I would be very grateful if someone could help me.....I have a Dell Dimension 4400 that is running slow. My e-mail is Microsoft Outlook Express 6, the operating system is Wndows XP HE. I have scanned for viruses, defragged, etc., but to no avail. I read a posting at this site, shown below, and would like to try it.
In addition, I can e-mail a copy of the processes running to the compassionate individual who responds.

My questions are:
What startup programs should I turn off? How?
What processes should I disable?

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I have a protocol that I go through that took me about 2 hours, partially because the computer itself is slow.  You can do all of this with trial versions once, but then you would need to buy programs after that.

I use the following programs (all mine are registered versions, but they have trial ones available):
1. A1 PC cleaner, (available from this forum's host)
2. Cleanup! (similar to A1 but does some different things, the two together are very, very thorough)
3. Ad-aware (free version works fine)
4. Trojan Hunter (Trial version)
5. Regvac (best registry cleaner I have found, also available from forum host)
6. Diskeeper (great defrag program, trial version, you can use it to adjust your master file table size, defrag your swap file, and it is much more thorough than Windows defragger)

Start by using msconfig to turn off your startup programs, install all programs, run Ad-Aware (may have to use safe mode), then run Trojan Hunter (safe mode may still apply), then A1 PC Cleaner, then Cleanup!, then Diskeeper's functions, turn your desired startup programs back on, remove any trial programs from this list, then run regvac, restart computer.

This is like giving your computer a serious roto rooter treatment.  You will be very pleased with the results if your computer is running slow.

Don't forget to reset your Internet Explorer cache settings to 25mb and go to Advanced in the Internet Options and check Empty Temporary Internet Files Folder when Browser is Closed.

If you have very nasty spyware or trojans(i.e. winantivirus pro or spy sheriff), then more professional help may be needed, but this protocol works wonders. *********************************************

You can turn off startup programs in msconfig, just type it in the run box to open it.
Microsoft Office is a big load on the system if you have it.
In general, any program you don't use right after starting up, doesn't need to be running at startup. Remember you can always start them manually when you need to use them.
Processes are a little trickier, turning them off can have an effect on several programs besides the one you think you are affecting.
Do a search for nonessential XP services. Several tech sites have done articles on that topic.

I guess it is easy to miss the obvious.
The slowness can also happen by new programs and updates modifying key windows files.

Put your Windows disk in your computer.
Go to start, run and type in \\sfc /scannow    
and hit the enter key.
Sfc will scan your key files for missing or wrong versions and if any are found it will upload them from your disk. Do not interrupt the process. Also note the space between sfc and the forward slash. Reboot and see if there is a difference.