[Hampshire] Help trouble shooting sudden 'go slow'

Hi All,

This morning, before work, I turned on my computer and it took about
four times as long as normal to start up. Unfortunately, time was
limited, and I was unable to determine exactly what was going on.

Everything was apparently running, just very slowly. The musical intro
when logging in was playing like it was chopped into lots of small
pieces.

My guess is that for some reason hard drive performance has suddenly degraded.

Can anybody tell from this meagre description what may have gone wrong?

Alternatively, does anybody have any suggestions on some trouble
shooting suggestions I can try tonight when I get in?

Thanks.
--
Philip Stubbs