Computer Question

[Feanor]

I would not put more than 2 gig's of ram in that computer. For email, internet and word processing, any more ram will be a total waste. FA, I'll check and see if I still have my amd 3700 processor which will help a little with the speed but I doubt that you would notice a difference. If I can find it, I would be more than happy to send it to you.

For under $400 you can buy new lap tops with dual core processors that would run circles around that computer though.

BR, that's not my experience. I added RAM to a 513 MB Athlon running Vista and notice a significant -- though not huge -- improvment.

[blackraven]

BR, that's not my experience. I added RAM to a 513 MB Athlon running Vista and notice a significant -- though not huge -- improvment.

I did'nt say that there would not be an improvement by adding ram, its just that adding more than 2 gigs will not give any improvement for web browsing and email. Vista should have at minimum1 gig or ram to run adequately.


http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/w...m-requirements

[02audionoob]

Performance would also be aided significantly by an added video card.

[blackraven]

Performance would also be aided significantly by an added video card.

Yes, a separate video card would help if she is running on board video with shared memory. You could find older video cards for just a few dollars. Just remember to turn off the on board card.

[Feanor]

I did'nt say that there would not be an improvement by adding ram, its just that adding more than 2 gigs will not give any improvement for web browsing and email. Vista should have at minimum1 gig or ram to run adequately.

http://windows.microsoft.com/en-us/w...m-requirements

Yes, 1 GB is enough for simple tasks under Vista, but it one is upgrading, might as well go to 2 GB.

512 MB is simply inadquate for Vista. I bought my late mother a Compaq Semperon-based machine with 512. Performance was so miserable I quickly upgraded to 2 GB for, like I said, a significant improvement. Interestingly a month or so after we bought that machine, Compaq upgraded the same model to 1 GB -- their mistake corrected.

[Feanor]

Yes, a separate video card would help if she is running on board video with shared memory. You could find older video cards for just a few dollars. Just remember to turn off the on board card.

Then again upgrading the base memory will alleviate the shared memory problem to a signficant degree.

[Feanor]

Incidentally, we shouldn't over look the simplesy way to upgrade RAM. That is a USB flash drive: just stick a new flash drive into a USB 2 slot and Vista will ask whether you want use to improve performance or use it a data drive. Choose the the former and Vista will use that drive for memory paging, etc.

The flash memory wouldn't work as well as internal RAM, (not nearly), but can improve the performance of machines with a very low internal complement. (It doesn't help above 2 GB internal in my experience.)

[02audionoob]

It's the processing power of a video card that helps most. Also, the memory on the video card is ordinarily faster than the system memory and certainly faster than flash memory.

[Feanor]

It's the processing power of a video card that helps most. Also, the memory on the video card is ordinarily faster than the system memory and certainly faster than flash memory.

But I doubt FA's mamaw is into video games.

[ForeverAutumn]

But I doubt FA's mamaw is into video games.

Right you are Feanor. All I want to do is speed things up for her so that she can surf the web and read her email without having time to go for a coffee between each transaction.

[02audionoob]

But I doubt FA's mamaw is into video games.

One does not have to be into video games to benefit from a separate video card. Processing graphics is a large part of what is going on when you're moving around in Windows. The added card takes a load off the system processor.

An ordinary PC from the electronics store, fresh out of the box, can ordinarily benefit from an added video card....and like I mentioned before, from disabling visual effects.

[blackraven]

Noob is correct about the video card. FA, another thing that you should do for your mother's computer is to download a program like Spy Bot Search and Destroy by De Kolla and run it in the advanced mode. It has a program in it called start up and it will give you a list and description of programs that are running automatically when the computer starts up. There is a check box next to each and you can turn off unecessary processes that are slowing down the computer.

I would also consider doing a full operating system reinstall (if you have the disk and are comfortable doing so). This will ensure that there is nothing corrupted in the registry and the computer will run like new. Then I would use the Spy Bot program and turn off all the junk programs running in the back ground to free up resources. These are some simple things to try in addition to new ram to optimize the computer. By the way, Spy Bot will also help with malware and it also has a program called Tea Time which if turned on will help with unwanted programs making registry changes. There are many other programs out there that do this but spy bot is free and it works well. Make sure it is from De Kolla.

http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html

And Feanor, I certainly agree with going with 2gigs of ram if you are going to upgrade. I was just saying that 4 gigs is overkill for her purposes.

[Smokey]

I would also consider doing a full operating system reinstall (if you have the disk and are comfortable doing so). This will ensure that there is nothing corrupted in the registry and the computer will run like new.

After adding additional RAM, this probably will be the next best step. I used to do system reinstal every other year, and it is amazing what a difference it make as far as speed is concern.

[bfalls]

Anyone consider it could be malware causing the decrease in performance? The memory upgrade is still a good idea with Vista, but if it had been running OK and now isn't, I'd check for malware. Go to www.malewarebytes.com and download the free trial version.

[ForeverAutumn]

Great suggestion bfalls. Thanks. This computer has always been unbearably slow so I don't think it's malware. I will run a scan after upgrading the ram though. There is no way I could scan it before hand. It'll take 20 minutes just to d/l the program and probably hours to run it.

[02audionoob]

Another way to improve performance without adding hardware is to go to the Start menu, and Run, type in MSCONFIG, click OK, click Continue, the Startup tab, the Disable All button, and click OK. Then restart the computer and click the box to not show the message about start up changes again.

[Feanor]

Another way to improve performance without adding hardware is to go to the Start menu, and Run, type in MSCONFIG, click OK, click Continue, the Startup tab, the Disable All button, and click OK. Then restart the computer and click the box to not show the message about start up changes again.

Noob & FA,

I really don't recommend that FA do this. It's true that are there are a likely a few start-ups that her Mom doesn't need but there are likely more that are useful or even essential. This is getting into the arcane area of PC operation where the uninitiated should fear to tread. Same goes for Windows Services -- however keeners should check out Blackviper.com to read up on which Windows service are essential, which are not, and when.

I do agree that good anti-malware programs are worthwhile. I regularly use Ad-Aware: see HERE; it's free. But here's the snag: using Ad-Aware to full advantage requires extra resources so it's back to adding RAM (or getting an faster computer).

[02audionoob]

Noob & FA,

I really don't recommend that FA do this. It's true that are there are a likely a few start-ups that her Mom doesn't need but there are likely more that are useful or even essential. This is getting into the arcane area of PC operation where the uninitiated should fear to tread. Same goes for Windows Services -- however keeners should check out Blackviper.com to read up on which Windows service are essential, which are not, and when.

I do agree that good anti-malware programs are worthwhile. I regularly use Ad-Aware: see HERE; it's free. But here's the snag: using Ad-Aware to full advantage requires extra resources so it's back to adding RAM (or getting an faster computer).

You're way overstating the significance of this. It simply is not true that this is arcane or that there are essential operations in that Startup function. I've tried this many times. That might even be where malware programs are starting.

[blackraven]

You're way overstating the significance of this. It simply is not true that this is arcane or that there are essential operations in that Startup function. I've tried this many times. That might even be where malware programs are starting.

Yep, and you can always go back into MS config and reset the defaults. The program that I mentioned earlier-Spy Bot Search And Destroy allows you to do the same thing as MS Config but in greater detail and it will tell you if the program is essential, malware and give you a description of the program. Some things it cannot identify and unless you know what it does, it is best to leave it alone. The good thing is that you can go back and turn the program back on.
It also will search for malware and unwanted cookies and you can immunize the computer against malware.

Another thing to do to speed up the computer is get rid of most of the desk top Icons and place them in the start menu. Desk top icons take up computer resources.

Here's a program called Mem Test which you can use to see if the installed memory has gone bad. Its a useful tool and its free and easy to run-

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/toolso...memorytest.htm

And if you know the brand of the hard drive, you can download one of these free hard drive programs to see if the Hard Drive is working properly- HD's go bad and when they start to go, the computer bogs down and runs very slow. This could very well be part of your mom's computer problem if it takes hours to run programs, but more likely it is the lack of adequate ram, dedicated video card and a cheap mother board

http://pcsupport.about.com/od/toolso.../tophddiag.htm

You should should also see if you can find the speed of the HD, 5400rpm vs 7200rpm. if its 5400 you can easily upgrade to a faster HD for little money. It will load programs faster and start up will be a little faster.

I would try some of these things as well as reinstalling the OS and adding ram and possibly a dedicated video card..

[ForeverAutumn]

go to this link

http://www.crucial.com/?gclid=CMuXu-...20100903172656

choose scan your system

Also, with product info, Tiger can probably match it up.

I ran the scan from Crucial on my Mom's computer yesterday and it not only told me what type of memory to buy but also how many slots her computer has so I didn't need to open it up. It took foreeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeever to run the scan though.

I'll continue to keep you posted on my progress, but it might be another couple of weeks before I have time to buy the sticks and get back to her place to install them.

Thanks again!

[ForeverAutumn]

Hey guys, I just added 2GB to my Mom's computer and it works better than any of my own computers. It's fast!!! Thanks for all your help!

[recoveryone]

You guy missed one important factor that is amazing, At age 84 her mom is still interested in using a computer. I had to drag my parents into the computer age and I get numerous calls now on how to transfers digital photos, e-mail attachments and so on and they are in their late 70's

[Feanor]

Hey guys, I just added 2GB to my Mom's computer and it works better than any of my own computers. It's fast!!! Thanks for all your help!

Great to hear it, FA. And no surprise: a RAM upgrade is usually the easiest and most effective upgrade you can make, at least given your original complement was only 500 MB or 1 GB.

Are you game to try any of the other suggestions mentioned here?

[ForeverAutumn]

Great to hear it, FA. And no surprise: a RAM upgrade is usually the easiest and most effective upgrade you can make, at least given your original complement was only 500 MB or 1 GB.

Are you game to try any of the other suggestions mentioned here?

I took her computer from 512GB to 2.512 MB.

At the moment, I don't need to try any of the other suggestions. Mom's computer is working like a dream and is much faster than she ever thought it could be. She's thrilled. No need to spend any more dough on upgrades to her computer. Next stop...upgrading or replacing our own eight-year-old desktop.

[BillShiphr]

I think it's a good idea to check your computer for viruses. After all, there are a lot of miners nowadays that terrorize your video card or processor. So I decided to install enterprise ransomware protection so that I don't put my office computers at great risk. The worst thing that can happen is loss or leakage of data.