well, to start off, you can always do the usual: antivirus scans, spyware, malware, etc. I had typed this doc earlier in the year for my tech club, so I'll post it here too…
I know, I know. Whenever you're on the computer, you always want it fast. Fast , fast, fast!. Everything you do, whether it is download pictures, upload pictures, download files, anything really, you want it fast.
Well, do you want the good news, or do you want the bad news? Well, I guess I'll give you the bad news first just because it might be better to tell you things right of the back and not let the suspense rise. Ok. The main issue is that, well, the more usage your pc experiences, the more issues will arise, thus slowing it massively down. Why? Because, over time, Windows-based PCs often succumb to a glut of startup programs, Windows services, and hidden files and templates.
Trust me. I know. I've been there. I used to run my pc without a clue of some of the programs going on in the background. Clearing things up will make a really big difference.
The good news? Well, a simple “house-cleaning†(so-to-speak), will really help your pc go a long way. It can be anything from sweeping out the Windows Startup folder, optimizing network settings, or using software to clean out the Windows Registry, there is a lot you can do to revive a struggling system. There are, of course, some people who are in big trouble and just don't know much about computers. Well, so more good news is that you can start solving problems (believe it or not) on your computer just by restarting it! Well, then again, there is always that over clocking of things, specifically your processor and your graphics card.
The following ways, shown below, are ways that will help you squeeze every last bit of that juicy speed you can for the full cup of a smooth, fast running computer. Best of all, most of these options can be done by you, are free programs (freeware), or cost a nominal fee.
The Basic Tips for All
Things Not Going Well? Reboot it all! If you really wanted it too, and trust me, you could, you could run Windows months on end, of course, then again, you really shouldn't. Depending on what you run and do on your computer, Windows can just get slower and slower and slower. By just simply restarting your computer will you already free up the RAM and others things that are slowing your computer down.
Time for some o' that Defrag! As technology gets better and improves every 18 months, so does the necessary space to hold all of the new programs and games. Drives are just going to get bigger and bigger, faster and faster. Why, there's already even external terabyte drives out there (selling for a good $1200)! The main issue here is that they are becoming more and more of the traffic jam to the system performance that you desire. You yourself can smooth things out by using Windows' Defragment utility. Click Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Disk Defragmenter and click the Analyze button in the program window. Windows will produce a report on your disk, giving you an idea of how fragmented your files are. Once that's done, you can choose to kick off a full defrag session. Now for some bad news again: It's slow!
Also, on the same note here, drives filled to capacity are much more prone to fragmentation than those with plenty of free space. Before you begin defragging a drive, make sure you create free space for Windows to work with so it can fully optimize the layout of your files. Delete junk you don't use any more, or move it to some removable media… leading us to the next tip!
Take Out That Messy, Smelly, Over-Spilling Garbage! When I say Windows saves everything, I mean Windows saves everything! Temporary files, browser cache, old program installation files, the list goes on and on. And guess what, Windows is probably stashing it on your hard drive. Clear out the accumulation with Windows XP (news - web sites)'s Disk Cleanup. Click Start, Programs, Accessories, System Tools, Disk Cleanup to put the program right to work, scanning your drive and looking for files it can delete or compress.
While in the Disk Cleanup dialog box, check the items you want Windows to delete. You can also click the More Options tab to wring further efficiencies out of your PC--for instance, nuking all but the most recent restore point data, which is used to recover Windows from serious crashes. Run Disk Cleanup every month or so to prevent unused or unnecessary files from taking over your disk. If you want to keep a tight rein on Windows' temp files going forward--and improve your personal privacy, to boot--download IE Privacy Keeper, a free little utility that makes short work of dusting clutter from your disk.
“Media Files, I command you to open fast!†If you have that desire to launch an image, video, or audio file quickly, you really can't do much in Windows alone. To really accelerate things, I recommend Irfanview, a marvelous little program that opens nearly every type of media file in a flash. It even lets you touch up photos and images. One thing: Irfanview won't optimize your system in any way, but, it will let your system access media files a lot faster. Best of all, it's free.
Give Your Searches Some Battery Power I've spent so much time searching for files and data in Windows and Microsoft Outlook that it's not even funny. Want to avoid the laughs? Tweak the Windows search facility. Click Start, Search, For Files or Folders. In the Search Results folder interface pane, click Change Preferences, then click the With Indexing Service link. Click the Yes radio button and click OK. Windows will now index files on the disk during idle moments, resulting in much faster searches. Another option: Install the heralded Google Desktop search utility. It produces lightning-fast searches on the desktop. Just keep your eye out for any security updates Google may release.
Fast-Forward Them Menus If the Windows Start menu and other application menus take a moment to appear on screen, you can speed things up by disabling shadows. Right-click an open area of the Windows desktop, click the Appearance tab, then click the Effects button. Uncheck the Show shadows under menus check box. You can also uncheck the 'Use the following transition effect for menus and tooltips' checkbox. This disables the fade effect that can sometimes add overhead to menu displays. Click OK and click OK again to
adopt the new settings.
And Now… The Advanced Tips
Right Now! Stop using Internet Explorer! Immediately! Microsoft's Web browser is a darn hog. Switching to the Mozilla Firefox or Opera browser can produce swifter program launches, quicker page loads, and an over-all smoother ride. In my personal experience, Firefox has proven the fleetest browser, but Opera consumes the least system memory--useful for older systems with 128MB or 256MB of RAM.
Tune Internet connections. Be honest here, do you really think you are getting the most out of that broadband connection? Go over to SpeedGuide.net and find out. Run the TCP/IP Analyzer routine in your browser to check the health of your connection. You can find it under the Broadband, Broadband Tools menu on the left side of the page.
If you want, you can download the free SG TCP/IP Optimizer utility (also under Broadband Tools), which tests for the most effective MaxMTU value (maximum transmission unit--basically a data packet size) for squeezing more data through your broadband link. Tell Optimizer what type of connection you're using, run through the diagnostics, then let the utility fine-tune your settings.
Decontaminate that Registry! Do you install a lot of software and devices? Have you owned your PC for a couple of years? If you answered yes to either of these questions, your Windows Registry is probably a mess!
The Registry is the central database where Windows stores all the configuration data for your system. The problem is that database can get filled with a lot of junk, be it entries from long-since-removed programs or from hardware you no longer use. So what is the answer? Use a freeware or shareware utility like RegClean to find and erase those dead-end entries. You might also consider the $20 Registry Mechanic.
Travel Lite Windows is packed full of stuff we simply do not need, which is why the folks at LitePC cooked up XPLite, a $40 utility that strips unwanted features out of Windows XP. Use the software to de-feature your Windows configuration until it loads in a fraction of the time of the standard package. There are also versions for Windows 2000 (news - web sites) and Windows 98 (news - web sites)--handy for wringing performance out of truly aged PCs.
