Slow computer with Mind of it's own?

Question

We got our computer in 2001. Emachines Model T2482, 254mbRAM (Emachines lied said 256mb), 80gb hd, 10/100mb broadband w/ aol


So here's the story: Our computer has always been slow but we got used to it and it became normal to us. In August our warranty was about to wear out. We thought we would take it down to Best Buy (where our warranty was from) and it would come back the speed of lightning- everything fixed. Abouta month later we got it back and it was slow as crap. They told us we had to have Norton and SpySweeper on it. We payed 100 smackers for it. Spy sweeper doesn't work, it freezes up. Norton does. Also it has a mind of it's own. I't likes to shut off the mouses PS/2 port and make the cursor dart all over the screen. We shut it down about once or twice a day because it freezes up. What is wrong. Norton says we don't have a virus. MS employees and other people PLEASE HELP!

I've always thought it was the PS/2 port

I love dell they have them at my school- the old optiplex gx 110s are faster than mine!!!

AMD Anthlon XP 2400+

I figured out it's very helpful to ask your own question than gather info from somebody elses. Thanks guys. I'm still taking answers though

My Gosh! Ad Adware found 44things and deleted them! Go Lavasoft!Spy Sweeper does act like spyware!

Answer 1

Quick note, best buy warrantees suck ***... don't buy them. Also, ram is never actually what they're advertised as on computers, cuz they're usually shared. But it sounds like there could be several things wrong with your computer. You might have a bad mouse. I'd also get some other type of anti-spyware / adware. I don't think Norton is all that great at detecting it. Oh, and expecting to get a lightning fast computer is not too realistic with a computer like that... sorry to say. I'd try defragmenting the hard drive, doing some thorough anti-spyware scans at the very least.

Answer 2

Two obvious problems here. 1) You have an emachine, they are notorious known for have spyware installed at the factory and also are really made of a bunch of parts that maybe not so great. 2) You took it to Best Buy I have heard so many horror stories about the Geek squad and or service solutions that they provide.

If you want to speed up your computer here is the easiest thing to do is upgrade your memory to 512, purchase another 256 mb memory unit. I would suggest pulling the one that is in there out and taking it in to have them match it. I do not think emachines lied so much it is just showing that it is working at 254, the difference is hardly any, so don't worry about that.

I would also if possible dump AOL and pick a true broadband provider.

I would also uninstall the spy sweeper as it does not seem to be working for you and download a free one called Adaware by Lava Soft, I have used this for years and it is great. Do keep in mind your first scan can take some time.

Good luck.

Answer 3

a). Your computer is Old. That is the bad news. The good news should be this. You can back up your files to a CD or jump drive ome how. Once you have ALL your files, backed up, I recommend restoring your system to the state it was in when it was new. You will have to restore a lot of programs that you installed since then though. Keep in mind that Norton and some other security software that is necessary is a resource HOG. That is likely what is slowing your machine. Another thing to test is to do a Control Alt Delete and check the processes tab. Sort that by CPU usage and resarch any programs that are hogging the CPU. That is usually a culprit. Also, buy more RAM for the machine. 256 is not enough anymore. That is the cheapest and easiest upgrade you can do to increase performance on an older PC. Good luck....!

Answer 4

Here's my thoughts...

First off don't ever buy an Emachine again. They're cheap to buy because they're cheap quality computers. I'm not surprised to hear about your issues. Especially the mouse.

Second thing that usually slows down computers is spyware. Good call on getting Spysweeper, but if it's not working and the Geek Squad installed it for you, bring it back and have them fix the installation. They should have tested it before giving the PC back to you.

Thirdly, once Norton has expired its license on you, get rid of it. Norton is a resource hog and it does bog down your system at times. Especially if you have only 256 MB of RAM. I almost promise you Norton is the reason your Windows startups are slow. Instead go for Trend or Kapersky Anti-Virus. They're not quite the resource hog that Norton and McAfee are. Plus Norton 2007 upgraded their engine and has not received good reviews as a product lately.

Forth, upgrade the RAM. 256 MB is pretty low in today's computers. I'd see if you can upgrade to 1 GB or at least 512 MB. You should see some speed.

Fifth.....keep in mind that your computer is 5 years old. It's going to get slower over time since newer software and hardware demand more resources from your PC. Your current processor can handle only so much and you can only improve the speed of your computer so much before it's just simply as fast as it can go.

6. Have a tech tweak the machine. Meaning limit what starts up or runs on your computer. Having too much software open at the same time hogs resources. Having software that you don't need run on your comptuer hogs resources. Make sure they delete unnecessary files on your comptuer to include internet temp files, general temp files. Also try defragmenting your hard drive(s).

Hope this gives you some insight. Good luck. :-)

Answer 5

My advice is to start with something similar to SpySweeper (to search your computer for "spyware," which take up unnecessary computer resources), such as AdAware. Download the application, install it, and then perform a "full system scan."

You may be surprised at the results!

Make certain that your Norton Anti-Virus product is up-to-date. Do NOT depend on any antivirus product if you don't update the product with the latest "definitions" of viruses out there (new viruses spring up daily).

Also: with 256 MB of RAM, that's really not enough memory to satisfactorily run Windows XP -- and that's what I assume you're using. I suggest upgrading your RAM to at least 512 MB, if you can. I believe Best Buy does installation of RAM.

Good luck.

Answer 6

Norton and spysweeper are the problem, they both suck. Every Norton product I have ever dealt with has just been absolute garbage and would destabilize the system it was on. Take your computer to a real computer geek not a comercial store and have them reload the operating system from scratch. Spy sweeper is it self spyware.

Answer 7

Working with a slow computer can be time consuming as programs/ applications take a long time to start. This problem is more pronounced in computers which have been used for 6 or more months. More information at http://fixit.in/slowcomputer.html

Answer 8

You have way too little computer memory installed. 256MB of RAM is not enough. You should get that upgraded to 1GB of RAM which will probably be between $130-$200 since you'll probably have to have someone install it for you. Best Buy should have told you the amount of RAM was too low. I deal with issues such as yours on a daily basis with employees not having enough RAM in their computers.

Answer 9

I forgot to add to my last answer that make sure you have the most up to date drivers for your system Jami E had the right idea let the computer geeks take care of that or go to emachines website and search for your model to find the latest drivers. (which may not be available due to the age of the system)

Answer 10

Newer versions of Norton AV should slowdown any normal PC.
Since you have only 256 MB ram thats pretty normal.Try using
older versions of Norton .Norton AV 2003 is a good one (Its also best in catching viruses).Next way is to grow up your RAM to atleast 512 mb