optimise system hardware

i have windows vista home version pre installed on my notebook. what features can be turned off on vista edition so that the best performance can be achieved on the same system. i didnt had problem using windows xp os. i dont mind a very basic interface for an OS. all that matter is when i work on my graphic applications and stuff most hardware resources should remain free to be used by the program and not OS services. ho can i make it really basic. any suggestions??

my tablet is HP tablet tx1000us with AMD Turion 64x2 1.90 Gigz with a 2 GB RAM.

thanks in advance for your tips