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NTFS is very bad at fragmentation. Even on a empty drive, a 100 megabyte file can have like 2000 fragments.
Over time, the MFT fragments too, meaning slower access to file.
The most obvious source of problems is the XP patches. Those have a bad history of fixing something (badly) and breaking something else. Avoid autopatching, and only update for critical issues and desired stuff.
Also, check. You might have Starforce installed by some game. If that is the case, IDE speed is likely to lower, ultimately switching from DMA to PIO, wich is also bad for burners btw.
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