Computer getting even slower

hsk on 07/05/2013 - 16:25

In March I mentioned that my computer was slow and was given some help. Thank you. I am back again with still the same problem and I have been searching the net and wonder if I should try the suggestions on this site to help rid my computer of malware??

http://malwaretips.com/blogs/malware-removal-guide-for-windo…

I don't know much about computers and now it keeps timing out when I have tabs open across the page everything randomly goes grey and then I have to resign into everything. Drives me crazy, have spoken to my internet provider and they suggest it is the modem, which is Billion and about 18mths old do not know if that is correct. On the modem all the lights are green and the internet light flashes frequently and ethernet light flickers occassionaly.

Any suggestions would be welcomed.

thanks

Computing

Comments

  • hys on 07/05/2013 - 16:43

    Could be many things ..

    When you say goes grey, it sounds like your browser is crashing (which is not modem related).

    But it's pretty hard to diagnose with just the information you have provided.

  • zelda707 on 07/05/2013 - 16:44

    if your tabs are crashing it would be the computers fault, not your internet connection.

    How much RAM do you have installed? You might need to upgrade

  • scrimshaw on 07/05/2013 - 16:48
    +5

    I think it's just a poorly maintained computer. You might need to just reinstall windows, probably do a few hardware upgrades. An SSD works wonders even in an old computer.

    The last time, you didn't provide a lot of information so nobody was really able to help you. Please provide specifications of your current PC, what version of Windows you're using etc.

    Note

    A lot of malware can usually be removed using MalwareBytes, however do note that even the best paid for malware removers are not a 1-click-fix solution.
    In many circumstances, you will need to spend some time backing up your stuff and reinstalling Windows. Reinstalling Windows is a sure-fire way of getting your computer up to speed again, but it does take time.

    • StewBalls on 07/05/2013 - 23:19
      +3

      IME you'll actually spend a lot less time on a simple reinstall, rather than trying to ferret out all of the nasties from the existing install. I can't tell you the number of wasted hours I've spent trying to extract virii or malware, only to then have to turn around & reinstall windows anyway…

      Just download Hiren's boot disk or use a live linux distro (etc) to save your user files to a secure location, then reformat/reinstall…you'll thank yourself for it later!

    • Finde on 10/05/2013 - 15:59

      I personally just reinstall Windows about once every six months. Once it starts slowing down. Much easier then fighting malware.

      • scrimshaw on 10/05/2013 - 16:43
        +2

        I personally just reinstall Windows about once every six months

        If you have to do that, then it's most likely you have bad computer habits, or you haven't bothered to learn to maintain it.

        You don't need to regularly reinstall Windows to keep it in top form.

        The reason why most people's computers start slowing down is because they often forget to uninstall applications they no longer use, or they start using those bogus "Speed up your computer" programs that do nothing but clog up the system even more. Lifehacker makes a good point — stop feeding your computer with garbage. The more dll's and background services you install, the slower your computer gets.

        The biggest tip I can offer: run your Windows as vanilla as possible. By that I mean, stick to true and tried programs, and for programs that are relatively unknown it's probably best to stay away from, or if you know how to use a Sandbox or Virtual Machine, you could rely on those to test unknown software. If you follow these really simple tips, you will never have to spend hours reinstalling Windows or pay money to get an IT tech to "fix" things for you.

        TLDR: you don't need to reinstall Windows every 6 months if you simply learn how to maintain the computer. Its not hard!

  • grog on 07/05/2013 - 16:52

    First thing to do is make sure you have the very latest Java and flash updates.

    Second make sure you have all the latest windows updates.

    If you only use internet exploder browser, try firefox or chrome browsers.

    Then download the free version of Malwarebytes install and update it and run a scan, this should detect any malware/spyware etc [not a virus scanner]

    Make sure you only get the free version http://www.malwarebytes.org/

    Make sure its the free version…

  • hsk on 07/05/2013 - 17:07

    Hello, thanks for your comments, I am happy to provide more information, what should I get and where do I get it? I have Java 7 update 21 (installed on 1/4/2013) I totally agree it is poorly maintained, not sure if I would know how to reinstall windows?
    Over the past 6 mths I have used internet explorer, Chrome and Safari. I am running Windows 7 Home Premium on a e-machine, 32 bit. Hope that is useful information?
    I have recently (last 2 mths) changed from AVG to Avast virus protection.
    Please tell me what else I can do, or should provide thanks for your help.

    • scrimshaw on 07/05/2013 - 17:15

      1. Download this software — don't worry, it's safe and it's the no-toolbar version of Speccy.
        http://www.piriform.com/speccy/download/slim

      2. Install as usual, then run it.

      3. Refer to this image. Click the "File" item and then choose "Save As a Text file". Save this text file anywhere on your desktop. Open that text file and Copy Paste the Summary part of the file into this thread.

      Clarification
      The part that you should copy is mainly the first segment of the text, namely it should tell you the CPU, Motherboard, amount of RAM, hard disks, and Operating system. That's all we need to know.

    • bigticket on 08/05/2013 - 13:44

      Just be aware that some virus protection software takes up a huge amount of resources, so maybe uninstall AVG momentarily to see the difference.
      Also, I don't know if it's been pointed out here, if you do reinstall windows (probably the best solution) and you have backed up your files, programs etc. ENSURE that your these files are thoroughly scanned for viruses. Otherwise you will reinfect your machine. Hirens boot cd, as already mentioned, is highly recommended, if you know how to use it.

  • gottacatchemall on 07/05/2013 - 18:05

    Get a mac :P (bracing myself for the dislikes)

    • Cheap Rich Guy on 09/05/2013 - 11:53
      +2

      You don't need a Mac to run the Mac OS. I've got the iatkos distro of Mountain Lion 10.8 running perfectly on PC hardware. Not all PC motherboards are compatible but if you've got a fairly recent board (Gigabyte boards have the best compatibility) and make the necessary changes in your BIOS then you should be good to go.

  • flywire on 07/05/2013 - 19:13

    Assuming you do not have a SSD. How much free space do you have on your hard drive? Have you tried defragmenting it?

    • retiredfeline on 07/05/2013 - 20:59

      Speaking of defragmenting and disk cleanup, I've found two open source programs better than the stock ones: ultradefrag and bleachbit. The latter cleaned up a lot of crap the standard disk cleanup ignored. Both are at sourceforge or search for them.

  • stickyfingers on 07/05/2013 - 20:56

    Re-install Windows, sure fire method.

    Or just switch to a sweet Linux distro, or a Mac…

  • scrimshaw on 07/05/2013 - 21:31

    Looks like the OP has gone MIA…

    If you're still reading this, just reinstall Windows. That solves 99% of problems. If your computer still runs slow then it's likely you need some kind of hardware replacement.

    • HN Professional on 07/05/2013 - 22:04

      Sorry to ask a noob question (I had the same problem, but after some defragging and Disk Cleanup to no avail, I just went out and bought a new laptop). Now that almost everyone here is saying re-install Windows (or get an SSD), may I ask, what in practical terms does re-installing Windows actually do? I had always assumed that slowdown was due to malware or sticky junk getting into the registry (I'm not tech enough or brave enough to mess in there).

      Hope reinstalling Windows or installing Linux does present some hope for my discarded lappy.

      • Weezle on 07/05/2013 - 22:38

        Basically when you reinstall Windows, you have the option to completely wipe (destroy all the data) on the drive your previous Windows was installed on. You can then re-install the Windows on the drive that is wiped (although, "wiping" the drive will not COMPLETELY wipe all data off of it, if you want to wipe everything, download a tool called 'DBAN').

        TL;DR, it'll remove the problem(s) with speed and you can start afresh.

        • HN Professional on 07/05/2013 - 23:41

          Oh I (sort of) see…I assume it's a form of reformatting or eg. I read something of the sort, way back in 1999 :o in the Icon section of The Sydney Morning Herald, whereby you could go back to a pre-set timepoint of your hard drive, think it was called Flashback or something. Hmm…come to think of it, OSX's Time Machine does something similar? (runs away & hides), as I said, I'm not computer literate (stopped keeping up after my hand-me-down MS-DOS machine).

          Thanks for the reply!

        • Windows7forever on 08/05/2013 - 20:23

          System restore.

  • hsk on 08/05/2013 - 08:07

    thanks for all your suggestions I am back this morning and will try the solutions you offer. thank you

  • hsk on 08/05/2013 - 09:08

    Sorry for the delay kids stopped me from getting back to this sooner, have done as Scrimshaw suggested and here is the summary from piriform THANKS for helping

    Summary
    Operating System
    Microsoft Windows 7 Home Premium 32-bit SP1
    CPU
    AMD Athlon II X2 220 17 °C
    Regor 45nm Technology
    RAM
    2.00GB Single-Channel DDR3 @ 535MHz (7-7-7-20)
    Motherboard
    eMachines ET1352 (CPU 1) 36 °C
    Graphics
    E202HV (1600x900@59Hz)
    256MB GeForce 6150SE nForce 430 (Acer Incorporated [ALI])
    Hard Drives
    466GB Hitachi HDS721050CLA SCSI Disk Device (SATA) 31 °C
    Optical Drives
    ATAPI DVD A DH16AASH SCSI CdRom Device
    Audio
    Realtek High Definition Audio

    • zelda707 on 08/05/2013 - 09:17

      I'm not an expert but maybe you need more RAM?

      • scrimshaw on 08/05/2013 - 10:36
        +3

        Maybe. I've used Windows 7 with 2GB of RAM before and though it's not terribly slow, adding more memory certainly does help speed things up. The board looks like it supports DDR3 1066 and 1333mhz memory, which MSY fortunately still sells at a low price.

        The symptom that Hsk describes suggest that the computer is ill-maintained and probably has a lot of junk / virii slowing it down. The quickest method to fix the issue with minimal user intervention is to simply reinstall Windows.

        After you have reinstalled Windows, to ensure that Windows runs smoothly from now on:

        1. Use a more secure browser such as Firefox or Chrome, with the Adblock addon. http://adblockplus.org/en/
        2. Avoid installing any toolbars. In fact, try to keep Windows as 'vanilla' as possible — don't install icon packs, emoticon packs, third party screen savers, font packs — these all slow the computer down.
        3. Resist the temptation of using 1 click fix programs like Dr WEb Cure, Registry fixers etc. These don't work and cause more problems than it solves.
        4. Do use: tried and tested malware scanners like MalwareBytes and a good antivirus like Kaspersky (you can buy this very cheaply from MSY — $13 for 1 year protection. Avast is a good free alternative, but avoid Microsoft Security Essentials (no longer good).
        5. Learn to use the built in Windows system image backup feature. What it does is it creates an snapshot of what your computer was when you created the backup. If something goes wrong, restore the image and your computer reverts to the way it was, including applications, settings and personal documents.
        6. Always backup — Dropbox, Box.net and Skydrive are some cloud based alternatives you could use to make sure you always have a copy stored on the cloud. If you have browser bookmarks that you don't want to lose, you should use Xmarks to store and sync them.
  • hsk on 08/05/2013 - 14:01

    Hello, thanks for all your help I am not sure I am capable of reinstalling Windows is that something you from disk (not sure I have them) or online? thanks

  • coolhead on 08/05/2013 - 15:02
    +1

    try SSD

  • hsk on 08/05/2013 - 17:18

    Many thanks just looking into recovery manager I see I need to create a back up of my photos & other data first. Any suggestions the best / easiest way for me to do this, where should I get disks the back up disks from and will any disks do? thanks again

    • scrimshaw on 08/05/2013 - 18:53

      You might want to backup your photos/ personal documents to an external hard drive.. Brand, size or form factor, doesn't matter. So long as it is USB drive, you're good to go.

      The best way to backup your personal documents is to simply copy and paste your entire "My Documents" to the destination drive. Anything else that you want to keep — do the same, just copy and paste. It's probably best to only backup personal files (documents and media files) but ditch apps and program data files.

      When you're satisfied that you've rescued your personal files, you can start reinstalling Windows (restore to factory defaults)

      Windows disks — don't worry burning a Windows disk yet — do that after you have reinstalled Windows.
      To burn a Windows install or repair disk, you need to have a blank DVD-R.

  • bondy28 on 08/05/2013 - 17:45

    Where do you live hsk… What state?

    • donga100 on 08/05/2013 - 22:42

      Profile says Sydney.

  • hsk on 09/05/2013 - 07:55

    Morning back quickly to check on this prior to getting the kids off to school. Sorry for just dropping in and out on this, but family keeps taking me away. Yes sort of Sydney area I live in the Southern Highlands area about 45 mins to my closest large shops at Campbelltown. No computer stores or Dick Smith and such where I am but I can go to Woolworths and grab a usb (hoping they sell them) is there a size I need or are they all the same? thanks

    • scrimshaw on 09/05/2013 - 12:23

      Go to the post office. They should sell some, but prices aren't exactly cheap.

  • ITveteran on 09/05/2013 - 08:30
    -1

    Op, I strongly recommend you calling in a PC technician. It may cost you 2 hours but that wiill save you from frustration and uncertainty. Make sure you get some tips on best practice guide after the fix work.

  • Cheap Rich Guy on 09/05/2013 - 12:01
    +1

    Hey buddy I've got a computer science degree and MS accreditation. One of the first things we do is go through the Windows event viewer. Open a command prompt and type eventvwr
    Check through the application and system logs. Take note of any errors or warnings and their associated ID numbers.
    Enter your error ID numbers at eventid.net
    There are often solutions provided by other IT technicians.

  • duneknight on 09/05/2013 - 15:52

    you have anti-virus installed? uninstall all the useless junk. lets see whats hogging it. show us task manager and event viewer.

  • twocsies on 09/05/2013 - 23:37

    Don't forget to upgrade the RAM! Opening a dozen tabs in the browser can eat up 2 GB.

  • CI on 10/05/2013 - 12:37

    OP is your computer over heating ?

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