Latitude C600

Question

We have an older laptop that is a Latitude C600 that came from Dell with factory installed Windows 98 Second Edition. It's previously been upgraded to XP Pro and has Office 03 on it.

It's EXTREMELY slow and it's been replaced with a new Inspiron 1525. We're not sure if we'll sell the laptop or keep it for internet use only.

My questions are:

1. What would you do to speed this up? Would getting rid of Office 03 help?

2. Is XP slowing it down more than anything else?

3. What would you suggest doing with this laptop?

4. If we reformat it.....how is that done with the Latitude laptops? Is it Ctrl. F11 during bootup or what is it?

Thanks for your help!

jenalr · Answer

Being that the computer was actually replaced with a new laptop....we don't want to put money into that one. With that piece of knowledge...what would you do?

Reformat back to 98 Second Edition?

So essentially it's the XP that's our major bog down?

Thanks for your help!

ejn63 · Answer

Upgrade it to 512M. Be VERY, VERY careful in buying RAM for it - most of the RAM made now and in the last few years is high density and will not work in the C600. You must use low density RAM and it's much better to buy RAM certified to work in this system.

The RAM is more expensive than more current DDR-2 RAM, but it's about $75 for a pair of 256M soDIMMs.

http://www.crucial.com/store/listparts.aspx?model=Latitude%20C600%20Series

jenalr · Answer

The post is about an older Dell Latitude C600 laptop that originally came with Windows 98 Second Edition but has been upgraded to XP Pro and has Office 03 installed. The user is seeking advice on how to speed up the laptop, whether getting rid of Office 03 would help, if XP is slowing it down, and what to do with the laptop. They also ask about reformatting the laptop. The answer provided mentions that the laptop has 256mb of RAM and asks for suggestions.

ejn63 · Answer

The post is about an older laptop, Latitude C600, that is currently running Windows XP Pro and Office 03. The user is experiencing extreme slowness and is considering selling the laptop or using it for internet use only. The user has several questions regarding speeding up the laptop, the impact of XP on its performance, suggestions for its use, and how to reformat it. The answer suggests that the slowness is likely due to the demands of XP and recommends using Windows 2000 if the laptop is used for networking or internet purposes. Windows 98 is considered insecure and not recommended. The JSON output is in the correct format.

jenalr · Answer

So 98 is insecure and it'd be opening up to potential viruses, etc.? Or is that only if being used on a network?

I *think* we have a copy of 2000 somewhere that we could put on there. If not, can you even buy it anymore?

Sorry - I am slightly confused.

Thanks!

ejn63 · Answer

How much memory (RAM) does it have?  Without the max (512M) this model is going to be extremely slow with XP.

jenalr · Answer

One more question.....Isn't there a place to go on Dell's website to type in the service tag number to find out what all was on the system? The "tag" below the keyboard says Windows 2000 but on the underside of the computer it has Windows 98 SE.

Where on Dell's website can I type in the service tag and find out what it really will go back to when I reformat?

Thanks!

Message Edited by jenalr on 08-01-2008 12:37 PM

ejn63 · Answer

You should remove the service tag from your post - otherwise it'll be deleted for violating the terms of service of the forum. It must have come with 98.

I would not browse the Internet using 98 - it's just too risky.

jenalr · Answer

oooh thanks for telling me that!

ieee488 · Answer

For what it's worth, I surf the internet using Windows 98. I don't have anything of importance on my Toshiba though, and I don't download any programs to install. I don't use IE when surfing.

If you are adventurous, the C600 is a candidate for trying Linux. :)

Message Edited by ieee488 on 08-01-2008 03:37 PM

AEinstein · Answer

I have a Latitude C600 with 256 Mb ram ( I'm using it right now) and it works fine with XP Pro.

A question that I would ask is "What is the proccessor speed of your laptop?". Mine is a PIII @ 850Mhz which has plenty of speed considering the rest of the laptop.

BUT. . .I have done some tweaking to get the most speed possible out of XP. Thanks to <www.tweakhound.com>

Disabling basic services like Themes, telling windows not to animate things, disabling shadows under the menus, and so many more things can greatly increase the speed of XP.

WARNING! Read the warnings on the tweakhound website ( if you choose to use it) because you can seriously mess up your computer with certain tweaks!

My current boot time is roughly 60-100 secs. Pretty good considering there is only 256Mb Ram in it.

The easiest way to speed an older computer up is to shut off all of the auto-start software. Adobe Reader "quick launch" adds about 30 sec to my boot time.

If this helps, then I'm glad I could help. If not, would you consider selling you C600?

Taking into account the date of your original post, I don't think that this would be an option any more, but it can't hurt to ask.

Message Edited by AEinstein on 09-30-2008 09:15 PM

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Latitude C600

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