Ok everyone, I need all the computer intellect for this one…Or I just need to admit that I know less about upgrading my laptop than I do about prime numbers !
I need to upgrade my laptop because it is a 4 year old thinkpad still running Win 95…Anyway, it has served the purposes I have needed for the last 4 years. But for the past 3 months it has been EXCEEDINGLY slooooow and I can’t stand it. But I really like the machine itself.
Is it as easy to add more memory to a laptop as compared to adding memory to a desktop?
Can I infact add more memory? If so where?
Can I upgrade the processor?
My knowledge of the hardware in my laptop is LAX at best…Does any one out there in the land of the supreme doperville have any suggestions or help!!! I would much appreciate it…
Depends on the laptop. Most manufacturers have good info on their website, or if you post the brand and model, perhaps someone’s had direct experience with it.
But in general: memorys easy to upgrade. CPU upgrade is not an option.
Something else to consider: If you’ve had the machine that long and you’ve installed and deinstalled lots of stuff over the years, there’s a good chance that there’s a bunch of crap leftover. There are tools for cleaning out stuff like that, but my personal experience is that a total reinstall of the OS is a good idea.
Shorter term, you should defragment the hard disk and make sure there’s free space available for swapping.
Also, there are sites out there with additional speedup tricks, though I don’t know any names off the top of my head. Others probably do though.
A little note about re-installing the OS: Plan it first!
Laptops generally have quite a bit of proprietary hardware aboard to keep down weight and power consumption. Your Windows CD quite possibly doesn’t have all the drivers you need for what’s in there.
As Bill H. says, check the manufacturer’s Web site.
