Windows XP Slow Boot Times – And What Causes Them
posted by Mike Tucker
Windows XP slow boot times can be caused by several different things. Your computer may have ran great when you first bought it but over the years you notice it’s been slowing down considerably. There are steps you can take to speed it up.
XP is a great operating system, and most people like it better than Windows vista however, it it can become sluggish after a period of time. You may have noticed that programs are taking longer to load or you may be getting blue screens or crashes.
The first thing you’ll want to do is run a clean up on your computer to delete any programs you no longer use. Delete all your temporary files and empty your recycle bin. If your desktop is plastered with icons you will want to remove the ones that you don’t use on a daily basis. Most people don’t know this, but they do slow your computer down. Same with the icons in your quick start menu or taskbar, delete the ones you don’t need.
Next you’ll want to update and run a full anti virus scan. Have you scanned for spyware lately? If not do so. Before you go to bed tonight. You can start the defrag process this takes quite a while. And I usually do it at night while I’m sleeping. The most overlooked maintenance that should be performed on any computer is a registry tuneup.
Registry errors are the biggest cause for computer slowdowns. All your software and programs need to reference the registry when they load. Corrupt files or other errors will cause computer crashes, slow applications, and slow boot times. You can edit and repair your registry manually, but it is not recommended. If you are not an experience computer technician you may do more harm than good.
It is best to invest in a good registry repair program. They are very easy to use, and you can schedule them to run on a regular basis, at night or any other time you’re not using your computer. Using a repair program is like giving your computer a tuneup. The first time you run it you will find all types of errors and corrupt files, plus tons of orphaned registry files. After you delete the files you do not need and reboot your computer. You will immediately notice an increase in performance and speed.
