slow running computer

I missed understood you.I thought you wanted me to change,only,the virtual memory to be 1.5 times my ram.I didn`t think you where talking about buying memory, but changing the virtual memory stats.Do you have any other ideas?And if I wanted to buy memory, which I probably won`t do, where would I get it? Is there at this any other help you could give me? One question, how would increasing memory help my situation?

Hello altima56,

little eagle asked me to see if I could assist you, since you are still having an issue and he has ruled out spyware as a factor. With that, I'd love to continue helping you work through this issue to a solution.

To clarify what little eagle said, the "Initial size" value for your virtual memory should be 384 (1.5x RAM), while the "Maximum size" value should be 768 (3x RAM). These numbers are for a system with 256 MB RAM.

It is recommended to have 512 MB of RAM for a system running Windows XP, hence little eagle's suggestion to purchase another stick. I just bought a 256MB stick for $35, which is a reason they call it "the poor man's upgrade" ;). You can go to crucial.com and use The Crucial System Scanner to figure out exactly what kind of RAM is compatible for your system. All you do is click the Scan My System button and follow through the steps. You can even purchase it from them, they are fairly reasonable in price and deliver quickly.

With that, let's turn our attention to some things we can check right away. Do you regularly run the disk defragmenter? If not, go to Start|All Programs|Accessories|System Tools and click Disk Defragmenter. Choose your hard drive and then click the Defragment button. You should do this at least once a month, depending on how much you use your system.

Let's start with this and see if there is an improvement.

Regards,

Ax

Ax – thanks for your reply.To answer your question,Disk defrag, disk clean up,AVG and ad-aware spyware removal is done on a regular basis, in regular and in safe mode.I agree with little eagle, it is probably not spyware or a virus.Question, I ran the scan and looked into getting more memory.How would that help me and why isn`t 256 mb of ram not enough for what I do?A friend, who is a computer programmer ,and the person who reinstalled my operating system last year because of a corrupted file that would not allow me to install a new printer said , the problem is playing offline games and not being able to remove all the spyware that i get.Could I have a corrupted file some where, that is making things run slow?There is a delayed response, when I click on the printer, IE and even your link when you send me an email.Everything is delayed, like I am not able to make a full connection, to the printer or IE,etc.Please thank for me ,little eagle for all of his help.Wait for your reply—thank you very much.

Great to hear you keep your computer maintained very well, that should help us out.

Getting more memory will allow you to do things faster, you won't believe what a simple little stick of RAM can do for computer speed. Gaming of any sort these days is intensive on the computer, requiring a lot to be loaded into memory. If the computer runs out of memory, it has to start swapping things out to the hard drive, which… makes… things… go… really… really… slowly… Frankly, it doesn't matter what you do on it, the recommended minimum to run XP these days is 512 MB of RAM.

Let's take a look at how your system is running. Please run the PC PitStop Full Tests and post a TechExpress Link here. This should give us some helpful information regarding how your system is currently doing with the resources it has.

Regards,

Ax

Ax- here are the results from the scan.Tell me if I did this right Home Page Radio Listeners Pitstop Store Newsletter info Logged in anonymous > Logout Test My PC Full Tests Optimize 1.5 Internet Speed Spyware Scan AntiVirus Running Programs Privacy Scan Driver Scan Disk Health Check ActiveX Vista Readiness Info Centers Help & Support Battling Spyware Gator / Claria Privacy & ID Theft MaxPC Performance PC Safety The Pit Blog PC Market Trends About Us Forums Forums Home Fix My PC Internet Tests Viruses & Spyware Site Feedback Current Test Results Summary Test Details Hardware List Installed Software System Comparisons Test History Share Results with Note! You have run this test anonymously. It will only be visible for the duration of your current browser session. To create an account so you can return to this report, click here. Test Details TipsIn the tips and the tables, red indicates a serious problem, yellow a minor problem, and blue a suggestion. • Check IE Restricted Sites zone • Install more memory • Adjust IE browser cache size • Enable System Restore • Adjust Receive Buffer Size Windows ConfigurationDescription Your Results Common Name Windows XP Pro SP2 Full Version Windows XP Pro SP2 First Install Thu Jan 5 2006 Free Resources 90% Fonts Installed 159 Windows Scripting Version 5.6.0.8820 PCPitstop Version 167 CPU Load 17% Running ProgramsMalicious or poorly written running programs are a common cause of poor performance and system instability. We strongly recommend that you use an antivirus program such as EZ Antivirus from Computer Associates and a spyware scanner such as PC Pitstop Exterminate on a regular basis. To get control over your running programs we suggest WinTasks 5 Pro. Click on a file name to see more information about it. Legend: Virus Spyware/Adware Optional Required No data designates programs that can safely be disabled to improve computer performance, PC Pitstop Optimize disables these programs. Name Vendor Complete File Name Realplayer RealNetworks, Inc. C:\Program Files\Common Files\Real\Update_OB\realsched.exe Sun Java Update Sun Microsystems, Inc. C:\Program Files\Java\jre1.5.0_11\bin\jusched.exe GoogleToolbarNotifier Google Inc. C:\Program Files\Google\GoogleToolbarNotifier … \GoogleToolbarNotifier.exe avgas.exe Anti-Malware Development a.s. C:\Program Files\Grisoft\AVG Anti-Spyware 7.5\avgas.exe Outlook Express Microsoft Corporation C:\Program Files\Outlook Express\msimn.exe Roxio Direct CD Roxio C:\Program Files\Roxio\Easy CD Creator 5\DirectCD\DirectCD.exe Office XP speech Microsoft Corporation C:\WINDOWS\system32\ctfmon.exe Avira GmbH C:\Program Files\AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic\avgnt.exe AVIRA GmbH C:\Program Files\AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic\avguard.exe Avira GmbH C:\Program Files\AntiVir PersonalEdition Classic\sched.exe Anti-Malware Development a.s. C:\Program Files\Grisoft\AVG Anti-Spyware 7.5\guard.exe Hewlett-Packard Co. C:\Program Files\HP\HP Software Update\HPWuSchd2.exe HP HP C:\WINDOWS\system32\HPZipm12.exe Print spooler Microsoft Corporation C:\WINDOWS\system32\spoolsv.exe Internet Explorer Microsoft Corporation C:\Program Files\Internet Explorer\IEXPLORE.EXE Windows Explorer Microsoft Corporation C:\WINDOWS\Explorer.EXE Local Security Authority Microsoft Corporation C:\WINDOWS\system32\lsass.exe Service control process Microsoft Corporation C:\WINDOWS\system32\services.exe Service host process Microsoft Corporation C:\WINDOWS\system32\svchost.exe Performance-Related Windows Settings The following settings may be helpful in diagnosing general system performance problems. Setting name Value Video acceleration disabled No Paging of kernel disabled No Screen saver running during tests No NOIDE key found in registry No Running 32-bit code on 64-bit Windows No System Restore disabled Yes Large System Cache enabled No Has batteries No Hibernate enabled No HIBERFIL.SYS present No Hibernate policy in use No Sleep/Resume policy in use Yes Running on battery power No Internet Configuration Run our Free PC Pitstop Optimize 1.5 Scan to check proper registry settings for your connection type. Optimize tweaks the optimal registry values to get the most from your Internet connection. Try our free Optimize 1.5 Scan Now! Learn More. Description Your Results Bandwidth Down 3593 Kbits/sec Bandwidth Up 1195 Kbits/sec Average Ping 49 ms Ping Loss 0% TCP Receive Window (default) External IP Address [removed] Internal IP Address 192.168.15.163 Browser MSIE 7.0; .NET CLR 1.1.4322 IE current cache 36 MB IE max cache 1788 MB Vonage the Broadband Phone Company Make unlimited voice calls on your broadband Internet connection for only $24.99/month! Other plans start as low as $14.99. Forget long distance phone bills with Vonage Voice-over-IP technology. Click here for information on how to try it risk freeThe Bandwidth tests measure the Internet bandwidth between your computer and PC Pitstop's servers. In general, if your bandwidth result is at least 85% of the rated connection speed, you're receiving good throughput (though shared connections may affect this, too). Average Ping measures the round-trip time for a packet to travel from the PC being tested to PC Pitstop's web site and back; lower numbers indicate better performance. Ping times under 150ms are typical of T1, DSL, or cable modems. Consistent ping times of more than 500ms should only be seen in connections that span continents (e.g., USA to Europe) and/or are linked by satellite. Ping losses usually indicate serious Internet congestion. Internet performance can be erratic for many different reasons, so you can't expect to get maximum bandwidth and ping performance every time you test. You should test several times and at different times of the day to get the most accurate picture of your connection speed. To repeat only our Bandwidth test and get more information, plus tips for improving performance, click here. For additional testing of your browser configuration and Internet connection, we recommend BrowserTune. More Internet related Settings The following settings may be helpful in diagnosing internet performance problems. Setting name Value Using a proxy No HTTP 1.1 through proxy Enabled No HTTP 1.1 Enabled Yes Check for newer pages turned off No Show Pictures No Format docs using my style sheet No Content Advisor enabled No Check Associations Disable No Enable Automatic Image Resize No Enable third-party browser extensions No Enable page transitions No Always use my {colors|fonts|size} No Security ConfigurationDescription Your Results IE Restricted Zone Permissions Submit non-encrypted form data Security-Related Windows Settings The following settings may be helpful in diagnosing spyware and browser hijacks. Setting name Value Explorer: Some drive letters are hidden No Explorer: Hide extensions for known file types Yes Explorer: Hide protected operating system files Yes Explorer: Do not show hidden files and folders No Explorer: Do not display contents of system folders Yes HOSTS location remapped via the Registry No System File Protection disabled No Main BoardDescription Your Results Brand/Model Dell Computer Corporation Dimension 2350 Type Desktop Serial Number 19VTM21 BIOS Mitac International A01 12/17/2002 System Board Dell Computer Corporation 07W080 A00 ProcessorDescription Your Results Brand/Model Intel Celeron Nominal Clock Speed 1800 MHz Measured Clock Speed 1800 MHz External Clock Speed 400 MHz CPU Load 17% Speed Rating 3172 (103% of 925 similar) Memory ConfigurationDescription Results RAM installed 256 MB Windows RAM 255 MB Total RAM slots 2 Available RAM slots 1 Max RAM module size 1024 MB Memory Type 256+0;DIMM,SDRAM,|Synchronous;T16 Speed Rating 3498 MB/s (106% of 925 similar) Memory Tip On virtually any system, memory is the best bang-for-the-buck upgrade, especially if you currently have 256MB or less. Installing memory is a snap, it just works and your PC is faster. PC World has put together a step-by-step guide if you need help. With prices so low lately I've purchased a lot of memory, and all of it has been from Crucial. Their prices beat the competition and they currently have free shipping. – Rob Cheng, CEO, PC PitstopUpgrading memory can give your computer extra performance. Crucial Technology can identify the memory you need at very competitive prices. Speed rating is measured in megabytes per second. The percentage indicates the performance of this system compared to systems in our database with a similar CPU and clock speed; the number of similar systems is also shown. For example, a score of 50% would indicate this system had half the performance of comparable systems; 200% would indicate twice the performance. A "normal" number is 100% plus or minus about 15%. The System Management BIOS is reporting that there is 256 MB of RAM, but Windows reports that 255 MB is available. The most common reason for this discrepancy is that your system uses some system RAM for the video graphics card or BIOS functions. This case is common in highly-integrated PCs with video graphics built into the system board, and does not require any changes on your part. Drive LettersThese are drive letters associated with hard disk drives. This list does not include drive letters for floppy disks or other removable media such as CD-ROM, DVD, Zip or Jaz drives. Description Drive C Partition format NTFS Cluster size 4 KB Drive label No Label Size 57231 MB Free space 52069 MB (91%) Junk files 36 MB (0%) Data fragmentation 0% File fragmentation 1% Uncached speed 35 MB/s (136%) Percentages shown for free space and junk files (temporary files, browser cache, Recycle Bin files) represent the size relative to the total disk capacity. A disk with 50% free space is half-full (or half-empty, if you're an optimist). PC Pitstop Optimize is an easy way to keep your hard disk free of unnecessary files. Our full tests only perform disk health checking on the C drive. We recommend that you check the health of your other drives using Disk MD. Data fragmentation measures the percentage of data on the disk that is contained in fragmented files. File fragmentation is the percentage of files on the disk that are fragmented. Some disk optimization programs such as Window's Disk Defragmenter intentionally fragment files to place them in the best position to ensure quick program loading, so the fragmentation measures may be non-zero even after running a disk optimizer. For more details check out Disk MD. Cached and uncached speed is measured in megabytes per second (MB/s). When a percentage is shown for cached and uncached speed, it compares the performance of the drive with those of systems in our database with the same processor and clock speed. (Our database currently has 925 similar systems.) A rating of 200% means a disk is twice the performance of similar systems, 50% means it's half the performance. Cached disk speed generally measures the efficiency of the system's processor and memory system, not the performance of the hard disk. Uncached speed is most affected by the physical hard disk and the disk interface. Disk DrivesHere are the physical disk drives that we have detected on your system: Drive 0 Drive letters C Removable media No Brand/Model ST360015A IDE details DMA Serial number Revision level For IDE drives, IDE details show whether the drive has DMA enabled and is an IDE master (single drive, or master drive in a master/slave pair). CD/DVD DrivesHere are the CD and DVD drives that we have detected on your system: Model Type Max Read Speed Max Write Speed HL-DT-ST CD-ROM GCR-8481B CD-ROM 8448 KB/s (48X) N/A SAMSUNG CD-R/RW SW-248F CD-RW 8467 KB/s (48X) 8467 KB/s (48X) Video BoardDescription Your Results Brand/Model Intel® 82845G/GL/GE/PE/GV Graphics Controller Resolution 800x600 pixels Colors 16 million DirectX version 5.03.2600.2180 (xpsp_sp2_rtm.040803-2158) OpenGL version 5.1.2600.2180 (xpsp_sp2_rtm.040803-2158) Acceleration options Enabled Performance 76.38 MP/s (112% of 296 similar) Get Updated Drivers! Run TouchStone's Free DriveAgent to find your PCs most up-to-date drivers. Better Performance Improved Stability Fast and Easy PC Pitstop's video performance performs a basic test of your system's graphics capabilities and reports the result in millions of pixels displayed per second (MP/s). The percentage indicates the performance of this system compared to systems in our database with a similar CPU, clock speed, and video board. For example, a score of 50% would indicate this system had half the performance of comparable systems; 200% would indicate twice the performance. Determining "normal" performance can be difficult, there can be wide differences due to video drivers even on the same video board. (You can use TouchStone's DriverAgent to see if you have the latest driver.) MonitorsDescription Monitor Dell 311151 Max. Resolution (HxV) 1600 x 1200 pixels Screen Size (HxV) 32 x 24 cm Viewable Diagonal Size 15.75 inch Manufacture Date January 2003 Serial Number 808470067 Home | Our Legal Stuff | Privacy Policy | Press | Our Store | Link to Us Testimonials | Customer Service | Support PC Pitstop | Printable Page

Please run the PC PitStop Full Tests and post a TechExpress Link here.

Sorry if I wasn't clear, but I'll actually need you to give me the actual hyperlink of the test results. There is a link in the above text with instructions on doing this (http://www.pcpitstop.com/faq/sharing.asp).

Regards,

Ax

Hello again,

This was all that was actually needed:

TechExpress link for your current results:
http://www.pcpitstop.com/techexpress.asp?id=A8ELFWBHBGWSUYLJ

I'll take a look, do some research, and then post my recommendations.

Regards,

Ax

Let's start with the following items (from your HJT log):
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [IgfxTray] C:\WINDOWS\system32\igfxtray.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [AdaptecDirectCD] "C:\Program Files\Roxio\Easy CD Creator 5\DirectCD\DirectCD.exe"
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [HP Software Update] C:\Program Files\HP\HP Software Update\HPWuSchd2.exe
O4 - HKLM\..\Run: [TkBellExe] "C:\Program Files\Common Files\Real\Update_OB\realsched.exe" -osboot
O4 - HKCU\..\Run: [RealPlayer] "C:\Program Files\Real\RealPlayer\realplay.exe" /RunUPGToolCommandReBoot

Although these aren't problems, none of them are required tasks to run and can be safely disabled. You can fix them using HijackThis.

I still feel you are going to get the best improvement by adding more RAM to your system.

Regards,

Ax

got your message.Question–item–04hklm,run[hp software update]—I did not delete yet.If i would delete it would I lose the ability to receive updates from HP?? Looked into memory upgrade–would you want me to upgrade to 512 or even better 768??

You could still receive updates from HP, but you would have to manually start the program. I would suggest just creating a shortcut on your desktop to "C:\Program Files\HP\HP Software Update\HPWuSchd2.exe" and run it every now and again. As for the RAM, it depends on what you want. Any amount of added RAM will be good for your system, it just depends on how much you would want to spend. Your system should run well enough on 512MB, even better with 768MB. Regards, Ax

Hi AX—just wanted to send you a note.I added an additional 512 mb of ram, giving me a total of 768. I just wanted to thank you and little eagle for your help.I will receive the upgrade in 1 week.After i install the memory, I will write back and tell you how everything is.Again thanks.

Sounds good, we'll look forward to your response. Regards, Ax

Ax- just wanted to say hi.Got the memory board today and installed it, with not much problem. Speed has definitely increased. I also have to realize speed, is dependent on the web page I am going onto. Some are faster to access then others. I want to say thanks to you and little eagle for all your help. I hope I won`t need your services anymore but If I do, I now nowhere to go for great help.Thanks again.

That's great to hear! I'm glad you were able to get everything set up alright. Please do stop back if you have any other issues and we'll be happy to help you through them. Regards, Ax