What are some maintenance type things I can do to my computer, to keep it performaning well for me?

Question

Right now, the only maintenance I do is...
Once a week I scan with Norton Antivirus,
about every 2 weeks I run SpyBot and Adaware.
I know this is bad, that there are several more things I should be doing.
Should I scandisc regularly?
Should I be defragging?
Should I be deleting temporary internet files, are there other files that should be deleted, on the regular basis? How do I get rid of all the ones that need to go?
What else do I need to do to get my computer running at an optimal level?
How do I check for and get rid of problems like... incomplete programs that did not install or un-install correctly, hardware installation and un-installation, unused and corrupted drivers.
Also what programs should be regularly updated, for example...Java, Quicktime, flashplayer, DirectX, Shockwave player? Do you know of any sites, where I can check to see if I need updated versions of any of these or other needed programs.
Should I check on updating my ActiveX controls, how?
My computer is a...

PC with 256 MB RAM, a 1.33 GHz AMD Athlon processor, that has Windows XP and a dial up connection. (I can't get high speed in my area)

I really would like to be taking better care of keeping it up, so it works well, and don't know what all I should be doing.

Thank you for any advice ; )

Answer 1

Okay, I would reccommend opening up your computer case and get a friend to look it over with you. Maintenance is not just running a handfull of software programs to keep it virus free, etc. It's to do with hardware too.

What I'm saying is that you should check inside the case and clean it at least once a year; think of it as tuning-up your car, repairing a bike or something. Sometimes, a software program's not going to clean the funk out of the PSU fan for you to stop it overheating.

Answer 2

Defragging a hard drive is largely overrated in terms of a performance boost these days when you consider the size of hard drives. The hours it takes to defrag doesn't really equal the tiny performance boost you get. Do it every blue moon, not every week.

Most programs can be set up to automatically alert you to when a new version of the program is available. I know Java and Shockwave do it. DirectX may download when you do a Windows Update. But on the whole, if the programs are working fine there isn't any real need to update.

The best thing to do to make sure your computer runs fast is to limit the programs that start up with your computer. The less programs residing in memory, the better.

Answer 3

You already know the answers to most of your questions. Yes, run scandisk and defrag. Yes, delete temporary internet files - delete them all. You don't really need to keep them. You'll gain a more recent version the next time you visit a site anyway.
Delete your history. Delete files and emails you don't need to keep.
Those are the ones I know the answers to. I'm not as advanced as you are.

Answer 4

I use microsoft security essentials for a virus scanner because it is free I use Maleware bytes, and Ccleaner whenever i feel my pc is starting to slow down. Both free ccleaner also has a registry cleaner. Only need to defrag every month or so.

Answer 5

Here is a Free On-line Live Tech Support help should you have problems you can't take care yourself.

Http://www.hp.com/go/assistance. They'll stay on with you until the issue is resolved.

Ask them about incomplete programs etc.

Answer 6

Defragging takes forever. So many things to do like you've stated, I wonder what to do next.

I Cr 13;8a

Answer 7

well you should definately be defragmenting and deleting temporary files. also run a pc tuneup program

Answer 8

Add more ram!