Multiple performance issues

System Specs:
Dell Dimension 435T
i7 CPU, 920@2.67GHz
12GB RAM
1TB Hard drive
Windows 7 Home Premium, 64bit
BitDefender Security Package/
Installed software: Office 2010; Photoshop 6; Lightroom 5;

I am experiencing multiple issues with my system. I have tried to note what actions I've attempted and whether these actions resolved any of the issues.
1. system slows down tremendously but without a pattern. It will slow in an Office ap, in Photoshop, on the Internet, etc. There is no discernible pattern to the slowdowns and it does not appear to relate to the number of applications open or a particular application.
Action taken: I've run both Bitdefender and Malwarebytes full scans and neither has found anything of note.
2. The system freezes and must be rebooted. However, sometimes if left alone for 10-15 minutes, it will sometimes clear itself and un-freeze. Other times I must do a hard reboot.
3. When I select an icon to launch an application, the system will not launch that application. Again, this occurs randomly and without a pattern as to any one application
I have tried launching the AP from the Start Menu item and experienced the same problem. It appears unrelated to the icon or the particular AP
4. I will be working in MS Word [Office 2010 version] and look up at the monitor to realize that I am typing much faster than the system can display characters.
I have tried uninstalling and reinstalling Office 2010. I have also run Office Diagnostics with no result
5. I keep losing audio or the audio quality is broken up [Think skipping or dragging on a CD, only it's not on CD]
6. It takes up to five minutes to get online and often times I must hard reboot in order to launch either browser. [IE 10 or Chrome]
I have used my laptop with the same connection and it connects immediately. My ISP is Comcast. I have run and I have the highest level (50MBpS) speed connection. It generally tests out at about 70MBpS
5. I use a bluetooth enabled keyboard and mouse [Logitech] and the system keeps losing the connection. I can wait and it will find the connection again, but sometimes this takes many minutes.
I have switched out the keyboard and mouse with a wired keyboard/mouse and the system still appears to lose contact with these devices

I have run defrag on the hard drive twice and seen no improvement. The utility now notes there is no need to run it again. I keep Malwarebytes and BitDefender Security running active.
If I have left anything out, please just ask me. I am very far from being an expert. I depend heavily on my desktop for my work and this is making life hell. Thank-you for any help someone offers.

Cli8ck your Start orb and type "msconfig" without the quotes. open the startup tab, and disable any programs you don't need at startup. You may also try this:
Troubleshoot Application Conflicts by Performing a Clean Startup

BTW: Changing the colors make reading sorta confusing, best to make a line between everything in a long list like that

Run Dell Diagnostics to check your hardware now: http://www.pchelpforum.com/xf/thread...e-list.122044/

The problem can relate to the inferior Factory Preinstalled Win7 with all of the bloatware and duplicate utiltiies which interfere with better versions built into Win7, throttle Win7 from its native performance and can cause problems.

That's why most tech enthusiasts will not run such an install but instead Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7. Everything is provided in the blue link tutorial.

At the minimum I'd Clean Up Factory Bloatware.

If this doesn't resolve performance problems, work through these Troubleshooting Steps for Windows 7.

Yeah - I should have previewed the post before submitting it - I'm sorry for the hard to read run-on. In writing the post I added spaces, but they were removed on upload. I'll remember this in the future.

I'll follow your suggestions and let you know the results. Thanks!

Okay - let me respond to your questions:

I've had this system for about 2 years. The first thing I did upon receiving it was to run a clean reinstall of the OEM Windows 7. I custom configured the system prior to purchase so it came with far less bloatware than Dell often includes. I have run Dell Diagnostics a number of times and it never identifies an issue. I also ran the memory test (overnight) and all the RAM passed with no errors.

I ran Event Viewer and came up with a line of red checked errors under system. I have attached a screenshot of the identified errors to this post.

There were numerous errors noted under Administrative Events. I have attached screen shots of the error events. [NOTE: I didn't attach duplicate entries]

I have also attached expanded views of the errors noted in the report. I'm not sure what information is useful and what is just in the way, so I'm attaching it all. Please let me know if I'm going overboard.

I need to make clear that I am very, very far from being an expert. Most everything I know, I've learned in order to do my job as a writer and photographer, not a computer tech. So, if I'm missing something important or not understanding you, please forgive me. Meanwhile, thank you for your patience and the help you offer.

It explains in Troubleshooting Steps for Windows 7 how to research the repeat errors to winnow them out one by one. If you need help with any one of them then ask back. I would also complete the other steps in the tutorial so you know you've gone over your install thoroughly.

Since you've already previously done the Clean Reinstall - Factory OEM Windows 7 read over the steps carefully to compare to what you did as you may want to make some changes to what works best with Win7, or even do it over to get it perfect. The steps are based on tens of thousands of installs we've helped with here since before beta.

Download and burn to CD with Windows Image Burner Seagate Seatools to run a Long Test to see if it can repair the bad sectors. You may need to run it again to confirm this.

Then run a full Disk Check.

The two tests will confirm the HD condition.

Hi Greg - I don't know how to thank you for saving me! I ran Seatools in DOS mode after it failed in regular mode. I did the long test [A bit over five hours] and it identified 32 errors. I then ran the repair in Seatools and once that completed I re-ran the DOS mode and the report came back with no errors or bad sectors. Finally, I ran a full disk check and it came back clean. It's too early to tell if everything is resolved, but the system is much faster and I no longer have to click-click-click on icons or programs to open them. Is there anything else I should do at this point?

I do have some questions, if you have the time to answer. Although both Seatools and Check disk come back clean, should I remain concerned that the hard drive will die sometime soon? I'm not concerned about backup - I am a maven for backing up everything. [2 external drives, 2 separate cloud servers and a batch of ever changing thumb drives that stay off premises] Is there something I should be doing or not doing that will protect the HD? What causes these type physical errors to the drive? I tend to leave the desktop on for days at a time. I always run Bitdefender and Malbytes active. I never download anything that I have not specifically recognized and is from a legitimate secure site. I also never open attachments in e-mail.

Once again, thank you very much for taking so much time and putting so much effort into helping me.

Good question, Carney.

I would never trust a drive that failed SeaTools, although I'd trust it a bit more if it repairs and subsequently finds no more errors.

You can install CrystalDiskInfo - Software to check the HD condition from your desktop. I'd also periodically run Seatools and Disk Check on it and all other HD's.

Keep your Win7 and data backed up using a program like Backup Complete Computer - Create an Image Backup along with Sync, Backup and Store your Files to the Cloud with Skydrive - Windows 7 Forums.
If automating your data backup is too involved or not necessary then you can periodically drag your Active User folders to external or another HD.