Posted by
shirly
19 yrs ago
My laptop is an IBM pentium III...how can I make it any faster?..I tried uninstalling some programs but i still find it quite slow. I am computer-ignorant so please help.
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Have someone who is computer literate look at the machine and stop and remove the programs running in the background. That should help speed up startup and improve responsiveness. There are also settings in windows that can be modified to give priority to various functions/activities. These can be modified to give priority to running programs which may increase responsiveness as well.
Your selection of programs and the types of activities you do will also impact the relative speed of the machine. Using the "maxed out" top of the line programs could result in the slowest performance. Switching to lighter but speedier alternative programs could increase responsiveness as well.
You are computer ignorant and want help? Well, unless you are willing to spend the time to learn the various configuration options and taking the time and tinkering with them, you need to get someone to do it for you.
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As a Linux user and supporter I must disagree with blackvirusss - Linux too benefits from having adequate RAM - too little and it will run slower. Many flavors of Linux will run on lower spec hardware than XP, but it still benefits from having RAM - and you must have a minimal amount of RAM and harddisk space to install every Linux distribution out there.
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A better source for information on different linux distros would be distrowatch.com - there you can read up on the various distros - from DSL which fits on a business card size cd and runs with 128 megs of ram to distros that require significantly more on the harddisk space and ram requirements. 100 distros are listed at the moment.
I have found it very easy in the last couple of years to set up dual-boot windows & linux. Which is better? Depends on what you want to do.
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A good solid way to do this is to rebuild the system from the original disks. With all of the gradual win updates and spyware, you can get it back to original speed better by starting fresh - if you have the necessary disks. The hard part is just correctly backing up and restoring your files - try to remeber all of your files / folders / email / contacts / .....
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Just remember, back up your data - all of it - your e-mail, your ISP internet and e-mail configurations, your passwords, and anything else that was configured to use. If you have and use a "system restore" disk, it will put your C: drive back to what it was when it was delivered on day 1. When you do the restore, you will probably lose everything you did to the machine after day one + 1 minute. Not only do you need the original disks ro download current versions FOR EVERY PROGRAM YOU SUBSEQUENTLY INSTALLED, you also want note every important modification that you did to the computer and software, because you will most likely have to do them all over again. Not a quick process.
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One of the easiest ways is to run Accessories - System Tools - Disk Defragmenter.
Over time, the files on your harddisk become fragmented - split up into several chunks of data, spread out over different physical locations. Each time you run a program or open a document, Windows has to go looking for and gathering all the separate pieces together before it can run. Defragmenting the disk regularly can speed things up significantly.
Also you can get rid of bloatware like Norton and install Grisoft's free antivirus instead.
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jwm - if you got a computer that had pre-installed Windows (hard to avoid this) without getting a restore disk, I would say you got a crippled system (or a pirated o/s?). If you bought it locally, you could always try and go back to the dealers that sold the machines to you (with receipts in hand) and ask for restore disks. Otherwise, assuming you have a legal o/s, you should have a valid serial number somewhere, so you might/should be able to install Windows again if someone will loan you a compatible installation disk. Otherwise I would guess you are out the cost of Windows.
Franklin - I don't think installing Linux for a speedup is a legit argument (unless you have really old hardware that won't run current versions of Windows). Then there is the installation hurdle and the learning curve. There are other valid reasons for switching to Linux, for those so inclined, but not for a speed boost.
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The o/s key/serial number on my Dell, bought 3 years ago, is actually on a sticker on the bottom of the machine, as is another laptop in my office. If I recall correctly, the serial number in system properties is different from the key you enter when installing/reinstalling. Do a google search on XP and serial number to see if there is information on how to locate the serial number in the registry - if in fact that can be done. I don't know. Good luck.
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