Upgrade or repair for vista hp computer?

10 years ago

Hubby has a wide screen, touch screen, HP desktop running vista. It has gotten extremely slow bringing up web pages. Is there any upgrade or program that would help speed the poor thing up. He needs the wide screen and is really reluctant to consider dumping and replacing. Any suggestions?

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mikie_gw

10 years ago

I used vista for a long time when everybody else was using win7.. it was fine then - just used an extra bunch of memory which isn't a real bad thing.

February 2012, vista lost Microsoft regular support & only gets security updates but that may quit too when it reaches 10 yrs old so early 2017 it will be spoken of like XP security is now.

I don't remember exacts, but several things security wise just don't work anymore as it is now on vista - think IE highest version in vista has reached the end of usable use now. If he uses IE, he's pretty much required to change to another browser, probably chrome with its built in Flash or he wont be doing much banking or emailing from it. My sister just hit that wall with her banking and emails.

Vista has been around since 2007 but was some hated or spoken poorly of it too much and it wasn't even 2 full years until win7 replaced it.

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Comments (11)

kudzu9
10 years ago
It doesn't need an upgrade, and don't start downloading programs that are supposed to fix slow computers. He's probably had this computer for what, 8 years or so? Does he ever do maintenance on it, like defragmentation? Is the hard drive almost full? Has he run any anti-malware programs lately to get rid of junk that could have ridden along on other downloads? Has he added any free toolbars? Is his antivirus up-to-date and has he scanned the computer lately? Is he current on Windows updates? Has he checked his download speeds?

With the info you provide, it's impossible to say what is going on, but it's very common to see computers slow down over time if people don't maintain them, or if they are not careful about what they download. If your husband is not very computer savvy, the best thing might be to get a computer tech in to do a cleanup of the machine to get it running like it was when it was new. If you start hunting for programs online that are supposed to work wonders, you could just end up making things worse.
User
10 years ago
last modified: 10 years ago
I agree with Kudzu9. Those Fix All Computer Programs are more like Screw Up Your Computer Programs! Don't ever download or Trust them. A Good Anti-Virus and Malware Program is all you should need!

Is his computer just slow when Surfing the Internet? Is he Running more than one Anti-Virus Program? Does he have any Add-Ons Running? Is he running more than one Adblocker (if so, uninstall all except one)!

Like Kudzu9 stated above, more information would be great!
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I agree right now if you can keep your old pc working for you and wait till windows 7 comes out you will be avoiding having to purchase any upgrades. It will be out in about a year. If you have any friends that have pc knowledge likely they could easily help you install a new hard drive and some RAM, these are things I do myself but my first time I was pretty anxious. I also agree that the desktop is generally the best option unless you travel a lot and would need a laptop for that. My sister just asked me the same question and I talked her into a desktop pretty quickly, if you have not used a laptop try asking a friend with one to let you try it out for an hour or so, feel how the keyboard feels, see how you like the touch pad instead of a mouse, etc. If you have any problems seeing also consider the smaller screen of a laptop. I have pretty severe hand problems so using a smaller keyboard would be very difficult. Sitting in a chair with the laptop on your lap would require some type of laptop desk so you do not block the air flow. As stated updating and replacing parts in a laptop is much more difficult. One thing you could definitely do also rather than install a new hard drive in your pc is buy a stand alone usb backup hard drive and move all your thousands of pictures and music and other files and data to that hard drive and free up your hard drive in the pc, if you did that and got rid of any old programs you no longer need, clean out any junk files and folders, empty the recycle bin, defrag the hard drive you may find you have plenty of room on that 80Gig hard drive. I have been seeing some incredible prices lately on usb hard drives so you could easily find a nice size one for around $50, and you could use that stand alone hard drive with any new computer you buy in the future. Plus no one would have to install it for you, you just plug it into your usb port and then you can access it from your pc just like your other hard drive. Add some RAM to what ever belarc says is your limit for that pc or at least 2 gig and I bet you would be surprised. RAM is cheap. I just bought a 1gig stick for one of my computers and it was less than $20 shipped. If your current pc is a desktop I would also highly suggest turning it off unplug it and open the side panel up and clean out all the dust bunnies, that can really affect the performance of a pc. Cleaning the computer and its components ecost has some very good prices right now this search is for under $50 units but it gives you some ideas. well now you have lots of options and ways to go and up to you to make that big decision. Here is a link that might be useful: usb hard drives
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DA_Mccoy
10 years ago
If the system hasn't been maintained, or not for a long time, I personally would clear the browser history manually, and then run CCleaner at the default settings. This would include the registry tool (Be sure to allow the creation of a backup when offered.) End with a shut down, 1 minute delay, and a start.

I would run each tool 2-3 times as an ignored system may not completely clean in one swipe.

It would also be worth a look into the Startup. A Vista system has limited power for today's needs. Too much unnecessary drain to that power by unwanted entries could slow the processing of the packet flow for the Internet.

If he is using Firefox try a different browser. I have detected FF slowing down in the last 10 or so releases.

DA
User
10 years ago
DA,

I typed something about Clearing History and Cookies. I must have hit a wrong key before posting it because it's gone. That is definitely something that should be tried!
DA_Mccoy
10 years ago
Sometimes posts take up a mind of their own.

I recommend for users to do the manual clearing first with CCleaner second at default settings. From my experience the on-board utility is not always as deep as CC. Just sometimes.

DA
zep516
10 years ago
It might be considered for the user to perform a recovery from the recovery partition on the computer, using "recovery manager" that "usually" is installed on HP desktop computers, save your personal data, recovery, visit Windows up date, reinstall browsers......

That way you're done with probably better results... After 6 or 7 years nothing like a fresh install.

http://support.hp.com/us-en/document/c00814731
kudzu9
10 years ago
It would be helpful if the OP would respond to at least a few of these many suggestions with a little more info...
DA_Mccoy
10 years ago
Problem updates are always appreciated, but rarely done.

DA
Terrapots
Original Author
10 years ago
done virus scans and drive optimization, has only 1 virus scans. Will take your suggestions to heart and try to get in there to try most or all. Sorry for d elay in replying. Thanks for suggestions.
kudzu9
10 years ago
Good luck. Let us know how it goes, please.

Upgrade or repair for vista hp computer?

mikie_gw

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Upgrade or repair for vista hp computer?

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