I have a Dell Dimension 8250 with Intel P-4 2.6 Mhz., 1 GB RDRAM (Rambus) bios A04/1-9-2004, 2 GB virtual mem, page file space 2.41 GB, XP Home edition 5.1.2600, Service pack 3 Build 2600, also have Intel Application Accelerator v 5.1.2600.5512 - the main drive is 65 GB that has all programs along with the operating system, the 2nd. drive is 500GB with my photos and music files stored there. My computer is not running as fast as it used to - dispite all the maintenance that I keep up on. ANY help is greatfully appreciated

Hi OregonOldMan, ·Do you remember any recent changes made on your computer prior to the issue? Follow the steps from the below links to improve the performance of the computer. Links:How to make a computer faster: 6 ways to speed up your PC:http://www.microsoft.com/atwork/maintenance/speed.aspx Restore Your Computer's Performance with Windows XP:http://www.microsoft.com/windowsxp/using/setup/expert/northrup_restoreperf.mspx To check if DMA is enabled, you may refer:DMA Mode for ATA/ATAPI Devices in Windows XP:http://www.microsoft.com/whdc/device/storage/ide-dma.mspx Regards:Samhrutha G S - Microsoft Support.Visit our Microsoft Answers Feedback Forum and let us know what you think.

To enable DMA mode using the Device Manager1.Open Device Manager.2.Double-click IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers to display the list of controllers and channels.3.Right-click the icon for the channel to which the device is connected, select Properties, and then click the Advanced Settings tab.4.In the Current Transfer Mode drop-down box, select DMA if Available if the current setting is "PIO Only."If the drop-down box already shows "DMA if Available" but the current transfer mode is PIO, then the user must toggle the settings. That is:•Change the selection from "DMA if available" to PIO only, and click OK.•Then repeat the steps above to change the selection to DMA if Available.Hi Samhrutha G.,I was instructed to check my DMA settings from another forum post to help get my 9 yr. old XP machine to run faster like it used to. In step 3 above I have no 'advanced' tab, so what does that mean. I have a validated/registered XP operating system from Dell with service pack 3 . Thank you for your help, Patrick

Hi OregonOldMan (Patrick) again,I checked into the other 2 links about maint., etc. and I feel that I have always kept up on these items, but I ran SpyBot and it found 7 cookies (just tracking I think) so they were deleted, I ran Norton A.V. (Free version from Comcast) it found 1 cookie so I deleted that. I have run disk cleanup and defrag at various times and it doesn't seem to make much difference speeding up wise, I'm thinking it's probably the start up /background programs that are making the slowness happen and I continue to work on that. BUT I'm still curious - why is my XP OS missing the 'Advanced Setting Tab'??I also thought that given the age of the original Dell XP operating system - even though it's always been updated might have something to do with it. I'm also not able (on a fixed income) to buy a new computer for a long while, so again I do appreciate your help and concern, Patrick