Faster than ever!

HP Pavillion computer - This is the HP Pavillion a1616n computer, with 2 Gigs of memory and a 230 Gig hard drive.
@fwidman (11514)
United States
April 8, 2009 8:46pm CST
Shelly and I have a new computer Not brand new, but new to us. A woman that Shelly works for gave it to her, telling her it had a virus and didn't work right. I played with it for the evening and part of the next day before just re-installing Windows XP, taking care of whatever the problem was. This computer has 2 GB of memory and a nice 230 GB hard drive, so surfing the net is much nicer than with the other computer. Shelly can watch her youtube videos without any stuttering or stopping. I can watch whatever it is I watch and it works just fine When's the last time you got a faster computer, either by getting another computer or just adding memory to your old one?
4 people like this
17 responses
@ktosea (2026)
• China
9 Apr 09
woo.that's a fantastic computer,2 GB or memory and a 230 GB hard drive,you could save many video plays in your computer and use many huge softwares.mine is just 1GB of momeroy which I would like to add a 2GB memory card some day,160 GB hard drive is not good enough for me to save many movies and other files happy mylotting
2 people like this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
I have an external hard drive hooked up now for any large files like movies. The one thing I do not want to do is fill this hard drive and slow things down and have Shelly string me up by my thumbs. Seems like every computer we have shared goes slower and slower the more I use it
2 people like this
@ktosea (2026)
• China
9 Apr 09
that's right,there will be crushes and other virus,they will slow down the computer
2 people like this
9 Apr 09
Hi fwidman, I got my computer 10 months ago and its still new and we also have a desk top computer as well which my husband use sometimes if he is not using my laptop, so I suppose being fairley new its works well. Tamara
2 people like this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
Hi, tamara! Yep, yours is still a new one and that's good
1 person likes this
• United States
9 Apr 09
Its been a while, I usually try to keep my PC free of unwanted junk.
2 people like this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
I try to do the same, but I just seem to like more programs than Shelly does
1 person likes this
• Lubbock, Texas
9 Apr 09
I'm so jealous! My computer is 5 years old, has a 4 GB of memory and is 3/4 of the way full. I need to delete some stuff or put it on a flash drive, but I just haven't taken the time to do it. I also need to get this *%@* Mcaffey av removed and install an different one. Congrats on your acquisition!
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
Thanks I'm sure this one will seem slow, or normal, before too long as we get used to it. My last computer was about four or five years old too and it showed it's age Get rid of McAffee and get something free online. I had to get one yesterday for this computer and I found one called AVG. So far, it is working fine although I wish it was faster with checking my email
1 person likes this
• Lubbock, Texas
9 Apr 09
I've used AVG and it's my av of choice, but McAffey seems to have embedded itself into windows. I can uninstall it, but when I try to install AVG it says there's another av program on the computer and I should uninstall it first! I love AVG. It runs quietly in the background protecting my computer and doesn't hijack it at odd variable hours to do 1 hour updates or 2 hour scans at it's whim.
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
10 Apr 09
AVG seems to be working just fine so far I turned it off from checking my emails, as it was really slow at that aspect. And it did it's scheduled scan without slowing down the computer so I liked that part a lot
@camomom (7535)
• United States
17 Apr 09
I just recently bought a new laptop with my tax refund. It's A LOT faster then my old HP.
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
17 Apr 09
A laptop? Lucky you
@camomom (7535)
• United States
18 Apr 09
The old one was a laptop too. We found that it's easier then trying to take a desktop with us when we go away
1 person likes this
@camomom (7535)
• United States
18 Apr 09
Seriously, they were cheaper then the desktops that we looked at and were a lot nicer too.
1 person likes this
@mhildi (52)
• Indonesia
9 Apr 09
WHAT!!!!! 2GB MEMORY!!! thats awesome!! my computer, only 512mb of memory and just 60 GB hard drive.
2 people like this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
Nice to be able to watch a video without having it stop in the middle and waiting for it to start again
1 person likes this
@littleowl (7157)
12 Apr 09
Hi fwidman, Windows XP has always been favourite to me rather than Vista..Vista seems to be pain..I have got a refurbished laptop which is WXP in replacement of one I had am accident with and that is working fine, its nothing fancy but it does what I want so am happy with it, both my laptops are 1gb but I have a data card of 2gb memory so that is useful...littleowl
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
12 Apr 09
Hi, littleowl! I've never used Vista and from what I've heard about it I doubt I ever will. I am not big on graphics or artwork or gaming so I am doing just fine with XP If they work for you, then that's what counts!
@fwangaa (3057)
• China
29 Apr 09
i want to add a 2G memory to my computer, but i want wait some times when it down price. i want to improve my speed of internet. and i also want to buy a new power supply that will less noisy. i also want to buy a screen. with less radiation. i also want to buy a laptop. i hope i will buy them next year.
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
30 Apr 09
Sounds like you want a whole new computer I've been looking at flat screen monitors but I haven't bought one yet
@ShellyB (5241)
• United States
9 Apr 09
I think my friend knew it would work (even tho I work for her we are more friends than working relations) and well did not wanted to keep it in her garage no more I am grateful for that, so your last time is my last time too.
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
I am glad she didn't want it taking up space in her garage
@ShellyB (5241)
• United States
11 Apr 09
Well that's the way the cookie crumbles sometimes
1 person likes this
• United States
20 Apr 09
hi Fwid...i've yet to have a computer that doesn't stutter on youtube. i had a brand new mac and it gave me hiccups/stuttering/stopping. i still have a dream to get a new computer some day. in the meantime i'm at least online with my old refurbished one. am grateful for small things.
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
20 Apr 09
This computer doesn't seem to have any trouble with youtube videos and for that I'm happy as Shelly and the teenager spend a lot of time on that site The person that had this computer used it to play games like War of the World or whatever it's called so I guess short videos shouldn't be a problem
• United States
20 Apr 09
yeah that should definitely be a good sign that it'd work for youtube. my mac was restricted for games because any game has to be especially designed for mac to play on mac. and the computer i have now is a refurbished dinosaur so i can only play old games or card games on it. but at least i'm online. that is what matters most now. some day i'll have a better one. (insert, "Over the Rainbow") fade out with smile on face.
1 person likes this
@Chevee (5905)
• United States
10 Apr 09
Mine may as well be new. I had a problem tried doing a Microsoft windows update the update froze on me I turned the computer off and tried to get it back on and it just kept starting over again and again. I finally did a F10 window recovery and lost everything that was on my hard drive. Now I am starting all over again. Just like a newborn babies bottom (clean).
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
10 Apr 09
That was the problem the computer had after I got rid of the virus that it found, it would just reboot and that's it Losing all the stuff on a hard drvie is a real pain though, especially bookmarks.
• Canada
27 Apr 09
Right now I am running a monster computer! I am really into gaming and I had a pretty good computer for gaming before this one... but I really wanted something a lot faster so I bought a alienware pc! It's awesome and runs Xtremley smooth... and I gave my old pc to my sisters and they love it lol.
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
27 Apr 09
If you are into gaming then you definitely need a super fast computer. Otherwise, your character would die in nothing flat LOL
• Philippines
9 Apr 09
just had this computer im using 3 months ago its a p4 2.4 with 20g hdisk and 256 ram... it's quite useful for me its actually my second pc... it might not be a high end but just to let me browse the internet is fine... by the way what do you guys recommend for a gaming pc? I meant to upgrade this computer... would you consider me upgrading or buying a new one instead... pls if you have anything to suggest... could you give me a good specification for an online gaming computer... thanx..
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
Not being a game player it's hard to say, but I would think that a computer with dual processors, a very large hard drive and as much memory as the computer can handle would be the way to go There were some games on this computer that I wiped out, including War of the Worlds so this size computer would probably work
1 person likes this
• Philippines
9 Apr 09
thank you... hmmm.. yeah well i guess yeah having a p4 is just about fine and getting as much memory like if i have at least 3 memory slots with 1g ddr each that makes 3g.... having large storage space will help too as to have more virtual memory available... haha... way back i only paid attention to how much the size a display card could give... well thanks again..
1 person likes this
@garyc09 (132)
9 Apr 09
i would just use them seperate,there must be summat wrong in there.
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
I probably will use both computers at some point in time. I'll need to get a new router and wireless connection first though.
@kerriannc (4279)
• Jamaica
9 Apr 09
It was in december I brought a 1 GB memory but the computer actually started working properly when I purchase a fan for it. I am glad that you have a new one so that you and shelly can enjoy your various activities.
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
You definitely need to keep your computer parts cooled off! Too hot and they stop working
@fjgamer (543)
• United States
9 Apr 09
I plan to invest $500 in computer parts and build my own computer by the end of this year, but I can't afford the parts until after Summer, because I'm paying off medical bills and finding a new job. Once I have a stable income again, I'll surely save enough for my parts, though. You really only need 1GB of memory, but if you use Vista, memory is hogged, so 2GB is recommended. A 120GB HDD would be plenty of space, really. 230GB is a bit over what most people need, and while the extra space means more games/apps, it also means more clutter and more time spent in defrag. Also, most drives have a low speed. You should make sure your cache is 8MB or higher.
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
I didn't even look at the cache size Yes, the hard drive is a bit bigger than it needs to be, but it's the drive that came with the machine so it stays
@eselmaro (208)
• Philippines
9 Apr 09
My computer was bought way back 2002 it was faster that time with specs - 40GB pentium 4 and ram 512. Now, I am not using it anymore I have my new laptop with the latest specs already but a friend of mine says that computer / desktop still much better than the laptop if you really wanna see speed. With the XP you are using I can it is really working on its peak. Good luck to you and to you computer. Have a good day!
1 person likes this
@fwidman (11514)
• United States
9 Apr 09
Thanks XP is much better than Vista at using memory I have heard, so that's a good thing. This is XP Home Edition which is different than my old computer that used XP. Don't know what the difference is other than this XP has more games built into it.