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Speeding up your Windows XP pc is probably top of your demands after you've had it for a while. With that in mind, here are some actions you can take to make improvements.

Clean Out Viruses and Malware.
You need to be running a competent anti-virus program. It's also useful to be able to scan your system for spyware, adware and other pests. Viruses and malware can slow down your system a lot. They use your resources to create pop-up ads., send spam and interfere with the operation of good programs.

The first of two free anti-virus programs you could use is AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition 7.5 from www.free.grisoft.com. This program scans your system quickly and updates protection daily. It has real-time protection and runs in the background. The second is 'avast' 4 Home Edition Version 4.7 and is available at www.avast.com. It's a good choice if you're looking for features beyond basic. It boasts multi-layered protection, real-time protection and a virus recovery database.

Remove Unnecessary Software.
You may have software packages on your system that you no longer need. You may also have others that were downloaded for free along with something you really needed. These can really slow down your start-up time and cause web pages to load slowly.

To remove them go to Control Panel, then Add/Remove Programs. Remove the ones you don't need and do a web search on the ones you're not sure about.

Defragment Your Hard Drive.
With many files and programs being added to and removed from your system, used blocks of data can become scattered over your hard-drive over time. At the very least, this will lead to an increase in the time it takes to find information, open a file or launch an application. At worst, a badly defragmented system will become very sluggish; even unstable.

To defragment: right-click on your main hard disk in My Computer, choose Properties and click on Defragment Now under the Tools tab.

Tidy Up the Start-Up Group.
Click on Start>Run then type in 'misconfig' and press [Enter]. This launches the system configuration utility. Under the Start-up tab that appears, clear the checked boxes of items you don't need at start-up time. For more speed, do the same under the Services tab as well.

Clean Up Your Registry.
This lies at the heart of your pc. It stores huge amounts of information about Windows settings when you installed or removed programs. Slimming it down can speed up both the running and start-up time of your pc. However it takes far too long to do this manually, so one of the following is your best bet:
Mechanic 6 from Pc Tools Registry.
All clean-ups of your registry are reversible with this, as it has a back-up system of deleted entries.
Ashampoo WinOptimizer 4 from www.ashampoo.com.
This optimizes your speed without the need for in-depth knowledge.

Boost Your Memory.
The amount of RAM available is one of the most important factors influencing the speed of your pc. It's meant to be a short term storage facility. However, when it starts storing data for a lot longer than was intended, it slows your computer down.
Helpful programs to free up some RAM are:
FreeRAM XP Pro 1.52 from YourWare Solutions.
It is free.
Find it at www.driverheaven.net.
There are two ways of using this program.
1. Choose the Autofree option.
2. Set the amount of RAM you want free by using the manual option.
RAMBooster 2
A free program.
Find at www.sci.fi/-borg/rambooster.
Th is program monitors the amount of RAM and you can set the amount you want to keep clear.

Hopefully some of these tips will help to keep your pc running fast and well and, most importantly, postpone the day when you're forced to consider splashing out on a new one.

Learn more about this author, Ann Thrower.
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