Can I update my laptop or what should i do to improve?

Question

I already know to get rid of software i don't need.

It's running slow........the local disk properties says that it has 13.8GB USED AND 4.72 GB of free space.

HP Pavillion zt1130- bought in 2001
Intel (R) Celeron (TM) CPU
1133MHZ
1.13GHz
224MB of RAM

Thank you!

Answer 1

It depends on what you want to do. If you just want to write with word, surf the web and write emails, try to upgrade the RAM.

Furthermore it seems as if your Graphics card is snagging 32 MB of RAM away.
Go into your BIOS and reduce the graphics RAM.
If you have a resolution of 1024x768, 24 MB should work for High Color modes.

But by all means: try to get as much RAM as possible.

Look if there are other programs running, that you don't need.
When your PC is slow again, press "Strg+Shift+Esc" then klick on the "Process" tab.

Klick twice on the CPU column or the Memory column to find out which program uses the CPU and memory most.

Decide, if you can live without that program and remove it from your PC.

Keep your PC up to date with Windows update and check for Viruses and Malware or Spyware with Virus scanners and Lavasoft AdAware.

Answer 2

You need at least 512 MBs of RAM. But for a free boost, download these programs: CCleaner will clean out the clutter, freeing up some hard drive space. Also Advanced Windows Care will fine tune your computer safely. If you have Windows XP installed on it, you can speed it up by changing the performance. Click on Start, RIGHT click on My Computer, a block called System Properties will appear, choose the Advanced Tab. Under that tab, click on Settings for Performance, choose the third item, Adjust For The Best Performance. You might save up your coins for a new laptop though. Best of luck.

Answer 3

look dude
heres some info
How to upgrade a laptop computer - Upgrading Laptops or Notebooks
First, let me repeat, you should never buy a used laptop with the intention of upgrading it. If you've owned a laptop since buying it new or it was given to you as a hand-me-down, upgrades are always worth looking at if you have the money and are looking for a little more functionality. The easiest and most effective upgrade most laptop owners can make is upgrading the RAM. A second hand notebook with 32MB of RAM will see a major performance increase (especially when you open multiple windows) if you upgrade it to 64MB, and a notebook with 64 MB will run "like new:" if you add 128MB for 192MB total. Laptop RAM is usually upgraded by removing an access panel on the bottom of the notebook, secured by a single screw, and installing the new SODIMM. The following picture is from my illustrated article on how to upgrade laptop memory.

The whole trick is making sure your laptop doesn't already have the maximum amount of RAM installed, and buying the right module. I suggest using the memory finder at crucial.com. Now comes the bad news. The RAM is the only internal laptop component that can be easily upgraded, if at all. The problem is three-fold. First, laptops are highly proprietary, and upgrade parts like a CD burner that will fit the physical form and provide the right connector aren't always available. In some instances, you may be able to use the outer plastic bezel from the original CD-ROM to match a new CD record to the body of the notebook, but it still has to be a supported model. Second, these parts are so much more expensive that desktop components that it's not funny. Your best bet is to buy "pulls," components scavenged from broken or discarded units, but even these aren't cheap. Finally, the laptop BIOS may not support the new CD or DVD drive, or even a larger capacity hard drive. I wouldn't fool around with flashing the laptop BIOS unless you are absolutely desperate, because if it goes wrong, you'll be left with a brick.

So, have we eliminated ever recording CD's or increasing the storage capacity of your old laptop? Absolutely not. Notebooks are designed to work with peripherals, and as long as you have a USB 1.1 or better port, you'll have no trouble finding external drives that will not only work with your old notebook, they'll be portable to any other computer you have now or may purchase in the future. For moving data between computers or storing relatively small (up to a gigabyte) amounts of data, jump drives are a great solution. You can carry a jump drive on your key chain (and many are designed for just that), and read the data on almost any computer in the world. You can also connect to a router for high speed internet access through your USB port, or through the RJ-45 network port, if your laptop is equipped with one. Another handy notebook upgrade is an external mouse and keyboard. A simple USB splitter for less than $10 will provide both ports in one convenient rat tail, especially handy if your notebook only has a single PS/2 port for a keyboard or a mouse and you can't find a PS/2 splitter.

You can't upgrade the motherboard or the CPU in your laptop. You can't even replace them cost effectively in most cases if they fail. The same obviously goes for the screen and the video adapter (built into the main board), but you can hook most notebooks to an external monitor if your screen is failing and you aren't ready to replace it. Of course, you can add almost any capability to a notebook if it supports PC cards, sometimes referred to as PCMCIA (Personal Computer Memory Card International Association) cards, but they aren't cheap, and the software drivers may not be available for your older operating system, so read the specs carefully. Also, PC cards for storage devices are much thicker than cards for memory or communications, so you may only be able to use PC card at a time, even if your laptop has two PCMCIA slots.

Answer 4

Start by uninstalling any programs that you don't use. Run Disk Cleanup as well as Defrag.

If you haven't formatted your computer since 2001, I would suggest you do that. Reinstalling Windows and only the applications you need - that will clear out all of the junk that has been saved over the years.

Answer 5

more ram, defrag the hard drive, and stop the junk in your bottom right hand corner that start up and run every time you boot up that you dont regulary use. (ie icq, myspace im, quicktime, realplayer) you didn't say what windows you are running, 224 is not much for XP if that is what you have in it.