Upgrade Pc or buy new one

guy999

I currently own a 2-3 year old hp pavillion 403.uk
Its a celeron 1.8, ive upgraded memory over time to 512mb.
But lately its gone really slow, even though i use norton system works to help speed it up.

My thoughts are either
1) Do a full reboot - but will lose some programs
2) Change from xp home to pro as its quicker

3) Upgrade my processor.

But if I upgrade processor what to? What about my motherboard? Dont know how fast it will allow?

4) Buy a new cheap compt with anything but old celeron processor

Thanks

valiant23

I just know this will get shot down in flames...they're an evil bunch those PC experts.

Anyway, here goes. If you don't need cutting edge can I point you here;

http://forum.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi?board=Urgents;action=display;num=1102969787

Another idea may be to transplant bits of your old and mix it with new bits. Without knowing too much I'd consider upgrading *motherboard + processor and keeping as much of your old as possible. Before you get loads of people suggesting new hard drive- initially you could keep the old and when you decide to upgrade keep the old as a 2nd h.d. (I did this and it works fine).

The reason I suggest this way is with a new PC it always seems to take a couple of months before it actually 'belongs' to you and it seems you are reluctant to retire your trusted companion.


*BTW you may have to buy a new case/tower to fit the motherboard.

HTH

culpepper

If money is tight I would go for a reinstall .How often is it defragmented?I do mine once a week.
Check for spyware running as this can slow it down hugely. Computer activehave free downloads
I would also consider sticking windows 2000 on instead as this can run on a slower machine (daughter has it on her 333mhz) Depends if you already have it.
You could up the memory again . What sort of memory does it take ? Can it take anymore?
Ive just replaced the motherboard on mine as it has made the comp far more upgradable (more memory slots,better range of processors allowed etc) .

RubberDucky_3

Without doubt do a reinstall.

I'm running a 500mhz without problem - you have 1800mhz and want to upgrade! Madness.

Get someone who knows what they are doing to do a complete reinstall and you'll have a lightning fast PC again.

-TangleFoot-

No need to upgrade or replace with specs like those. If a complete re-install seems like too much trouble (or you've got nowhere to backup your valuable data), the following might be of use.

Defragment the hard drive.

Uninstall anything that isn't used frequently.

If you haven't already got it, order a copy of Service Pack 2 from Microsoft's website - it's free!

Additionally, some software that few can do without:
Lavasoft Adaware
SpywareBlaster
AVG Anti-Virus

(Windows XP Pro is almost identical to Home. For a home user, it's not remotely worth the expense.)

guy999

Hi
Thanks for your answers will do complete reboot, but first need to back up lots of files (mostly pictures), so just looking for dvd rewriter.
Think will go with nec from ebuyer.

However seem to have accumulated 3years of programs and files over 3000 in outlook express alone.

Not sure about service pack2 as not 100% compatible with this hp m/c i seem to recall

-TangleFoot-

SP2 not compatible? In that case just turn on Windows XP's built-in firewall. It's basic but it works (unless you've got broadband and a NAT router, in which case you should ignore this entirely).

Just look at http://grc.com and look at 'Shields Up!' to see why!


For cheap DVD-ReWriters, look here.

guy999

Tanglefoot, thanks for your comments, have got broadband but probably not NAT as not know what it is.

As part of Norton system works I get a firewall, think this is okay?

But downloading your various spyware suggestions

Just deciding which DVD burner to buy, still think NEC

culpepper

I think some versions of norton were incompatible with SP2 but should be updates on Nortons site to deal with that.

-TangleFoot-

NAT = Network Address Translation

It's a feature of most broadband routers (those y'can connect more than one computer to); means basically that a home network of many computers can use just one IP address to connect to the internet, sharing the connection. Upshot of this is that no-one on the other side of the connection - the rest of the 'net - can gain access to anything connected to the router unless whoever's configured it has specifically allowed them to.

And if you already have a software firewall such as Norton's, it will almost certainly be better than Windows XP's one anyway - so carry on using that!

Lastly, If Norton (or any other security package) is kept up-to-date, there should be no problems with SP2 - just make sure to turn off Windows' built-in firewall first. Two firewalls are like two virus-checkers running side-by-side: a very bad thing.


One last thought - problems with SP2 are usually caused by old/buggy system drivers; so it might be worth seeing if any newer ones are available on the pc manufacturer's website. Hope that helps.

chewyjoint

I have 3 firewalls running - Windows XP, one one my Netgear router and one supplied by my broadband provider (metronet).

Should I turn 2 of them off?