XPost: microsoft.public.word.newusers   
   From: jj4public@vfemail.net   
      
   On Tue, 24 May 2016 19:37:21 +0200, Steve Hayes wrote:   
   > I installed MS Office 2003 on my computer the other day, and since   
   > then it seems to run a lot slower, and it takes 20-30 minutes to boot   
   > instead of the usual 7 (Windows XP)*   
      
   In my old system (1.6GHz 2-cores, 2GB RAM), it took about 2 minutes to boot.   
   A 7 minutes boot seems a lot is going on, or the PC or HDD is just slow.   
      
   - Office 2003 minimum RAM is 1GB. If you only have 2GB of RAM and using more   
   than 500MB after boot up before Office 2003 is installed, it's likely that   
   you now have very little memory space left for applications. AFAIK, Office   
   installs an application that is run at startup. It sets up and pre-loads   
   files that are used by any Office suite applications so that the   
   applications would load faster. The disadvantage is that it consume memory,   
   in expense for faster application loading. If the total memory consumption   
   in the whole system is larger than the RAM capacity, there will be memory   
   data swapping to and from the disk, which slows down the overall system   
   performance. Fix: turn off and disable unneeded applications. i.e. no need   
   to run an application at startup if it's not used every day.   
      
   - If you feel that the duration right after user has logged in and until the   
   system is completely idle and ready (CPU usage < 5%) is too long, the   
   problem is likely due to one of the applications that is automatically run   
   at startup. Fix: use Microsoft Autoruns to disable them and isolate the   
   problem. Note: for this context, only the entries in in the "Logon" tab and   
   in the section names which end with "Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Run"   
   that should be checked.   
      
   - If you feel that the duration right after a wallpaper appears (not the   
   boot logo+animation) and until user login prompt appears is too long, the   
   problem is likely due to services that are configured to run at system   
   start. Fix: open the Service console to disable and isolate the problem.   
   Note: on default Windows XP (Pro) installation, only about 20% of total   
   running services can be safely configured to run on demand or completely   
   disabled. This will vary based on installed devices and softwares.   
      
   - The HDD could be heavily fragmented. Fix: run Disk Defragmenter.   
   Fragmented page file(s) (pagefile.sys) may also decrease memory block   
   allocations. Use a third party disk defragmenter that has boot   
   defragmentation feature to defragment them.   
      
   - The HDD might be showing signs of worn out. e.g. significantly slower   
   performance or appearing bad clusters. Check: use CrystalDiskInfo to check   
   HDD health and run CHKDSK to check for or see is there's bad cluster. Fix:   
   none. If the HDD is getting worn out, I'd suggest you to replace it   
   immediately while it's still readable.   
      
   - During the whole boot process, if the HDD led is seldom lit or blinking,   
   the problem could be network related (where service/application is trouble   
   finding something via network). Try unplugging the network cable that's   
   plugged into your PC's before rebooting.   
      
   > It seems to have installed a mysterious floating icon with a   
   > microphone on it, and I wonder what that is and how I can get rid of   
   > it -- perhaps it is slowinf things down looking for a microphone when   
   > my computer doesn't have one. Does anyone know what it is and how to   
   > disable it?   
      
   Perhaps you can take a screenshot and post it to imgur.com?   
      
   > * Someone is boud to ask why I am installing 13-year-old software on   
   > my computer, so I will explain here for those who want to know.   
      
   Well, not me. I'm very well aware that there must be a good reason (that   
   others may/would not understand) for someone to choose older software than   
   the newer one.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)