Are u a tortoise,Sygate?

[Lotussy]

Hi everybody My question is:Everytime i start up my pc,Sygate firewall is the last and the slowest to load and i have to wait for this slow tortoise before i can use the computer....yes i know i should have got a rabbit firewall

[Ben Last]

I don't think there is much you can do, I use ZoneAlarm firewall and it's just the same. Depending on how much RAM your pc has you may speed things up by adding some more.
Is your pc a bit slow opening other programs too?
How much RAM do you have?

[Lotussy]

Ben,my pc has 2 x 128mb ddr sdram (pc2100 133mhz).....hmmm looks like i have to purchase another set of rams....oh oh...that means i will have to get a single 512mb or a 2 x 256mb which i think is going to cost me
My pc is abt 3-4 yrs old,a pentium celeron 1.7, given to me by my dad.It is not that slow if u compared to Mr.Spock just kidding....
Ben i have been comtemplating to get the Dell 5150 series for sometime now and would have got it if not for their "not so good" option to purchase services.

[Ben Last]

Hi, which OS do you use?
I don't think adding any more RAM would help your situation as you already have 256Mb, it may just be the speed of your processor, but even that isn't slow.
How long are you generally waiting from logging on to being able to use the pc?

[Lotussy]

Ben, i am using win xp(2002).Hmmm i am not sure abt the duration from log on and being able to use pc.Why dont i just go and test and let u know....

[Ben Last]

I'm afraid I don't know much about XP, but with all the updates, anti-virus and firewall I expect any computer will take a while to start.

[Gimble]

I'd encourage backing up, reformatting, and reinstalling the OS. I do it once a year on all of my machines at home and it's like getting a whole new computer. Installing, updating, and configuring everything can take a day to do, but it's well worth it.

RAM, yes. Watch for deals out there. Sometimes there are some nice fluctuations when a new RAM type comes out where your RAM will drop in price - sometimes very temporarily. I was able to get 512 chips PC133 for $20 a few years ago just before they jumped up to the $80 range again the next week. They're down around $50 now I believe (haven't needed to look lately).

You can never have too much RAM. I have one old machine that only has 512 on it (400 MHz), but the rest all have 1.5 Gig. They never put enough RAM on computers when they sell them. It's always an extra upgrade/hidden cost/gotcha.


Added: I checked - PC133 SDRAM that I use in a few of my PCs are going for $89.99. Thank god I loaded up when they were $20.

PC2100 512MB 266 MHz DDR goes for around $50 right now, but you can shop around. Maybe someone has some good sites they can post to watch prices.

[Spock]

... Maybe someone has some good sites they can post to watch prices.

http://pricegrabber.com/

[Lotussy]

Thanks gentlemen for your assistance I think i shall try to reformat like what mr.gimble recommended and look around for a pc2100 512mb 266mhz ddr.I think i shall get one first and perhaps later on i could add another should i feel the need to.