Making my PC faster

[kaitco]

I bought my PC in 2003, a 2.40GHz Pentium 4, and it more or less runs the way I want it to run, however, I am wondering if there is a way to make it faster. While I would like a way to have Dreamweaver, Flash, Photoshop, phpdev, Media Player and a Word document all running at the same time smoothly, I know it may not be feasible, so I am just looking for a way to make the most of what I have.

I have 1GB of RAM that I am planning to upgrade to the 2 Gigs my system will allow, but I want to do something about the processor speed. I know there is no way to really change the processor outside of buying a new one, but would I have to buy a whole new PC just to upgrade my processor or could I just replace my current one?

If my suspicions are correct, doing any kind of "upgrade" to my processor may require a new hard drive. I am rather attached to all the settings I've got on the original 80GB hard drive for my PC and I am not enthusiastic about getting a new internal hard drive if there are other options.

Any suggestions?

[jmac555]

Because when a computer component is manufactered there are occasionally faults, the shipped component sometimes will have more capabilities than what the manufacterer has specified. Due to this fact you are able to edit you computer settings to utilise the full capabilities, depending on which brand CPU you have the process for doing this will be different. For a generic guide google search <Overclocking PC's>

hope this helps

[oracleguy]

Because when a computer component is manufactered there are occasionally faults, the shipped component sometimes will have more capabilities than what the manufacterer has specified. Due to this fact you are able to edit you computer settings to utilise the full capabilities, depending on which brand CPU you have the process for doing this will be different. For a generic guide google search <Overclocking PC's>

hope this helps

I would not recommend overclocking, that is dangerous and unnecessary in this case.

As to the OP's question, it depends what your motherboard supports. More than likely it supports several different CPU speeds. If it does, you could buy a faster Pentium 4 processor and install it. What kind of documentation do you have on your computer?

However the only caveat is that your system almost certainly uses a Socket 478 Pentium 4 which went obsolete several years ago and it might be hard to find a new one to buy. You might be forced to buy a used processor, which is alright as long as it is in working order.

If my suspicions are correct, doing any kind of "upgrade" to my processor may require a new hard drive. I am rather attached to all the settings I've got on the original 80GB hard drive for my PC and I am not enthusiastic about getting a new internal hard drive if there are other options.


That is completely false, upgrading the processor is unrelated to the hard drive. You can still use the hard drive you have.

[neonflorida]

I have a PC running Pentium 4 at 2.8Ghz and I dont use it anymore as I built a new computer running dual core and 4 gigs ram with video cards ans so forth so I can use my video editing software and After effects so forth. I buy all my parts from Newegg.com. I dont think you can buy pentium 4 CPU's anymore. I think you should buy a new motherboard, dual core CPU and you can buy 2 gigs of ram now days for about 30 bucks, even 20 bucks. But yeah, 2.6GHz dual cores from AMD are about $70 now. Quad core phenom is about $170

[kaitco]

As to the OP's question, it depends what your motherboard supports. More than likely it supports several different CPU speeds. If it does, you could buy a faster Pentium 4 processor and install it. What kind of documentation do you have on your computer?

Documentation? I still have the Owner's Manual. My computer is a Dell Dimension 2400 Series. I flipped through the manual, but I did not see anything about support for different CPUs, granted, I'm not entirely sure if I would know it when I saw it.

Assuming my system does use a Socekt 478, I found this (http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16819116027) on Newegg. If it was not already obvious, I know very little about upgrading my hardware, but some of the reviews on it say it is "easy" to install. Would you recommend I give it a try, or is installing a new processor something best left to the Geek Squad at Best Buy given my little understanding about hardware?

[_Aerospace_Eng_]

I think its best for a professional. If you've never opened your computer before and installed anything yourself then don't do it yourself as you'll just be frustrated and possibly damage something that you didn't want to.

[kaitco]

Sound advice from you all. Thanks a bunch!

[julianl]

Definitely think about adding a new fast video card.

That made a difference for me when trying to speed up my PC.

Good Luck

[oracleguy]

Definitely think about adding a new fast video card.

That made a difference for me when trying to speed up my PC.

Good Luck

For the applications the OP said they were using, a new graphics card wouldn't help at all.

[julianl]

For the applications the OP said they were using, a new graphics card wouldn't help at all.

It would if they were using on board graphics sharing pc memory for video.

Are they using vista and wanting aero interface?