Improving PC Performance

[MossRoad]

What operating system is it?

 

[Devildog]

Last year I reformatted my hard drive and used the disk restore cd's which have all the software on them that came with the cpu. Would it be wise to download the trial version of diskeeper and see if that will help? Or this cpu came with a restore disk. Will that alow me to run the windows install alone?

On Edit: My CPU has win 98 2nd edition with the win ME upgrade.
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Thanks Jim

 

[GlueGuy]

If you've installed the ME upgrade, then this could get arduous. I don't consider ME a worthwhile upgrade, and actually consider 98SE a better platform. Probably the best of the various Win9x variations (and ME is on that list as far as I'm concerned).

The restore that ships with the Presario is pretty nice. Allows you to restore your system to "like new" software condition with an absolute minimum of fuss. You have to be certain to save all your data before you do it. If the the machine came new with 98SE, I would recommend you stick with it until(if) you ever want to go the WinXP route. You'll then have to re-install any 3rd party software you may have gotten since.

I keep all our data in a single directory tree for easy backup. I also keep all the software and Windows handy for quick refreshes whenever Windows decides to self-destruct.

 

[Jag]

Bob, from what I have seen of the defrag running something seems to be moving the data around.... One day while had a little time to play, (it was very cold outside) defrag ran up to about 80%, the next time thru there were big spaces in the data in the first 20%... Will try the screen savers thing when I get a chance....
Thanks, Jag

 

[gator]

When you run scan disk, insure you have surface scan selected, it takes longer but if you have a bad spot on the surface of the disk, it will lock it out.I've had problems on my other computers with defrag locking up and after I ran surface scan and it locked out bad locations, defrag ran fine after that.

 

[MossRoad]

Does ME have a safe mode similar to 98?

 

[Devildog]

Well, I ran the surface scan last night and the dang thing locked up completely again. So Im going to start saving everything this weekend and then run the disk restore with the win 98 2nd edition version. The new CPU has the win xp.
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Take care all, Jim

 

[Bird]

Jim, aren't these blasted contraptions fun?/w3tcompact/icons/frown.gif I've been having to dial up my Internet connection, show to be connected OK, etc., but then no communication. Simply have to disconnect and dial in again, sometimes 3 or 4 times before it works. I updated to IE 6 and that seemed to fix the problem for a few days, and then it's right back. And now when I go to Windows Explorer, there's no tree structure in the left pane. Clicking on the "folders" button opens or closes that pane (as the instructions say), but even when that pane is open, there's nothing but a big gray blank area with nothing but the "X" that closes the pane.

I routinely run Scandisk and Defrag a couple of times a month. And I use the Ctrl|Alt|Delete to close everything it shows to be running, except Explorer and Systray first, yet Scandisk and Defrag will start over numerous times supposedly because some program is running (wish I knew what).

 

[GlueGuy]

MossRoad

ME is identical to Win98 in most respects, including safe mode.

DevilDog

You may have more luck running the scan in DOS mode. Safe mode also usually works. Just boot to the command prompt, and run scandisk thusly:

scandisk /?

This will display all the options. Usually all you need to select is autofix.

 

[Paul_in_CT]

Bird I usually try to keep that attitude (aren`t these things fun) but lately I have been failing miserably /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif I cant not reboot my cpu anymore without getting BSoD (Blue Screen of Death) . My DSL connection is acting up (also searching for a proxy server at start up)...but I have faith that the problem will be discovered. /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif I`m going to call support about my DSL settings. Then once I get that straightened out I will move on. Waiting for a morning when I have some time and am in the proper mood (otherwise I will be buying a new cpu) I dont think homeowners insurance covers it if I run it over with the tractor /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif. Get a cup of coffee ,adjust the chair, then let the battle begin /w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

 

[looch]

Microsoft has included Diskeeper as part of the Windows 2000 operating system. Gives you an idea of well it must perform.

 

[Bird]

<font color=blue>I have faith that the problem will be discovered</font color=blue>

You've got more faith than I do then./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

I'm just trying to keep this thing limping along until my XP upgrade gets here and then see whether it fixes it, or kills it permanently./w3tcompact/icons/laugh.gif

 

[Devildog]

Bird, You got that right. The thing is I wouldnt worry to much since we have the new one coming but now the wife wants me to network the old one and the new one so Im hoping I can get it staightened out without the hammer work/w3tcompact/icons/wink.gif/w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Glueguy, Ill try that when I get home tonght, Thanks Jim

 

[Bird]

Well, the e-mail Dell sent on the 31st said to allow 3-4 weeks for the XP upgrade to arrive, but it came today./w3tcompact/icons/grin.gif Guess I better do a little readin' before I see how much damage I can do with it.

 

[billboe]

Good luck with your upgrade Bird! I had a similar problem as you describe (dial up, connects, but, won't talk to anything) and I beat on it for a while (and I know where to beat these things!). I finally did a reinstall.... So, hopefully your reinstall will clear things up for you.

I haven't played much with XP yet, but, I've always had better luck with wiping the hard disk clean and starting from scratch. Of course this mean you must have a way of backing up your data (including things like your favorites list if that is important to you) and then you must reinstall all your add-on software. If the XP CD you received is an "upgrade", someone else with XP experience may want to speak up to tell you if you need an existing OS on the hard disk to perform the "upgrade"...

I'm sure others will pipe up with more "advice"... /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

Like I said before, good luck!

 

[glennmac]

Masochists!Vanquish frustration. Relieve stress. Eliminate inefficiency. Elicit endorphins.Get a Mac. Get Freedom Hitches. Trash R4's.

 

[MikePA]

This thread made me think to visit <A target="_blank" HREF=http://www.crucial.com>crucial.com</A> for memory for my laptop. When I bought the laptop (about a year ago), additional memory from the mfgr was outrageously expensive, so I bought from crucial. With the improvement in memory technology, I just bought two 256 meg memory modules for my laptop for less than $100 and replaced the existing 64 meg (original) and 128 meg (crucial) modules. /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif The Office2000 products, particularly PowerPoint and Publisher (infamous memory hogs), really fly with half a gig of memory! /w3tcompact/icons/smile.gif

 

[Egon]

Ellicit Endorphins:

Find a double black diamond with moguls and two feet of fresh powder

Egon

 

[MossRoad]

My dial up connection from home is just as unreliable as yours. I dial up, it says conncted at 28.8 I can open the diagnostics for my modem router and see that the data is moving very slowly. I force a hangup, dial in again and get 16K. Hang up again and get 19. then 28, sometimes 36K. I believe it is a combination of bad phone lines in my area and my ISP, but nothing in my house or my PCs.

 

[Bird]

I think you're probably right about the combination, MossRoad.