# SLOOOW computer



## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

My sister as a *dell deminsion 2400* It is going SO slow! We have done EVERYTHING in monthly tasks and also spyware removal thread! It has 256 mb ram. It freezes up and everything! Alls of the spyware scans and virus scans, don't pick up anything! :flame: We have defragged, scandisk, and also disk clean up. She is running Windows xp Home 2002 *sp1* (sp2 is TOO big to download on dial-up!) What do we do?????


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

It also won't let her on people pc internet


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## bjba (Feb 18, 2003)

> It has 256 mb ram.


The Dell Dimension specs call for 512 mb of ram, which is the bare minimum for XP. If your system properties are specifying 256 mb of ram it sounds like you have a bad stick. At any rate the system and your sister would benefit greatly from an upgrade to 1 mb of ram. Get DSL/cable to shorten download times.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Unfortunately, saying that you are working with a Dell Dimension 2400 is nondescript, since that model came with a range of processors. Typically though, that model came with either a Celeron or Pentium 4 processor in the 2.2 to 2.8 GHz range. Any processor in that range should give you plenty of processing speed to expect good performance.

Depending in what you're doing, 256mb of memory isn't really a whole lot for XP and could easily get you into trouble. While the machine is running slowly, do a Ctrl-Alt-Del to bring up the task manager. Select the performance tab. The top boxes show the CPU usage, and the second boxes show the Page File usage. You are most concerned with Page File usage, since that shows how many megabytes of memory is being used. I'm suspecting that your memory usage will exceed 256mb. Let me know what you see on the Performance tab.

By the way, you don't need to download SP2. I mailed you a CD with SP2 on it. Just install SP2 from that CD. Note than you don't need to apply SP1 first, since SP2 contains all the updates that came with SP1.


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## FreightTrain (Nov 5, 2005)

allways max out your onboard memory/ram.... and what others have said... xp uses much more ram then u have


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

sorry! I mad a mistake it IS 512mb ram~! I Have NEVER had a problem 128mb ram running xp SP2 with BIG games on it ~! It is a pentium 4 processor. Reformating the hard disk and reinstalling windows is NOT an option at THIS time. (nevada, please check your pm...) I will call her later tonight and see what the running processes are.(also the ohr things nevada was asking about~!) Also, thanks nevada, i completely forgot about SP2 being on thos cds. thanks. Bjba, DSL/Cavle and SATELITE is not an option out here. We are in the sticks! We aren't having problems with our connection speeds. (56k is just fine for surfing when using k-melon) This computer IS NOT THE NEWER model (2002), so don't go with dell's website for specs, because they will only have the specs for the newer system.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Teresa S. said:


> This computer IS NOT THE NEWER model (2002), so don't go with dell's website for specs, because they will only have the specs for the newer system.


Let's make sure of what we're dealing with here. There's really no point in guessing. 

Have her right-click on the My Computer icon and select Properties. On the General tab ask for everythng it says under Computer (near the bottom). It should display the processor identifier and amount of memory installed.


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## Kung (Jan 19, 2004)

For the record, 512Mb is not the bare minimum for XP. It is 64Mb.

I personally would recommend a bare minimum of 256, and 512 to be on the safe side.


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

bjba said:


> upgrade to 1 mb of ram.


Hmmm...going with 1mb of ram? Wouldn't that be a downgrade? Well, if you insist......


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Kung said:


> For the record, 512Mb is not the bare minimum for XP. It is 64Mb. I personally would recommend a bare minimum of 256, and 512 to be on the safe side.


 For sure as I have been using 256 ram on this Dell with XP, since new 4 years ago and in No way will I get it upgraded at the Price Of Dell Memory~! Costs at the Minimum of $225. just to get it to 512~~! And close to 400 bucks to up it to a Gig of Ram~! I could go to 1.5 gig in this machine, that is if I was rich


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

arabian knight said:


> No way will I get it upgraded at the Price Of Dell Memory~! Costs at the Minimum of $225. just to get it to 512~~! And close to 400 bucks to up it to a Gig of Ram~! I could go to 1.5 gig in this machine, that is if I was rich


I don't doubt that Dell would hose you like that, but why would you get your memory from Dell if that's the case? To my knowledge, Dell doesn't have proprietary memory. 

The going price for DDR memory is around $100/gig, and even less on eBay. You should expect to pay around $50 for 512 megs.

Open your case and look at the existing memory to see what speed it is (PC2700, PC3200, PC3500, etc). Just get more of the same. If you don't find a label, take the memory module in to your local computer store. They should have someone who can read memory chip nomenclature.


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## FreightTrain (Nov 5, 2005)

Nevada said:


> I don't doubt that Dell would hose you like that, but why would you get your memory from Dell if that's the case? To my knowledge, Dell doesn't have proprietary memory.
> 
> The going price for DDR memory is around $100/gig, and even less on eBay. You should expect to pay around $50 for 512 megs.
> 
> Open your case and look at the existing memory to see what speed it is (PC2700, PC3200, PC3500, etc). Just get more of the same. If you don't find a label, take the memory module in to your local computer store. They should have someone who can read memory chip nomenclature.



its even cheaper at www.pricewatch.com an online marketplace for pc parts venders from all over the country... i usually buy from a semi local company...
almost two years ago I got a gig of corsair DDR pc3200 for $79 off the site


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Nevada said:


> I don't doubt that Dell would hose you like that, but why would you get your memory from Dell if that's the case? To my knowledge, Dell doesn't have proprietary memory. QUOTE]
> 
> This is a 4 year old Dell running a 2.4 Gig Pent 4 Demension (8250) The Dell I have is proprietary memory~!, I have a high end machine that is using PC1066 RDRAM and believe me I have checked many places. including Crucial, and OF Course Best Buy doesn't have it~!
> Ya I upped my H-P from 96 to 256 for like 65 Bucks. This is the ONE THING I don't like about Dell. Well It MAYBE Just these high end machines I am not sure. It has 2 sets of memory places. One pace is for the Memory Modules and the other slots are for continuity modules (whatever they are).
> So I am not even sure but what I have to change not only memory mods as well as the continuity ones as well. But just the Memory RAM to go only up to 512 is between $195 and $245 depending on which Japan manufacturer I order from. And over $400 If I want to go to a Gig~!


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

arabian knight said:


> This is a 4 year old Dell running a 2.4 Gig Pent 4 Demension (8250) The Dell I have is proprietary memory~!, I have a high end machine that is using PC1066 RDRAM and believe me I have checked many places.


PC1066 RDRAM isn't expensive because it's proprietary to Dell, it's expensive because that speed of memory wasn't widely used. Samsung and Kingston also made it. You can even find it at eBay:

http://search-desc.ebay.com/search/...action=compare&copagenum=1&coentrypage=search

Your memory is more expensive than is worth fooling with, yet you certainly have a processor worth hanging on to. What I would do in your situation is swap mainboards to one that can take faster, less expensive memory. You should be able to find a good mainboard for that processor in the $50 to $75 range that will enable you to use popularly priced memory.


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## Guest (Feb 11, 2007)

Teresa, have you checked to see what programs are running in the background? If a lot of stuff is running, it sure will slow you down. I keep instant messengers disabled, as well as media players, and everything possible disabled. I just keep my security suite running and little else. I launch the rest only when I need to use it at that moment.

I go to Start ---> Run ---> type in *msconfig* ---> Click OK ---> Open the Startup tab ---> untick everything that you don't HAVE to have running all the time.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

ladycat said:


> Teresa, have you checked to see what programs are running in the background? If a lot of stuff is running, it sure will slow you down. I keep instant messengers disabled, as well as media players, and everything possible disabled. I just keep my security suite running and little else. I launch the rest only when I need to use it at that moment.
> 
> I go to Start ---> Run ---> type in *msconfig* ---> Click OK ---> Open the Startup tab ---> untick everything that you don't HAVE to have running all the time.


Are you kidding? I haven't even been able to get her to open the Task Manager to check the memory usage yet. LOL


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## Guest (Feb 11, 2007)

Nevada said:


> Are you kidding? I haven't even been able to get her to open the Task Manager to check the memory usage yet. LOL


 That's why I gave baby steps. lol. 

Seems like 90% of the time when it isn't malware causing the problem, it turns out they have a dozen programs running in the background that they don't need.


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

I'm sorry that I cant reply two senconds after a post is made!   
She's bringing the computer to my house today. I will post what is running in the back ground & a Highjack this log. We also forgot to run ccleaner and AVAST!.
I am going to try and remove all unused apps. She doesn't have messengers or use 'actual email programs' (meaning she uses online e-mail services). She still has alot of the 'Dell junk' on it. (aol trials,game trials,and norton 2003 expired supscriprion) She also has three 'user' accounts for windows. Does this hog system resources? (I don't know because I only use one.) I have a stick of 128mb dell memory which is compatable with the deminsion 2400 system that I will add to her current 512mb. I haven't had a chance to get in touch with her, that is why I haven't posted the requested lists.


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

My sster has decided that it would be "too much trouble and take too much time" to fix the computer. :flame: This makes twice I have tried to help her with it! (we spent two hours on the phone yesterday trying to fix it.....). See if I help her with her computer problems again! :croc: Bottom line, sorry to take up valuable computer forum space, and taking up everybody's time!

thanks,
Mad Teresa :flame:


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## Gary in ohio (May 11, 2002)

Teresa S. said:


> My sister as a *dell deminsion 2400* It is going SO slow!


WHAT IS SLOW? People say the computer is slow but mean the internet. What specific function is slow? Was it faster before and now slow or always slow?


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

Ya really. Have they done a Defrag lately~?? I just did a Speed Disc. run last night using my Norton Program basically the same thing as Windows Defrag Program and I went up by quite a bit, in over all performance~! And there was all sorts of little bits here and there and ALL over the drive in Pretty Colors,,, according to Norton 
And as far as saying the computer acts slow while on the Internet means Nothing~! As at times the Internet IS Slow~! Depending on how many are on the server you happen to be on like the one this board is on at times Even This board is slow because the server at times not very much but at times reaches a slow point as well as others do as well. Like MSN Message boards MAN They have been SLOW Lately But that is NO WAY means the persons computer is slow, just means that there is a Lot of Traffic on those many servers a person goes through JUST TO GET to a particular message board~! Saying the computer is slow while on the net does not mean a thing. As One Person in one part of the country going through Different servers getting to this board may well be slow as someone in another part of the country maybe as fast as ever~! Just depends on how YOUR Phone lines connect to the net and is routed in a certain way.
I wish some would read up on just how the Internet works also would help matters a whole lot.


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

Gary in ohio said:


> WHAT IS SLOW? People say the computer is slow but mean the internet. What specific function is slow? Was it faster before and now slow or always slow?


Here we go again! Gary, please read my first two posts. If the internet was slow, I would have said "My sisters dell demenison 2400 INTERNET is slow".
The internet goes blazing fast when the computer lets her connect to it. The computer ITS self is slow, the operating system. It was fast for about two months, then slow. Don't anyone waist their time digging in to this, like I said before, she won't listen to reason, thinks it is too much trouble and takes too much time...


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

we have also done a defrag. and norton scan. (norton sys. works 2003)


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Teresa S. said:


> norton scan. (norton sys. works 2003)


Norton is a resource hog. If she's got it running in the background it could be the cause for her machine to run slow. I swear, I've seen viruses that do less damage than some Norton products.

I don't blame Peter Norton. This is just since he sold Norton Utilities to Symantec.


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## Guest (Feb 12, 2007)

Nevada said:


> Norton is a resource hog. If she's got it running in the background it could be the cause for her machine to run slow. I swear, I've seen viruses that do less damage than some Norton products.
> 
> I don't blame Peter Norton. This is just since he sold Norton Utilities to Symantec.


 I got rid of Norton. I hate it.


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## Gary in ohio (May 11, 2002)

Teresa S. said:


> Here we go again! Gary, please read my first two posts. If the internet was slow, I would have said "My sisters dell demenison 2400 INTERNET is slow".
> :


Yes and again I ask, WHAT is slow? Does it take longer to launch programs? Is there a keyboard lag when you type, is the screen updating slowly? What programs are you running that seem slow? what does slow mean.

What does your perf meter say, how many programs are running, what is the idle load with no user launched programs, what is the network load with no launched programs. What programs are actually running.


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## Karen (Apr 17, 2002)

Teresa, I understand your frustration, but people are only trying to help. Even if you're not going to fix the problem, folks here are only trying to get you to understand the type of information you would need to supply. 

When you request help, you have to understand that no one can help you if your not physically in front of that particular computer to supply information that they must have in order to help. Now that's not to say you should not feel free to ask the questions, but rather to wait to do so until you are in a postion to supply the required information.

There's going to be a lot of information that you will need to provide in order for folks to help you. It isn't appropriate to even ask for help if you know you can't provide the required information. Some problems need to be dealt with in steps and we need specific information at specific times in order to move on to the next step. 

You see, when someone can't (or won't) provide full disclosure, it's the equivalence of posting for an opinion of what kind of dress to buy for friend when you don't really know which friend your buying for, what size she is, what color she likes, what accessories she has to go with it, etc. There are extremely few hypothetical situations in computers. Although situations have common elements, there are way too many variables to resolve the actual problem. It strictly depends on _that_ particular computer. 

Solving computer problems isn't like repairing a tire where there is an exact process. Solving computer problems is more like solving a mystery. You have different characters (both good and bad), different things going on in the background, and (the most important of all) an entirely different set of _clues_. It's taking those "clues" and putting them together with the characters and background history to solve the problem. You can't fix a problem if all characters, background info, and clues have not been revealed.  

I'm not being disrespectful or criticizing; and this is not just directed at you but at everyone who asks a lot a questions but then get upset at the answers or are unwilling (or unprepared) to give enough information for _better_ answers. I'm simply suggesting that people try to understand (and not misunderstand) that folks here honestly do wish to help, and to please not get upset at them for trying so hard to help. 

Kung if I have overstepped at all, please feel free to delete this.


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

Teresa S. said:


> Here we go again! Gary, please read my first two posts. If the internet was slow, I would have said "My sisters dell demenison 2400 INTERNET is slow".
> The internet goes blazing fast when the computer lets her connect to it. The computer ITS self is slow, the operating system. It was fast for about two months, then slow. Don't anyone waist their time digging in to this, like I said before, she won't listen to reason, thinks it is too much trouble and takes too much time...


People, my goodness! please reread the above post! No programs are slow, internet isnt slow, I stated "The operating system is slow"...takes about 10 minutes to start up. Norton has been removed, startup listed cheacked, only down to needed things to run Windows.


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## Teresa S. (Mar 2, 2006)

Karen, I have given all of the possible information I can give. I am sorry if it doesnt meet your needs. I don't have on hand access to this computer.


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## Nevada (Sep 9, 2004)

Teresa S. said:


> Karen, I have given all of the possible information I can give. I am sorry if it doesnt meet your needs. I don't have on hand access to this computer.


From what you've described it still sounds like the symptoms of a memory shortage. Regardless of how much memory might be installed in that machine, the information on the task manager's Performance tab, specifically the CPU & memory usage statistics, would have settled that question. I don't recall you ever providing us with that info. Likewise, we never learned what processes were running in the background.

It doesn't matter to me one way or the other at this point, but without basic information like CPU and memory usage this discussion was just speculation. It would be like asking a doctor why your friend felt run-down and had no energy, but didn't tell the doctor the patent's history, the patients vital signs, and the doctor couldn't even examine the patient. Under those circumstances, the best doctor in the world could only speculate.

Don't take it personally. This isn't personal; this is the computer forum. If you want to start a thread that you can take personally then start one in the General Chat forum. There's always a brawl going on in GC.


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## 2horses (Jul 19, 2004)

I don't know that XP home edition deals with multiple profiles well - it could be that it's loading those and that's what is slowing down the OS launch. I also disagree about not needing SP2 - it is necessary to keep to the OS running well.

Pam  <------------- just a couple of ideas


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## arabian knight (Dec 19, 2005)

I agree~!!! And also because in a few months SP3 Comes Out~! And I bet you can't get that Update without having SP2~!! And so what if the SP2 download is slow on dial up? Just start it at night and Go To Bed~! And when you get up it will be done~! And when a friend of mine was on dial just a few months ago AND DID the SP2 Update That is what she did~! Or if going someplace and going to gone for a few hours, Start the Download And Leave~! When you come back it should be done and ready to install~!
It IS important and really has a GOOD Pop Up Blocker as well as other features~!
And Besides That .. Read This~!!!:: Right from Microsofts Web Site::
Windows XP with Service Pack 2
Ongoing
* Windows XP with Service Pack 1
No new updates offered after September 2006; previous updates available * And of course ME, 98SE, and Further back Windows are also included in this No Support anymore, No New Critcal Updates are coming any more


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