Sluggish pc

(This post continues a previous post "Freeing up disc space" and more sharply defines my current status.)

My Dell desktop (with XP) is very sluggish. Example 1: after clicking CAD the Task Manager screen does not appear for 20 seconds. Example 2: Often in using WORD the letters I type do not display as I type them but appear in a burst of letters at once 3 or 4 seconds later. Example 3: when I click the X in the upper right corner to close a WORD file, it often takes 10-15 seconds to do so.

a. I have done a virus scan and things are clean.
b. I have 1 GB of RAM
c. I have 7+ Gb of free space on my C:\disk.
d. The responsiveness of the system when working the web seems better than in working with WORD.
e. When I go to Task Manager (with no apps running), I see that I have 67 processes running and that my CPU uasage is 100%!.

That last point (100% CPU when essentially idling) seems particularly bad.

Do these symptoms suggest what might be going wrong, what to check next?

Thanks.

You're very low on RAM. That Dell probably has on board graphics and is using some amount of that 1 GB for the Video. Find out what the Max. RAM for that Dell is and Max it out.

Which processes are using the most CPU time?

dneilson, jdc2000: Thank you both.

1. The pc is a Dell Dimension 3000 with a Pentium 4. Where can I ask about the maximum RAM it can take?

2. Re all those processes shown in Task Manager: 99% of the CPU is being consumed in just one --- SweetPacksUpdateManager.exe! What IS that app anyway? Can I delete it?

1. www.crucial.com has a memory upgrade tool that allows you to enter the EXACT make and model of your computer (check the sticker on the back for the exact model number) and it will tell you what your maximum RAM is.

2. If you can get rid of that CPU cycle hog, you should see a big performance improvement. Try an End Task on that process.

Yes, uninstall/remove that Sweetpacks thing.

I looked again at the Task Manager Processes. I still see CPU usage at 100% but this time the culprit (at 98%) is no longer SweetPacksUpdateManager.exe but Verizon_THAMessageCente.exe. Verizon is my ISP. What might have caused that I wonder?

Should I (is it safe?) to remove both of these files?

Quote:

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Should I (is it safe?) to remove both of these files?

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Didn't you get rid of sweetpacks yet? Do that first. I see it listed as malware on some sites. What antimalware did you run anyway? Malwarebytes?

I think you can remove the verizon app as well.
http://forums.verizon.com/t5/FiOS-In...xe/td-p/305441

When I try to End Verizon_IHAMessageCenter.exe using Task Manager I get this "WARNING: Terminating a process can cause undesireable results including loss of data and system instability ......"

Should I <really> not END the process this way? How else can I remove it? I tried removing a "rarely used" Verizon app by CP\Add or Remove but that did not remove Verizon_IHAMessageCenter.exe.

That's just a standard message you'll get every time you try to end a process there. Ignore that.. esp since next time you boot it will come back anyway until it's actually uninstalled.

Open MSCONFIG and see if it's in the startup tab. If it is uncheck it and it won't load again and cause that problem. Then we'll figure out how to completely unistall it once and for all hopefully.

If it's not in msconfig startup tab then let us know.. there are many other places it could be starting from.

Fink:

1. Per your suggestion, I did END Sweet..manager.exe and IHAMessageCenter.exe using Task Manager and the CPU usage dropped immediately from 100% to something like 4%!

2. I then successfully Removed Sweet.... using Add/Remove in CP.

3. But when I tried to Remove IHAMessageCenter I got this message: "Exception occurred while initializing the installation. System. Configuration. Configuration system failed to initialize." ---- Any suggestion on what to do now?

4. Re your suggestion re msconfig: please clarify what you are asking me to check. What do I RUN (msconfig ?)? What do I look for?

Thanks much for your (and other's) help.

click start>run, type msconfig and hit enter. Then you'll see the startup tab after msconfig opens. Look and see if there's any reference to the message center there. If there is uncheck it and reboot. You'll get a message when you reboot alluding to the change in startup.. just make it go away by checking it and closing it.

If there's no reference there to that program or you're unsure of what is there let us know and/or take a screenshot of it and let us see it.

Status Update: My problems with this pc seem to have been completely fixed! It has not run as well in years, I can't thank you all enough. ...wdc