Slowness problem with laptop

I have a Panasonic Let's Note series notebook PC in which I am using Windows XP. It is a Japanese model similar to the North American Toughbook equivilent. For some time now I have been experiencing terribly slow operating speeds. I have been tremendously frustrated with it. Aside from possible occasional issues with my ADSL service, the problems seem to be with my PC. I can say this because I have another laptop connected to the same provider and I do not have the same problem. Someone suggested that I run a spyware program (Super Antispyware Free Edition). I did and it seemed to help a little. I have been running it regularly bt I haven't noticed much improvement. In fact, it seems to be back at square one -- a snail's pace! I need SPEED. Can you suggest anything? What can I do to significantly improve the overall operating system of my PC?

Well, For starters, When was the last time you upgraded your BIOS Drivers from your Laptops support website??

That can fix speed issues with some models

Next, Remove all your unwanted Programs from add/remove programs

Next, Go Start

- Run
- MsConfig

Take a screenshot of the programs that start with your computer so i can diagnose which programs should not start.

If too many programs start on startup then the computer will be slow from the word go

-K3rupt

K3rupt, thanks for your advice. I am afraid I don't know how to upgrade the BIOS drivers. Please advise. I will go through the programs and dump the ones that aren't needed for the time being. I am also not sure what to do with the MsConfig. Also, please advise. I have a Japanese OS and can't read most things but I could certainly check in comparison with my other system which is English.

if it was fast before but not fast now the problem shouldn't be a new bios. it's the stuff you put in the computer or things done to the computer. specifically fragmentation, registry errors, possible malware, startup files, etc

perhaps you can give us more info like what program and how often you defag, fix registry errors, antivirus/spyware/firewall, and whether or not you used msconfig to remove unwanted startup programs

for starters download and run ccleaner. be sure not to install the toolbar (unless you want it):
http://www.ccleaner.com/

it also has a registry fixer. it's safe since it's weak but it's better than nothing.

I assume there's no free or trial version for it?

Just a quick Question, Do you have your Windows XP CD?

Would you consider a reformat?

Pro's of a reformat
* Creates a clean, unproblematic PC
* Dramatically speeds up slow computers
* Lets you do things the way you want it with your programs

Con's of a reformat
* You lose all files you do not back up
* You must reinstall all drivers
* You must reinstall all software you wish to use

(Sorry for slow reply, Been at work. Yay for 12 hour shifts.)

K3rupt said:

Just a quick Question, Do you have your Windows XP CD?

Would you consider a reformat?

Pro's of a reformat
* Creates a clean, unproblematic PC
* Dramatically speeds up slow computers
* Lets you do things the way you want it with your programs

Con's of a reformat
* You lose all files you do not back up
* You must reinstall all drivers
* You must reinstall all software you wish to use

(Sorry for slow reply, Been at work. Yay for 12 hour shifts.)

Click to expand...

Here's the situation... It's a Japanese PC with a Japanese OS. However, shortly after purchase more than 2 years ago, I installed English Windows XP in it. In addition, I installed all the drivers. After about a year or so, I started to have problems with it for various reasons. As a result of possibly not having all the drivers installed, I was unable to use a couple of keyboard functions. Anyway, I decided to re-install the Japanese version of Windows XP a few months ago and I've been using it that way since. I have thought about simply re-installing / formatting Windows XP but it just takes so long to put everything back to where it was (exactly what you said in your cons). It's a huge hassle and only something I want to do if absolutely necessary.

there's somthing called the "ultimatexp driver cd" or other variants of it. you can find it if you look hard enough. otherwise.... some programs like driver magician can scan and download the drivers for you. also, have you tried the"update by internet option in xp?"

if you downloaded drivers from a "driver website" then you may have been infected with malware as they commonly bundle malware. malwares can slow your computer down

reformat is probably the best option for you. it won't be a pain if you saved all your drivers, made an image, and separated your data files from your os with a partition

lastly, ccleaner is free. just don't install the toolbar. every pc should have this program

I used the JkDefrag to defrag my disk and it seems to have helped some. I wanted to download and install the ATF Cleaner by Atribune to use but I got scared off because the download was reported as unsafe and scared me away! Any comments on that? Would adding memory to my laptop be a good option as I tend to like running several applications at the same time often.

I just used the ccleaner to analyze my PC. The next option would be to run the program. It warns me that a lot of files will be deleted if I do so. I am a little skeptical as I am not sure if I want to do this or not. I assume that it will only delete unnecessary files from my system?

if you want to keep certain cookies to sites then you can tell it not to delete by opening ccleaner, options, cookies, and move the cookies to the not delete bin.

if you play flash games and saved at a certain spot then you have to tell ccleaner not to delete it by giong to cleaner, adobe flash, and uncheck it.

other than that it's good to go. you'll be deleting useless files to speed up your junk. the registry cleaner is totally safe as well

however, reformat is the absolute best option to speed up your unit. if that's out of the question then you'll need to defrag, remove junk, removed broken registry files, delete unused programs, configure startup. all except defrag can be done via this program