Clean Up or Buy New PC?

[Juniper]

My computer is too slow.

I can't remember how old it is. I lose track of things like that. I think it's about 3 years old. It wasn't exactly state of the art then. But I am not doing things that need a lot of power - no CAD programs, only very simple graphics stuff, word processing, web surfing, e-mail. Hard drive still has plenty of room, but I know I need more memory.

I used to be on top of all this stuff, but nowadays I'm too impatient, all I want to do is USE the thing, not fiddle with it.

I don't want to invest in a new computer right now. I could, but I'd rather be frugal. I think this one will last me at least another year without too many headaches, if I can get it cleaned up. The main problem is it's too slow, and every now and then it just freezes for a few minutes...I hear the hard disk growling, then eventually it comes back to life after it's done with whatever it was trying to do.

How's the best way to approach this? Back in the DOS days I had this down pat. Even the original MS Windows was not too difficult, but now there's this registry crap and I just can't figure out where it puts all the temporary files and shit...UGH. I can usually figure out techy stuff but believe me, it's on a need-to-know basis.

Like, I've gone and deleted a bunch of programs I didn't need but I know they left a bunch of crap behind, because that's just what they do. You do the adware scan applications and they either delete stuff you NEED or leave bits of themselves behind while they're claiming to get rid of other stuff. The hard drive on this PC must look like an old barn that's only been halfheartedly mucked out from time to time, rife with cobwebs, bat guano, owl pellets and petrified horse poop. I feel like just burning it down and starting fresh.

So, do I just backup all the stuff I need and reformat the thing? Or is there an easier way that won't take me a whole week to accomplish? (YES I have backups...but not everything. Just the most important stuff.)