Can anyone help me. What is the easiest way to ge a pretty old laptop working and running quicker?

A lot depends on the age and what is wrong with it. You say 'get it working', does that mean that it doesn't work at all? Or do you just want it to work faster? Speed depends on a number of factors, not least the processor. If it is very old the processor speed will be slow anyway and there isn't much you can do with it. Memory and disc size/space can also be a factor, as can the number of processes that are running at one time.

You could always try defragging it, that ususally does a bit for the speed.

It just taks really long to start up and open any programs. What is defragging?

Well, if you don't know what it is and have never done it, I would say you definitely need to! Since I don't know your computer, if you type 'defragment' in your main program search area, it should take you to it. It is a way of sorting and condensing files which frees up disc space and lets your computer run smoother and faster. Think of it as a way of 'housecleaning' your hard drive. I attempted to keep this simple and hope it helps.

Although perhaps not many think to use it (including me ), the 'Help and Support' part of Windows is always a good place to visit. It has much information clearly explained about the workings and capabilities of the computer. It's always worth typing a word or two relevant to your question into the search box. The Help Files don't always have the information needed but it's a good place to start looking.

I have used a site called PC Pitstop to help tune up my old desktop in the past. It has a number of scans you can run in order to diagnose various problems you might be having that affect speed.

PC Pitstop

If you are using a very old version of Windows you might not be able to run some of the scans, but the site is worth checking out. Just running the scans will not make any changes to your computer, but it does give you an idea of what to fix, and how to fix it.

I second PC Pitstop - very nice site!