My computer has suddenly become very slow to access programmes - how can I find out why?

Go to start, my computer, then right click on your Local Drive (Maybe C Drive or Hardware) then go down to properties and click on it. It should bring up a pie chart telling you how much free space you have, and how much is used. If you have used a lot of it, that's where the problem will be coming from. If not, run a virus scan. Viruses commonly slow down computers without completely ruining them or shutting them down. Hope this helps!

A computer running slow is usually caused by issues with your registry, and the registry needs to be cleaned. The registry is used with every program, and gets slowed down by errors, parts of deleted programs left behind, and pieces of Internet sites get left here. When a program that you are running tries to find something on the registry it has to look through everything on the registry to find what it needs. This is why you need to clean and maintain your registry. Here is what I would do. Fun and Defrag and disk clean up and go to www.easypcerrorfix.com for a free scan to see if your registry need to be clean. If it does you can clean it at the same site. Test first. That way if don't need to spend money you don't have to.

First of all, delete system backup files. Windows system can record some information of certain hardware configuration and registry. As a matter of fact, it is unnecessary to restore that. If the system freezes up, you can use the GHOST to restore the backup. You can click “Start” > “Run” and type “sfc.exe” and press “Enter”. It can save hundreds of disk space. You can also delete the drive backup in the directory of “windows\driver cache\i386”. Such backup files are useless for your computer if you have GHOST backup files. You can feel free to get rid of them so as to improve computer performance. And set system variable. You can switch “My documentary” and Internet Explorer temporary files to other partitions which is good for improving system and hard disk speed. If you are using double systems, you had better put the Internet Explorer temporary files into the same folders which can save more disk space and speed up computer. And you should change virtual memory to other disks which mean you can put the temporary files in the same partitions so as to facilitate disk defragmentation. Besides, it is better for you to put applications to other disks as well because it is good for reinstalling system. Last but not least, close down the unnecessary service. Click “Start” > “Control Panel”, double-click “Management Tools” > “Service” and then you will find a list of serving items of which some have been started up while some have not. Right-click the serve you want to configure and click “Properties”. In the “General” tab, there are three choices for you: automatically, manually and disable. Automatically means Windows can startup this service voluntarily. Manually means you have to start it up by hand while disable shows that it is not allowed. Defragment hard disks

Are you annoyed by the slow PC performance quite often that your computer keeps informing that your PC running needs extra RAM? Are you frustrated when your programs are frequently frozen while listening to music or watching movies online? Have you always been confused on whether to purchase a proper RAM to enhance your computer performance all the times? Thankfully, try the trick and your PC will make your PC go fast again. In response to the widespread complaints about the registry errors, a small program comes out. That is registry cleaner. Registry cleaner is a type of software utility especially designed for the Microsoft Windows operating system whose purpose is to effectively remove out the redundant or unwanted items and files from the Windows registry. With an excellent registry cleaner, firstly, you can eternally and easily delete the various kinds of empty registry keys, invalid registry entries and obsolete files in the Registry just within a few mouse clicks. Secondly, a reliable and advanced registry cleaner empower you to create a full registry backup to avoid any serious data loss in the event of system failure. Thirdly, a reliable and stable registry cleaner can offers you with absolutely helpful after sale- service for free no matter where you are and when.

click on start for xp or pearl for vista...click run for xp and type in this command: msconfig type it in search for vista......then click on startup tab look for a blank line all the way across next to the box that has check marks....uncheck it if you see a blank line. if you put your arrow on the line between "command" and "location" on the top,click and hold while you drag to the right it will extend the area and you can then google the ".exe" to see if it is required to run your operating system. if not..uncheck it. this start up section shows all items that start/run EVERY TIME you start your computer...unchecking them will not delete them off of your system..it just tells your computer not to start them automaticly. when you install software the .exe file is put in your startup folder as a convience by the manufacturer. over time you may get lots of startup items that run in the background that will use up your resources(RAM). example: you just bought a new pickup truck, you can roast the tires at every stop sign when you first bought it...every time you go downtown to wal-mart you get stuff and put it in your truck, a few months later you notice that there's no more tire roasting and your truck doesnt seem to be as powerful. well now you need to take out that lawnmower, the dishwasher, the new 4-wheeler, etc that you have in the back of your truck...you dont have to have them in the back of your truck every time you use that truck to take the kids to school or just cruising main street, you only want to use the lawnmower when you need to cut the grass, you only need the dishwasher when the dishes are dirty, you only ride the 4-wheeler when your at the sand dunes..so why pack them around in your truck every time you go somewhere? You're not getting rid of them, you just put them in the shed till you need them...thats what unchecking the box in your startup tab does. you dont need to run the programs if you dont use them everytime you're on your computer. just click on the shortcut that the software will already put on your system and run it when you want, instead of in the background all the time. This will free up your system resources and make your computer run alittle faster just like taking all the stuff you dont need out of your truck will have less weight and give you more power. This is just another way to make it faster...not the only way but this is usually where you start. If you think you have a virus....reboot your computer in "safe mode" by pressing the "F8" key several times when you turn it on. you will get a menu that wants you to choose how to boot your system. choose "safe mode" and let your computer start up. This stops almost all of your startup .exe's and windows will only load what it absolutley has to have to run..the bare minimum. it will look different, but dont worry. then right click on "my computer" and then scan. do it this way in safe mode because most viruses are located in a file from your start up so it can run when you turn on your system. if your startup's arent running then the virus "isn't alive" and cannot protect itself. your antivirus can then detect and remove the virus because it isn't active. sorry about the novel...hope this helps you. Good luck!! P.S. The best last resort is a 12 gauge shotgun..use it and then you'll have to get a new system :) LOL

First, backup all your data to an external medium. Then, if you have no hardware problems, do this: (1) Run a FULL anti-virus scan with a good virus scanner. Get free editions of Avast or Antivir. Use the latest virus definitions file. But don't install or run more than one anti-virus at the same time. http://www.avast.com http://www.avira.com (2) Run anti-spyware scans with Super Anti-spyware and malwarebytes free editions. http://malwarebytes.org/ http://www.superantispyware.com/ (3) Ensure all Microsoft security updates are applied. (4) Run disk cleanup to delete old temp files and other junk. Right click the drive in My Computer, choose Properties and Disk cleanup. Delete the temp files, temporary internet files, empty the recycle bin etc. Don't compress the drive contents. (5a) Run chkdsk once to scan for file system errors. http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315265 (5b) Run a thorough disk defrag. Use a good defragmenter for this, and also run a boot-time defrag to fix the MFT and page file if they are fragmented. Use Diskeeper 2010, which is the best defragger around. Their website has free 30-day trial versions. http://www.diskeeper.com (6) Disable unnecessary background processes and services that take up memory. You can use MSCONFIG and SERVICES for this, but if you're unsure of what the processes/services do, don't change any settings. (7) Make sure all the hardware components have the latest and most stable drivers. Video card performance in particular is strongly dependent on drivers. You do not need to clean out the registry or mess with the registry in ANY way whatsoever. Deleting a wrong key from the registry can damage your operating system. Good Luck!

You can use a registry cleaner to clean up your computer and then make your computer faster,Why?the reason is that there may be some registry errors and remnant,corrupt files and temp files in your computer to cause "computer slow". Every time you install and uninstall software on your computer and surfing online you create junk in the computer registry.over time, the registry can grow to enormous proportions, especially if the various programs you've installed do not do a good job of deleting and/or updating it's Registry entries.You need to scan and clean your computer with registry cleaner to make it fast.Good Registry Cleaner will improve your computer and Internet performance dramatically! There are some comparison and review of TOP 5 registry cleaners. http://www.fix-system.com You can download and scan your computer for free.

try tuneup, http://download.cnet.com/TuneUp-Utilities-2010/3000-18512_4-10206416.html its a registry cleaner. free trial. If your computer is still slow after that you might have a virus or maybe just too many programs on your hard drive. delete some stuff you don't need if its taking up too much space.

Check what is using your resources by launching Task Manager, press Ctrl + Alt + Delete and click on the Processes tab. Identify a process where the digits are rapidly changing under the CPU and Mem Usage columns. Do a Google search to find out what that process does.