<p>what are some easy ways for me to get my computer to run faster? </p>
<p>i have 21 GB of 30 GB free.
a 2.797 MHz processor
512 MB of RAM
i do adaware/spybot/norton anti virus several times a week
and its a laptop</p>
<p>Disc cleanup and defrag it...but you've probably already tried those.</p>
<p>Oh, and dump Norton's...it has way too many loopholes and is expensive. Download AVG...it's better, free, and updates itself quickly on a daily basis! It's what all the schools in my county use on their computers to keep viruses out of the system...so it's reliable...</p>
<p>Littlelostflute seems to be right on with that post. Norton is junk IMO, go with AVG, it's also lighter on the system. You already have adaware and spybot, so I'd imagine there's no(possibly only a little) spyware on the computer. I honestly don't think there is too much more you can do. Granted your using xp, go to run and type 'msconfig', and see what you have running in the background. That's about the only way I could imagine of possibly making it any faster.</p>
<p>norton only makes things worse. it messed up my computer so bad than it already was a long time ago. and it takes up like 99% of my RAM whenver it's running, and i have 768MB! i'll never trust norton!</p>
<p>I guess I will say something positive about it.</p>
<p>I had Norton for about a year now. I run a Sony 3.0 GHZ with 521 RAM, it runs pretty smooth and never had a problem with it. And I think it does a fanstaic job.....</p>
<p>just my 2 cent...</p>
<p>Norton never really helped my computer (didn't destroy, but didn't improve anything).</p>
<p>If anything though, the fact that AVG is free makes it better in my book!</p>
<p>control alt delete. get reid of every process that is useless.</p>
<p>Get rid of XP, get Linux (much more stable) unless you don't know how to use a shell OS. Then, load a Windows kernal emulator. You can run all your windows programs on Linux, then, and at a better pace. Also, you won't need an S-load of AntiVirus software, firewalls, etc. to protect your computer since it pretty much does it itself (most adware, spyware, etc. isn't built for Linux or Mac which is why they have much lower rates of infestation/vulnerability).</p>
<p>I hope you guys are all right on this because my computer is running slower than normal too. And I just uninstalled my Norton Anti-virus system and I'm going to download that AVG thing. I hope it works :)!</p>
<p>Making your laptop run faster:</p>
<p> Add another 512 M of ram. Be sure to check your owners manual. Most laptops have only two memory slots. Some manufacturers will populate those two slots with 256 M sticks to get 512 rather than using a single 512 stick. Going to 1 G of memory may mean you sacrifice one or both of your memory sticks </p>
<p> You have a 30 G hard drive. That tells me its likely a pretty basic laptop. It also means that the hard drive is probably a 4200 rpm unit. You should consider upgrading to a 5400/7200 rpm unit. If youre waiting for applications to load or moving through menu choices that seem slow, a faster hard drive is the way to go. Youll have to back up your old hard drive to your new one, but you will notice the difference. Laptop hard drives are 2.5 units. 3.5 units are for desktop machines. Dont confuse the two.</p>
<p>If it were up to me, I would swap out the hard drive first. 512 M of memory should be fine for most applications. A faster hard drive may use a bit more power which could shorten your battery run time. </p>
<p>All this presumes that your laptop is clean of viruses and spyware and that you haven't downloaded files from infested p2p sites. You can also back up your important files and try reformating your hard drive with your recovery disc.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>haha **** that, get a 2 gig memory kit, a 200 gb SATA hd, an AMD 64 FX cpu, SLI 6800 ultras, xp professional, and youll be good to go</p>
<p>Hah...the person said they are looking for "easy ways"...not a complete make-over...</p>
<p>Well...I downloaded the AVG thing and ran the scan, and I would have to say that my computer is almost back to it's normal speed, but it's running pretty fast right now. So even though my computer is not really the topic of this, I would like to say thanks. Because it definitally found some viruses that adware didn't catch.</p>
<p>Diana606: You're probably not the only person who has done this, but you're confusing youre "system cleanup programs" (heh). </p>
<p>Adaware - Cleans up advertising spam. Some programs (Kazaa, or anything with advertising involved) and websites track what you do and send you ads (popups mostly) through open ports. Adaware finds these "trackers' and deletes them. A warning though: if you delete certain trackers, the programs that they came with might not work (Kazaa is yet another example of this, heh!).</p>
<p>Spybot/Spyware Doctor - Cleans up trackers and spyware in general. A lot of this stuff is the same as adware, but you should run both types of programs to make sure everything is clean.</p>
<p>Anti-Virus software - Viruses are different from adware and spyware. They typically aren't used by companies to bug the heck out of you with spam, but are usually made by individuals who just want to cause malicious harm. Computers can typically handle large amounts of adware and spyware for a while, but viruses tend to cause a lot more problems.</p>
<p>michuncle: u can put extra ram on a laptop????</p>
<p>i also just downloaded avg and it is scanning right now.</p>
<p>i also forgot to mention that my computer has been partitioned for several months, i have an external 160 gb harddrive
here are the programs i have on my computer (are any of them BAD for the computer):
<a href="http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c328/lbioche/programs.jpg%5B/url%5D">http://i30.photobucket.com/albums/c328/lbioche/programs.jpg</a></p>
<p>thanks for ur advice!</p>
<p>oh its a laptop. nm then.</p>
<p>I looked at your directory and have some concerns with Limewire. It's a good program, but with any p2p software, there's the potential for downloading files that have trojans or malware. </p>
<p>Download the following: </p>
<p>True Sword is a pretty interesting anti-spyware program. I used it to clean my nephew's laptop after he did some p2p "stuff".</p>
<p>Yes, you can increase the memory for your Dell laptop. Check out you owner's manual or go on-line to Dell support. Typically, there's a plastic panel on the bottom of your laptop that's held on with a screw. Remove the screw and the panel to access your memory. 512 M should be enough for most applications, so I don't think it's your main problem. </p>
<p>Run True Sword to see if you have any "bad stuff". Once that stuff is gone, reboot and see if your speed increases. </p>
<p>Let me know what happens...</p>
<p>You do have a pretty large external drive which is probably plugged into one of your USB ports. Check your manual to see if you're running USB 1.1 or 2. It could be that your laptop has the slower USB port and that could slow things down if you're accessing it. If the external drive is connected, I'm guessing that your running with your power brick. Try unplugging your external hard drive to see if that makes a difference...</p>