How do I free up disk space?

[shinmeeok]

I was wondering why my pc is so slow.  I looked in the c drive and it is 20% free disk space.  I'm guessing that is why it is so slow.  How do I free up my disk space in the c drive when I don't know half of what's important in it and what is not.  I don't want to delete something the computer needs.  I'm running an Acer Aspire 5100- 3949 with Windows Vista Home Premium.  1GB DDR2  80 GB HDD.  Any help would be appreciated.  I don't think it's a virus issue but what do I know? Thanks.

[JJ 3000]

20 % free space should be fine. If you want to free up some disk space download CCleaner http://www.ccleaner.com/download/builds
Choose the slim version and run it. It will clear up a lot of the crap on your hard drive. Also, a disk cleanup and defrag will help you. If you want to speed up your PC I would suggest adding more RAM.

[shinmeeok]

Where can I purchase more RAM at, and how much does it cost an average price?

[JJ 3000]

There are several places to buy RAM. Do you have a local computer shop or Radio Shack or somwhere similar?
If you go to http://www.crucial.com/ It will scan your system and tell you exactly what kind you need. you dont have to buy from there, but you can if you want. There are several places on the web where you can buy RAM.

[shinmeeok]

I was wondering why my computer is so slow, thanks for the info on ccleaner jj 3000.  I am concerned why this are so slow, I am right off the I-95 interstate and I have five bars on the signal and still the computer is so slow it takes 3-5 minutes sometimes for the window to open and also the startup programs.  Could it be something else slowing the computer down?  I have an Acer Notebook running on Windows Vista Home Premium Aspire 5100-3949 AMD Turion 64 Mobile Technology, MK-36 (2.0 GHz,512KB L2 cache).  15.4 WXGA Acer CrystalBrite LCD (16ms) Up to 256MB ATI Radeon Xpress 1100 Hypermemory, 80GB HDD, DVD-Super Multi double layer(support DVD+r Double Layer/DVD+RW), 1GB DDR2, 802.11b/g wireless LAN.  So Iam running off wireless and should get better performance than what I am getting.

[infiltrator]

Run the Defragmenter?
Doesn't that free up space?

[truenorth]

shinmeeok,The key elements in your dilema as i see it are  1. your running a Vista O/S with only 1 gb of ram and i suspect only one partition on your HD (which in  todays environment is a tad on the "light side" given the 80gb HD). I would suggest (as has been stated an increase in ram to at least 2gb ) and a larger capacity HD with more partitions and use "C" for only the O/S. Your access speed (to computer function) is most likely not being adversely affected by your wireless conection.truenorth
P.S. For the HD size increase i suggest an external USB conectable. Then transfer all but the O/S to the external and you should be blazing after that.

[shinmeeok]

What is O/S operating system?  Well I got this pc 2 yrs ago and it worked ok then.  How much RAM can I get and if I get say 5gb more RAM will it make my pc work even faster?  Where can I purchase this RAM and how do I install it onto the hard drive?  Can you go to any electronics store like Radioshack to get it?  Where is the best purchasing place?  What about the USB external connectable how do I transfer it to the o/s? Thanks.

[truenorth]

shinmeeok,You will need to determine the correct ram for your computer you can do this by going to http://www.crucial.com/systemscanner/ and doing the scan. That company is one of the foremost suppliers of computer memory. However you need not purchase from them or even their products. Many companies make RAM sticks. This will provide you with the knowledge of  of what is NOW in your computer and i believe it will also tell you what is the maximum that your computer can take.The latter is very important as you can only upgrade with the same type and only to the maximum that is stated for that computer.As to where you purchase it that is a personal decision. It can be online (given the small weight factor of RAM that is probably your most economically best choice) or from a local computer supply retail store. Not to promote or be disparaging re any retail source my view is that you can do a lot better than whatever is available at "Radio Shack". We all must start somewhere when it comes to improving our computer knowledge and abilities and this could be a good easy start for you. Ram,as an example is NOT installed on the" hard drive" It is a separate piece of hardware installed on your computer's motherboard (very easy to do).Your reference to  "about the USB external connectable how do I transfer it to the o/s" is another example of your lack of basic knowledge of your computer. That is not intended as a put down it is only mentioned to motivate you to become more aware of the technology that you are using. I believe that an underlying objective of the CH forums is not to be a total "hand holder" but instead is to promote an increase in the  level of knowledge and enhance the users abilities with computers. To that end YOU have some responsibilities.Time to do a bit of personal research and get back with any questions that arise. Yes O/S is a contraction for "operating system". In your case Vista Home Premium. truenorth

[Ashutosh32]

Run the Defragmenter?
Doesn't that free up space?

Defragmenter doesnt free up disk space.
It just removes fragments of files created on the hard disk.

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

Run the Defragmenter?
Doesn't that free up space?

Defragmenter doesnt free up disk space.
It just removes fragments of files created on the hard disk.

Not really, no. It groups all the fragments together and 'defragments it'.

[johnha169]

well, i think defragment will help but not much.

[Carbon Dudeoxide]

I think this guide should have been suggested.

http://www.computerhope.com/forum/index.php/topic,62253.0.html

well, i think defragment will help but not much.

If you have never defragged before or haven't done so in a while, you will notice a difference.