Windows 7 - Windows 7 doesnt run the games i got!

This might not be the right place to put this...

I just put together a new computer from parts a friend was using. He just upgraded and gave me all his old parts.
its a pretty basic setup right now that I'd like to upgrade over the next couple of weeks, but im at a crossroads here.

He told me this is the machine he played starcraft 2 on, and modern warfare 2.

I went out and bought both games, and the weirdest thing is - they really dont work at all. Ive seen him play them at his house, but I dunno whats goin on here.

the cpu is P4 2.39 Ghz. GPU is Geforce 7600GT with 512mb memory. I have 2 gigs DDR ram (4 512mb sticks).

Im running windows 7. Now, the only things im not certain of is if he was running XP, also if he had 4 gigs ram instead of 2.
Would this really make the difference though? Would my specs with doubled ram really even run these games properly?
The more i look around on the net, I have a pretty low end gaming system, if i can even call it that.

I can run starcraft 2 at the lowest possible settings, but every now and then it tells me to lower the settings and gets choppy as hell.
Modern warfare 2 runs, but the frames move an inch every second
What do you guys here recommend?

I don't know if you're running Windows 7 32- or 64-bit. Either way, the most likely problem was the games were designed to run on XP. You can try running them in XP compatible mode.

Both games should work fine in Windows 7, your main problem may be the GPU. You will probably have to lower some settings; perhaps not the resolution, but anti aliasing and especially anisotropic filtering.

Also, make sure that you have DirectX and your GPU drivers updated.

CPU isn't helping any either. Requirements for both games,

Blizzard Support

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 System Requirements - VGRequirements Forums

In both cases the 7600 GT is just over the minimum, and the CPU is below the minimum. You don't say what monitor you have other than it's a LCD, but with those specs I would go for everything low (and some off if the option is there) and set the resolution no higher than 1024x768.

Install K-lite codec.

Um, Lemur, I think you have the wrong thread XD

What about updating your graphic card drivers?

They should improve performance, but not by much, since the op's GPU is rather old.
But in any case, regularly updating drivers (not just GPU) is a must.

Well, the best advice in my mind is upgrade, the games your trying to run aren't to intense on any high end rig, or well even mid level rigs, so if your seriously trying to game on your comp better to upgrade. If you wana run the games on your current rig the best results are going to be minimual even under the best conditions, the minium system requirements for Starcraft 2 are at least 1.5 GB for Windows 7, and recommended is 512 mb for video cards now thats telling you that hell your going to be able to run it, but what your gana have is a choppy low fps game, but if your still insistent on playing SC2 make sure you have DirectX version 9.0c or better.