What are some ways to speed up a mac?

[LABachlr]

A friend of mine is having problems playing AAC files in a certain software program. I can't remember the name of the software right now.

In any case, the minimum requirements for the processor for the software is 700MHz. He has a 500MHz Powerbook Titanium with 512MB RAM. He's going to increase the RAM to 1024, but what else can he do. I don't know what OS he's running, but I'm assuming Panther.

Besides repairing the permissions, are there other ways to speed up the system? Is there a way I can decrease the amount of programs that are running in the background upon bootup?

Also, is it possible to upgrade the processor of his system (Powerbook Titanium G4 500Mhz)? If so, by how much and roughly how much would it cost?

 

[nixgeek]

You friend might be able to increase performance also by getting a faster HD with a larger cache. That is, if the PB will support the features of this new drive.

As for the CPU upgrade, there have been times when some third party companies have made CPU upgrade cards for older PowerBooks. It's possible that one exists for the TiBook, but I wouldn't hold your breath. And if so, it's probably cost effective to just get a newer model of the PowerBook (not necessarily latest and greatest, but something faster). Remember that you will be limited by the system bus of the older PowerBook as well as other bottlenecks that might have been resolved in newer models.