Windows XP does provide us with a quality performance, but lately, you do not think that you have been getting the best out of your operating system. You always find it working a little bit slower than usual, and sometimes, you just want to switch into a different operating system at once. If you always find yourself always asking 'How do I speed up Windows XP?' then do not fret anymore.

First is eliminating programs which always run on start-up mode. Some may find this a little bit hard to do, thinking that there is absolutely no way to stop them all, since others are in the Start up folder, and some are part of the logon scripts. Little do you know, there is a way for these programs to stop running, only with a little bit of perseverance on your part. A way to do this is to clean up your Startup folder. It is advised that you delete the short cut keys of the programs that you barely use in your computer. You do not have to worry about deleting the short cut keys, because when you do this, you do not really delete the whole program itself, but just the short cut to that program. To go to this folder, go to Documents and Settings and click on the username that you want to get in. Click Start Menu, go to Programs, and then Start Up. You may now remove the unnecessary short cut keys which hinders the full performance speed of your computer.

Another way to prevent you from the perpetual question 'how do I speed Windows XP' is to clean up another folder, which is the Scheduled Tasks folder. Delete every short cut program that you do not want to run on specific times. You can go to this folder by accessing C:WindowsTasks.

Using the Systems Configuration Utility is another way to speed up your Windows XP. By using this utility, you would have the option to stop some programs from running at start-up, and this will eventually make your computer run faster than it would. All you have to do is to run msconfig at a command prompt, and click OK. This would eventually stop the other programs from running at random during start-up making your computer to eventually run faster than it did before.

Speeding up shutdown times is also one way to get the maximum performance out of your Windows XP. You may run the Registry Editor by going to the Start button and clicking Run. Type regedit and go to this path: HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINESYSTEMCurrentControlSetControlSession ManagerMemory Management. Make sure to change the value of ClearPageFileAtShutdown to zero, then close the registry and restart your computer. Exercise caution when you edit the Registry because this can do a lot of damage to your computer. Know first what you are editing in the Registry before editing it. These tips will surely prevent you from asking 'how do I speed up Windows XP' in no time.