New computer died after a week

[Rndm_Perfection]

I'm using my new computer after having to reformat it. It needed the reformatting when it would not even boot properly. It kept requesting a boot from a CD. After trying to restore files (yet failing), Windows XP needed to be reinstalled. The video card programs as well as the sound were reinstalled as well. HOWEVER, despite the sound working and the internet moving swiftly, the computer moves extraordinarily slow.

After reinstalling XP and nothing else, I noticed that the every window moved with extreme lag. The computer could not handle normal functions at even a regular speed. I then installed the game that came with the computer to test out whether or not the video card and sound were operational. After testing the game, I received messages that the computer could not recognize the sound or video card.

So, I took a break and tried sleeping, as I had lost a week of improving and using my computer, which performed excellently once before. When I got back from work, my father worked on the computer a bit and reinstalled the video and sound functions and also installed the components of the CD that contained the mother board information. I retested the game, and it worked... but excessivly slow. I thought that perhaps, somehow the computer did not recognize the RAM. Yet, when I check "dxdiag", it shows that I have 512MB of RAM.

I'll be calling IBuyPower tomorrow.

I'd appreciate any guidance if any of you feel you may know how to speed up the computer.

P.S. Reinstalling FFXI took over four hours instead of the two that it took once before.