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Tek, I'll re-read this tomorrow and see if I can do what you suggest. I'm again frazzled, I've had Defender and Avast for quite awhile (I went w/Avast in place of AVG because that started hanging up, AVG got so bloated and maybe that's the same for Avast?) - I did at one time find the pie chart thing you're talking about and there was lots of room. It's taken me forever to get here again after my usual surfing stuff and work tomorrow.
The light I was talking about (This is a Dell Dimension L866r) - is the light below the power button, above the little "battery?" picture - I check Windows Task Mgr. to see what's running (often it's Explorer).
Someone told me Ctrl-Alt-Del so I do that when I'm having issues - but I always start up in Mozilla
Anyway, thanks again for all the help, I'll try to deal w/this tomorrow - I don't think this computer has much RAM (it was a freebie) so maybe it's catching up? (All sites now seem to have tons of crap - FWIW - I also use ABP so I don't get pop up, ads, or anything).
I found the specs for RAM and even if it's maxxed out it's a bit shy.
Memory Upgrade for Dell Dimension L866R Computer, the Dell Dimension L866R Computer takes the PC100 SDRAM DIMMs Memory Type, and comes installed with 64 MB (removable) of Memory. You can upgrade your Dell Dimension L866R Computer to up to a maximum of 512 MB Memory.
The little picture below that light is a representation of the hard drive, so if it's lit up all the time that's likely the main problem.
Tek, your research tells a lot. Any computer using PC100 memory is really old. If it can only hold 512MB, it will not run Windows XP well. On a computer that old, anything can fail at any time. My guess is that it must be 12 years old, maybe more.
Well, I do understand all that. A computer that old is getting increasingly close to the time that mechanical parts, such as fan motors, will simply wear out.
I found the specs for RAM and even if it's maxxed out it's a bit shy.
Memory Upgrade for Dell Dimension L866R Computer, the Dell Dimension L866R Computer takes the PC100 SDRAM DIMMs Memory Type, and comes installed with 64 MB (removable) of Memory. You can upgrade your Dell Dimension L866R Computer to up to a maximum of 512 MB Memory.
The little picture below that light is a representation of the hard drive, so if it's lit up all the time that's likely the main problem.
So, basically, my computer is old and tired? I'm thinking the opinions that it's simply worn out are correct. And yes, that's the light that runs when I'm having "issues" which tonight I'm not, I didn't go to AOL first to check on mail (I actually having Verizon as a provider but I've had my AOL emails for years... plus Verizon sets as many cookies as AOL does).
Do I need more memory if I still have lots available? Is it worth putting more in if I have room? And I totally forget how to find out how to check how much RAM I have...
Last edited by Flamingo13; 02-17-2011 at 07:08 PM..
When you use AOL for email do you actually run the program or do you go to the Internet and then to aol.com?
I ask because I noticed you have some AOL software running at startup. If all you use it for is email you don't need AOL running and should uninstall it. AOL is a bloated pig (at least it was the last time I used it and I can't imagine they've fixed it) and is probably using up a lot of resources, including RAM.
I get online by clicking my Mozilla Icon (I deleted the Verizon which was probably a mistake) - I only use AOL to read my email - deleted it (I hope), not sure why AOL installed and it was "doing maintenance" during the time when I started the big time hangups. I see I only have 256 RAM, do you think it's worth it to get another 256? Or would I be better off just getting a new computer? So far tonight, it's okay, but if I even go to AOL.com to check emails, then do other things, seems like it really hangs up - especially w/this site! CD has hung up on me before.
I get online by clicking my Mozilla Icon (I deleted the Verizon which was probably a mistake) - I only use AOL to read my email - deleted it (I hope), not sure why AOL installed and it was "doing maintenance" during the time when I started the big time hangups. I see I only have 256 RAM, do you think it's worth it to get another 256? Or would I be better off just getting a new computer? So far tonight, it's okay, but if I even go to AOL.com to check emails, then do other things, seems like it really hangs up - especially w/this site! CD has hung up on me before.
Try disabling it, restart the computer and see if it helps after going to AOL and reading mail.
RAM
This is the only PC 100 I find at Newegg. I'm not sure this is compatible, but it probably is. If you decide to try adding it let me know and I'll spend more time researching it.
As for adding RAM vs buying new, it's a tough call. Without sitting with your PC and testing some things it's tough to determine if another 256mb of RAM would help. On the other hand $40 can be considered a cheap test.
I'm going to look through my old RAM and see what I have.
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