Delete Windows and run Linux. Reason: Linux doesn't need Symantec (no viruses), and Linux doesn't need Spybot/AdAware (no spyware). Ubuntu Linux (http://www.ubuntu.com/)has made everything very easy for the beginner. OpenOffice is included standard and opens all existing Microsoft Office formats. FireFox (web browser) also comes standard. Lots of other software is also free and included with Ubuntu Linux, and since its all in software repositories, you can be sure the software works, is virus-free, and has been tested with the version of Ubuntu Linux you are using. HP Printers *install themselves* without a reboot in Ubuntu Linux (a weird experience for Windows users). The way Linux is designed, even a virus written specifically for Linux would have a lot of trouble getting past all the security built into the operating system design. Any security holes discovered are patched within a few days as part of a regular no-reboot Internet update (no waiting months for Microsoft to put a hundred bugfixes into a new "Service Pack"). The really cool bit is that they create a new version of Ubuntu Linux every eighteen months, and upgrading to the new version is a matter of clicking on three or four buttons (with a fast Internet connection). Its about the only time Linux will make you reboot.

If you don't want to switch to Linux Ubuntu but you want to keep your windows XP version with all your software, all you can do is get more RAM. Equip your laptop with the largest amount of ram memory it supports. If it supports 2GB it is good. If it supports more, then get more. The more you get the better. The moment you install the extra memory you will notice a great advancement in speed.

First off, if you don't know what something is then you might not need it. Nothing slows down a computer like having too much crap in it that consumes RAM. I know what every icon in my taskbars do, and there aren't many of them on my laptop. (My desktop has more RAM so I can get away with more shenanigans.) Symantec... Norton? That right there will slow your PC down, at least the older (pre-2009) versions. Between that and it's lesser effectiveness compared to Avira (my AV of choice), I would look at replacing that. If you have a lot of IE toolbars (or even use IE) then you're taking a performance hit. Do you defrag your hard drive regularly? I have a few other ideas, but I would need to know more about your setup to get too much more specific. You *could) also switch to Linux, but that is something that you are better of trying before you install. Ubuntu, like many other distros, allows you to boot it live from a CD without making any permanent changes to your drive. Any Linux distro worth having is free to download and burn to CD, but Ubuntu also allows you to just ask for a disk (or twenty) and will send you one at zero cost. https://shipit.ubuntu.com/ . Sure, it may take 6-10 weeks, but I've usually gotten mine sooner, and you can't argue with free :) And, as I said, there is the option to boot "live" so you can try it out without changing your system at all. If you don't like it, eject the CD, reboot your system, and forget it ever happened. How do you like THAT!