Why my System slowed down considerably after insta

[gregg]

I just had a tech. format my 80 Gb HDD & install Windows XP ( Pro ) on it. But now it takes too long to boot & the whole system & all the programs have slowed down considerably. It is P4, 2.6 GHz (HT), 512 MB DDR 400.

(1) The guy who installed it has also installed a program called " Crystal XP " which has changed the whole look of Win XP & I really don't like it.

On the site ( http://crystalxp.net/ ), it says the fact that icons are directly inserted in the system files of the OS that doesn't slow down your system!!

I looked up & path to it is C:\Windows\packs\crystal XP and

C:\Windows\packs\sysFiles.

It does have C:\Windows\packs\crystal XP\uninstall file.

Is this program causing the delay ? Is it possible to remove or uninstall it to get back the original Win XP look without causing any problems to data & system files ? If yes, how?

(2) Do I have to reinstall XP if I remove that program?

(3) When I asked him about the NEW OS called "Longhorn" & he suggested installing Longhorn Transformation Pack 7. Has Microsoft come out with a new OS called "Longhorn" or any other new OS for PC & if yes where can I read more about it? I have doughts if he knows what he is doing & yes I paid him to format & install XP ( Pro ).

(4) Could the delay in booting be due to start uo programs? In the ALL Programs -> Start Up folder there are 6 programs some of which I really don't need at the start up. How do I remove these programs from that folder without removing them from my PC ?

(5) There is one program called "PowerReg Scheduler" in start up folder. What is it & should I keep it or remove it?

Thank You.
Sean

 

[ShadowsRayne]

I have used the crystal software, and I had a similar issue... you can uninstall it, and you should have any issue with it gone.

As for Longhorn... it has not been release by Mircosoft yet, and is only in the beta testing phase.

 

[riser]

I'd get rid of the Crystal software. If you need help formating and redoing your computer to get back up and running, a lot of us here can easily walk you through the process.

Longhorn was the code name for Windows Vista.. which is still in Beta testing. It's due on by the end of '06.

 

[gregg]

riser,

Thanks for those encouraging words.

I have never formatted or installed any OS but I am willing to learn & take chances.

Here are the sytem specs.

It is DELL Dimension P4 2.6 GHz with HT.

512 MB pc 3200 (400 MHz ) RAM

80 GB Maxtor HDD ( It is not SATA )

Intel 875 P chipset

It came with all driver CDs. & Win XP(Home) CD but I have XP (Pro) which I would like to install though.

I would appreciate step by step instructions though.

Something you want to know though.

When the guy who installed the XP (Pro) tried to format the HDD, it would not erase approx. 70 MB worth of space so he asked me if it is ok to loose the 70 MB space on an 80 GB HDD & I said ok. I don't understand why it wouldn't & this time if you can help me do that. i.e. format the whole drive. Could Dell might have some settings or something in that 70 MB space?

So please go ahead & tell me the steps.

Thank you again for your kind help.

Kind Regards,
Greg

 

[riser]

Normally it's about 8MB they leave on the hard drive that you can't really format over.

In order to reinstall, all you really need to do is insert your XP CD into the CD-ROM, start your computer.

You have to push a key to "Boot to CD" when a prompt pops up for 5 seconds or so..

At that point, just accept all the defaults, put in names where it asks you. It's honestly really easy. The process will take less than 40 minutes for your PC. After that's done, it'll boot into Windows. At that point, XP should have installed most, if not all, of your hardware.

At this point, you just need to install your regular programs, drivers for anything that hasn't been installed, and customize XP to work and act how you want, which doesn't require much.

Take a chance on it, it's not that hard at all.

 

[gregg]

Hi riser,

First what am I missing in XP (Home) that I would get in Professional system?

This is just in case if I run into problems I can always ask DELL to install XP Home.

It is the Bios settings etc. scares me because couple years back I tried & tried but couldn't understand. I was brought up in Windows environment so I know nothing about DOS stuff and am used to mouse clicks rather than keyboard short cuts.

I am going to try it anyway. I just checked to see what happens when I put in the CD & it gave a beautiful screen with choices to start with.

Should I check sytem compatibility to start with before I hit the INSTALL button?

When do I put the drivers CDs in & what drivers should be installed?

I have no problem installing the applications like office, Acrobat, Winzip & my business applications once the OS is up & running.

Let me know.

Many thanks.
Greg

Then just

 

[riser]

BIOS is completely different than it was a few years back. It's been changed so you'll be able to kind of understand it more. BIOS really doesn't even require anything of you any more as it does everything now-a-days.

Put the CD in your CD-ROM then restart your computer. Watch it boot up and it'll say "Press any key to boot to CD...." and push a key, it'll go to a blue screen. Read and follow through.
Once the Windows installation is done, then you put your Drivers CD in and it'll come up and show you what you need to install because it'll have a check mark by what's on your computer. Maybe 5-6 things might need installed off that CD.

But the Windows install, just look at the bottom of the screen for the options. You can't really screw anything up in there, but take the Default settings when prompted to Format in NTFS or FAT, don't use FAT, use NTFS.

 

[gregg]

riser,

Many thanks.

I feel more confident now & am going to do it.

Grg