over most of your comptuers resorces and the smaller programs will exceed your computer's capabilities.

Answer 9

Things that slow your system down!
1. Computers basically have two types of memory. Ram and Rom. Lets start with Rom. Read Only Memory is a storage place where files, programs, music, pictures, etc are stored. An example of Rom is your hard drive. Your hard drive is a storage system not unlike your basic cassette player. The hard drive stores your files and programs on a disc platter. The platter is the same material as you would find on a cassette tape. People get easily confused thinking that a bigger hard drive will make their computer go faster. Next comes Ram or Random Access Memory. This area of memory is where your files and programs are moved to when you use them. You give the computer a command to play a game or maybe to listen to music or perhaps even do your math for you. You click an icon or program and the processor or brain finds that data on the hard drive or cd and loads it into ram. Ram is the place where most all of your programs and files run when you are using them. The processor then controls the ram and runs the software you have chosen. Now lets say you have 100 megabytes of ram in your system. You decide to edit some photos and you start your photo program which takes 40 megabytes of ram plus 5 megabytes to load the picture you edit. You now have 65 megabytes of unused ram. You decide to fire up your media player and play a selection of songs. The media player decides it needs 40 megabytes for the player operation itself plus another 20 megabytes for the stored album you want to play. We now have a total of 5 megabytes of unused ram. You decide to fire up Weather bug or google earth or some other software and its asking for another 20 megabytes of ram. You are now choking the death out of your rescources and what do you think the system will do? Any number of things can happen including simple system shutdown. Most users seem to think that they need everything but the kitchen sink running when they start their system and then scratch their bum and wonder why their system is running so slow. A few examples of software that loads on startup would be winzip, your audio mixer, music download programs, etc! You DO NOT need this crap running! Weatherbug for instance eats up about 20 megabytes of ram just sitting there not being used! Winzip takes another 5, Most everything you have running in the background is not needed!

2. Viruses, adware, trojans, malware, and hijackers! NOTHING ON THE NET IS FREE! It all comes at a cost to the user! PORN SITES, GAMBLING SITES, FREE MUSIC DOWNLOAD SITES, FREE GAMING SITES, etc are FILLED with this crap! Some of it simply redirects your search to a page they make money off of or hijacks your homepage, some of it constantly monitors what you are shopping for, have you ever wondered how uncanny it is that you browsed the net for a new digital camera and the next day you were spammed to death with camera ads in e mail or have started receiving digital cam popups? Some of it simply is full of malwar and viruses that will destroy data and in severe cases wipe out your hardrive!

3. I have heard everybody and their brother claim that their system is free and clean of adware. Adware removal tools are good to have but there isnt any one that will detect all adware! I dont care if its free or costed you a hundred dollars! Think about it. Adware is being produced daily. It takes the average adware removal company 2 months to even realize that there is a new piece of adware. Now they have to develop a tool to remove it! Theres another month! How much hidden crap is really in your sytem?

4. One of the biggest problems is anti virus software. It keeps your system safe alright but in the process it slows you down sometimes even worse than the original problem did! I use NO VIRUS PROTECTION! It sucks!

Bottom line....the best system protection comes from the users own brain! If you browse the net wisely and follow the simple ideas above you will find your system runs far better! Dont get me wrong....do use your adware removal tools.....keep them updated and when they tell you something is trying to enter your system DONT IGNORE IT! Dont waste money on adware removal tools either! The best is still free! Spybot, Spyware Blaster, Adaware, etc are all excellent choices!

One last thing I would like to ad, everyone thinks they need a new faster 3 bazillion gigahertz machine to browse the net! The average hi speed internet connection is around 1.5 megs a second. Some boast 4 meg but in any event consider the fact that your processor in that old clunker is a 266 megahertz processor, it is STILL far faster than what you need to browse the net! Dont let people tell you it is too slow!

I have been building, repairing, and using systems since 16 kilobytes of ram was big! Anyone who tells you the above info is a farce is nothing but an internet illiterate boob!

Answer 10

No matter what youre doing on the computer the most successful method to increase speed is to upgrade your virtual RAM from 512mb to something higher.

It is also important to run ad-ware removing software periodically to remove all of the unintentional junk that ends up on your harddrive. microsoft.com/antispyware is a wonderful program to have.