Slow computer response

Factual Questions
1

OK my computer gets so slow sometimes I can’t believe it’s right.

I have multiple screens open in the same application and it takes time to respond, I get a white screen when I return to one that was already open, I get nonresponsive messages to wait or kill, and then it comes back.

Sometimes I’m sure it’s that I have a DVD in and maybe it’s on pause. But that’s not always true.

I have a computer that I bought in 2007. It has 2 drives on it about 66-75 % in use. Most of my storage is on a remote terra drive.

What is the most effective way to address this? Do I need to just format it all?

Does it make a difference to open multiple screens together rather than separately?

2

How much RAM is being used and what’s the load on your CPU?

3

Looks like installed memory, RAM is 4 Gb.

How do you gauge the load?

4

Open Task Manager (Ctl+Alt+Del in Win 7), along the bottom you’ll see CPU load and % of RAM in use.
You can also choose the “Performance” tab.

5

Have you deleted all your temporary files? (Run %temp% and select all.)

6

The Usage is running at around the high 60s. Down to 63, and up to 72, with one spike to 99 momentarily

I don’t see a load figure or entry

You mean physical memory 77%?

7

I don’t usually use run. There isn’t another way to empty the files?

I usually have it set to not hold files in memory.

8

Well, use it. Or search "%temp%. them select all and delete.

9

Open Task Manager and see whats eating your memory. I had some pesky windows file manager thing that kept running up to 99%. Deleted it and all’s well now.