Member Avatar for Petrena

Hi there, please forgive me if I am in the wrong forum, but I don't know where to begin. I have tried looking at the tutorials, etc, but the language is way above my head. I have recently bought a second hand computer, which on the outside looked a good one. Its a Sony Vaio, and it seems to have everything together. My knowledge is very limited, as I only really know how to use Microsoft Office, and a nice friendly Windows environment.

Now I know I have Windows XP installed, I was a secretary, so I only ever used the basic office programs, and when I had a problem a nice technical help guy used to come and fix it at work while I went onto another terminal, so unfortunately, I never got to see what he actually did and he never offered any advice, so I went on my merry way. Well I became ill a few months ago, and I have had to leave my job, and I thought well I could do some typing, etc, from home, so obviously I got a computer.

It seems to be functioning ok, but is very slow, however it has alot of memory and ram and it doesn't seem to have many files on the Windows side, but I obviously don't know whats running underneath if you understand. I would also like to surf the web abit but I want to surf it safely. I will be honest, I have looked at your guides and they have just gone straight over my head, because I certainly don't know what you are talking about. Yes I know you are speaking English in the forum, but there are so many strange words, etc, I am completely lost. I know this sounds crazy, but I can't really tell you what is wrong, with the computer, but the feel of the computer feels wrong somehow. The problem is I don't have alot of money to fix the computer, and I have look at the price of all the cleaning tools etc, and it seems to be mounting up in my head. I wonder if some kind person could put me under their wing, and guide with baby steps please.

I do appreciate your time and patience.

Thank you.

  • 2 Contributors
  • 1 Reply
  • 117 Views
  • 8 Hours Discussion Span
  • Latest Post Latest Post by PhilliePhan

Dani AI

Generated

This thread shows picked up a used Sony Vaio running Windows XP and reports it feels slow and "wrong." correctly recommends starting with an anti‑malware scan and sharing the resulting log. Before running any cleaners or paying for services, a few low‑risk, low‑cost steps make diagnosis safer and faster.

Important first step: back up personal data. Copy the profile folder (Documents, Desktop and Favorites) to a blank USB stick or external drive so photos, documents and email are preserved. If unsure where files live, copying the whole user profile folder is a safe start; keep the backup physically secure.

Basic checks that often fix or reveal problems: confirm free disk space (Properties on C:), run Disk Cleanup and then Defragmenter if plenty of space exists. Open Task Manager (Ctrl+Alt+Del) to see if a single program is using lots of CPU or RAM. In Control Panel -> Administrative Tools -> Event Viewer, repeated disk or service errors point to hardware trouble. Use the drive Properties -> Tools -> Error‑checking to schedule chkdsk if Windows reports file errors.

Security and next steps: Windows XP has been unsupported for years and is risky for online banking or shopping. If Internet use is planned, consider a fresh, supported OS (a free, lightweight Linux is often a low‑cost upgrade) or try a live USB session to test speed without changing the hard drive. Avoid paid "miracle" registry cleaners; many effective tools are free and community‑driven. As requested, include the anti‑malware scan log in follow‑up posts so volunteers can interpret results and recommend the safest next actions.

Member Avatar for PhilliePhan

Hi Petrena,

There could be all sorts of different reasons why your computer is acting the way it is. For us to try to help, we'll need to see some logs. We can try to rule out malware as a cause of the problem and then go from there.

Can you do this for me:

Please download Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware (MBA-M) to your Desktop.

  • DoubleClick mbam-setup.exe and follow the prompts to install MBA-M.
  • Be sure a checkmark is placed next to Update Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware and Launch Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware, then click Finish.
  • If an update is found, it will download and install the latest version.
  • Once the program has loaded, select Perform full scan, then click Scan.
  • When the scan is complete, click OK, then Show Results to view the results.
  • Be sure that everything is checked, and click Remove Selected.
  • When MBA-M finishes, Notepad will open with the log. Please save it where you can find it easily. The log can also be opened by going to Start > All Programs > Malwarebytes' Anti-Malware > Logs > log-date.txt.

Please post this scanlog for us.

Let me know if you have any trouble with this.

Cheers :)
PP

Be a part of the DaniWeb community

We're a friendly, industry-focused community of developers, IT pros, digital marketers, and technology enthusiasts meeting, networking, learning, and sharing knowledge.