RAM is generally pretty cheap these days.  XP can handle 3 gb with no waste, so if you can spring for 2  1gb chips, and have 2 empty slots, that's what I would do.  If you know anyone with the right memory, maybe you could 'borrow' some for an hour and try it out.  It's the rare computer that doesn't work better with more RAM.  For best results, new memory should be the same speed as you currently have and installing in pairs allows the DDR to work  (double data rate).  Some pcs are also delivered with less than optimum memory.  That is, the motherboard may handle memory of different speeds, the older pcs might use pc2100, pc2700 or pc3200.    The manufacturer might deliver it with pc2100, because it was cheaper.  Replacing that with pc3200 wil also improve performance, but you need to check the specs on your manufacturers website or in the owners manual specs that came with the system. Worst case, your pc only has 2 memory slots and you will need to remove what you have so you can add 2 larger chips. 
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You might also look at your startup programs.  Maybe removing some of the spyware/antivirus software from running automatically on startup will help.  Having multiple spyware/antivirus software active also causes slowdowns because the two or more software products can conflict with each other.  Turn one or more off after the system boots up and see if the performance improves.  This is a case where too much is a bad thing.
Also remove programs from startup that are not used frequently.  Most only take a few seconds to load when needed, otherwise they are using resources (memory).    
Be sure you unplug the power cord if you intend to install the memory yourself.  You might wish to have someone install it for you if you have never opened your computer case before.  High voltage is present and is dangerous.  Static electricity can also damage components.
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Do some web surfing to check chip prices. Tiger, Frys, Silicon Mountain (smmdirect.com) are some sites I'm familiar with that may have good prices.  
Paul Hachmeyer            
________________________________________
From: Personal Computer Hardware discussion List [[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Ron Kaplan [[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Thursday, February 05, 2009 1:43 PM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: [PCBUILD] Subject: Could more RAM help?

I am running xp Pro on a PC with an Intel Pentium 4 CPU 2.53GHz, with a CPU speed of 2523MHz, and 1G of RAM. My hard drive is 300G and is still mostly free space. I use Zone Labs Security Suite, with anti-virus scanning daily. Spyware Doctor runs upon bootup, I regularly use Spybot Search & Destroy and
AdAware for spyware, CC cleaner for "tuneups", and Auslogics for disk and reg. defrag. Still, though, my PC can be terribly slow too much of the time. More often than not, when it's slow, the Task Manager shows 100% CPU usage. Nevertheless, I'm wondering if adding 1G of RAM could help. A computer savvy friend says that with my CPU, more RAM will not help. The service dept. at 2 Fry's stores said that was not true. Any educated guesses as to how good the chances are that an extra G of RAM would help my PC's speed? Thanks very much in advance for any assistance.

          
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