8 FREE Steps To Optimize Your Computer Performance.
Do-It-Yourself Guide - Windows Computer Tune-Up
Note: We recommend that you follow these steps in the order in which they appear to maximize your performance. Enjoy!
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#1 - Remove
Temporary Files From Your Hard Drive
Windows
uses temp files to perform various tasks, and store files. But these files can
remain on your hard drive long after you are done with them. Periodically removing/
deleting them can create more space available on your hard drive, and increase
performance.
- Click My Computer
- Right-click on the hard drive and select
Properties.
- In the General tab, click on Disk Cleanup.
A new window will open with check marks next to various sections including
Temporary Internet Files, Temporary Files and Recycle Bin.
- You can check all of these, but we
recommend that any options to compress files should be unchecked.
Compressing files may save some space, but it will slow your computer down
significantly.
- Click OK, and then confirm that you want
to delete them.
#2 - Reduce Recycling Bin Size
The
default setting for windows Recycling Bin can be 10 percent of your available
hard drive space! With the size of new hard drives hitting 200 GB, this is far
too much. Follow the steps below to resize your Recycling Bin. And don’t forget
to delete files from the recycling bin periodically.
- 1. Right-click on the Recycle Bin on your
desktop.
- 2. Select Properties.
- 3. Drag the slider to 2 percent.
- 4. Click Apply.
- 5. Click OK.
#3 - Internet
Optimization
Decreasing
the size of your Internet browser cache will help keep it from becoming
overloaded, and slowing down your machine. We recommend setting it to around
50- 60 Mb.
MS Explorer
- 1. Open Internet Explorer.
- 2. Click on the Tools menu and select
Internet Options.
- 3. Under Temporary Internet Files click
Settings.
- 4. Adjust the slider or manually enter a
size in megabytes.
- 5. Click OK.
Mozilla Firefox
- 1. Open Firefox.
- 2. Click on the Tools menu and Options.
- 3. Select the Privacy section and click
on the Options tab.
- 4. Enter a size in megabytes.
- 5. Click OK.
#4 Internet
Optimization (Continued)
Internet Files
Deleting temporary Internet files from your browser, can dramatically improve
your browsing speed.
MS Explorer
- 1. Open Internet Explorer.
- 2. Click on the Tools menu and select
Internet Options.
- 3. Under Temporary Internet Files click
Settings.
- 4. Click Delete Cookies, Delete Files
- 5. Click Clear History, or reduce the
history to below 20 days.
- 6. Click OK.
Mozilla Firefox
- 1. Open Firefox.
- 2. Click on the Tools menu and Options.
- 3. Select the Privacy section and click
on the Options menu.
- 4. Click the Settings tab, and review
which items will be deleted. 5. Un-check the Saved Passwords, and any
other form of data you do not want to lose.
- 6. Click OK.
- 7. Then click Clear Now button in the
Private Data section
- 8. Click OK #5
#5 Uninstall
Programs You Don't Use
Having a
lot of games and applications on your PC can rapidly fill up your hard drive
and make running the programs you use every day more difficult. Also, most new
computers come with demo versions of software, or free-ware that you probably
didn't even know was loaded on your computer. Deleting these programs can free
up much needed space on the hard drive, and increase its speed.
- 1. Click on Start and open the Control
Panel.
- 2. Select Add or Remove Programs. The list
may take a few seconds to open completely.
- 3. Once the list appears, find the
program you’d like to remove and click on it. The box will be highlighted
and extra options will appear to the right.
- 4. Click on the Remove tab and follow the
directions laid out by the uninstaller program.
#6 - Clean Up Your Desktop
Having
many files and folders stored on your desktop can slow down your machine. It is
preferable to store files and folders within the My Documents folder. This also
makes backing up your data much easier, and helps your computer find the path
to the files quicker. You may also have unused shortcuts scattered throughout
your desktop. Drag any shortcuts you don’t use to the Recycle Bin. And delete.
Use the Shortcut function to place new shortcuts to folders you frequently use.
1. Find the file you wish to create a shortcut
2. Right-click on the file, and select Create Shortcut
#7 - Clean/Repair Windows Registry
Problems
with the Windows Registry are a common cause of Windows crashes and error
messages. Problems can occur for many reasons, including references left
behind after uninstallation; incorrect removal of software, missing or corrupt
hardware drivers, or orphaned start-up programs.
**If you are looking
for a FREE solution, try Eusing's Free Registry Cleaner software. This is a FREE download from Eusing's
website, and is an excellent choice. We have also listed a few other
products (best paid services) at the bottom of this page.
# 8 - Defragmenting Your Hard Drive – Final Step
“Defraging”
your hard drive works by moving fragmented (or non-continuous) sections of data
to unused parts of the hard drive. It then re-assembles the fragmented sections
into one continuous section on the hard drive. Thus, optimizing the storage of
data, and increasing the speed at which the computer can search for the
information. The process may take several hours if you haven’t performed this
recently. Our suggestion is to run defrag just before you’ve finished up for
the night. In the morning you should see a new image of your hard drive, and
notice an improvement in the performance.
- 1. Right-click on the Start Menu
- 2. Select Programs
- 3. Select Accessories
- 4. Select System Tools
- 5. Select "Disk Defragmenter" (or
Defrag).
Tune-up complete!
Your Computer Is Now Optimized!
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Most Common Computer Problems And Solutions
Requiring Software Downloads
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Computer Problem: Registry Issues
Is your computer running slowly, encountering long pauses between simple tasks? Most likely your system registry is overloaded, and in desperate need of help. Cleaning the registry monthly can increase your computers productivity, eliminate pesky registry errors, increase connection speeds, and dramatically improve the overall performance.
Computer Problem: Viruses - What exactly is a computer virus?
A computer virus
is a computer program that can copy itself and infect a computer without
permission or knowledge of the user. The term "virus" is also
commonly used, albeit erroneously, to refer to many different types of malware
and adware programs. The original virus may modify the copies, or the copies
may modify themselves, as occurs in a metamorphic virus. A virus can only
spread from one computer to another when its host is taken to the uninfected
computer, for instance by a user sending it over a network or the Internet, or
by carrying it on a removable medium such as a floppy disk, CD, or USB drive.
Meanwhile viruses can spread to other computers by infecting files on a network
file system or a file system that is accessed by another computer... (read more).
As anti-virus software becomes more sophisticated, so do the viruses themselves. Therefore we do not recommend free anti-virus software on this site. We believe this is best left to the professionals! Furthermore, we strongly believe the best paid service currently on the market is McAfee
. Primarily due to their innate ability to recognize new strains of a virus and react before it's a problem for you. If you already have a virus, McAfee can clean it up quickly. Amazing!
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Computer Problem: Spyware - What is Spyware?
Spyware is
computer software that is installed surreptitiously on a personal computer to
intercept or take partial control over the user's interaction with the
computer, without the user's informed consent.
While the term spyware suggests software that secretly monitors the
user's behavior, the functions of spyware extend well beyond simple monitoring.
Spyware programs can collect various types of personal information, such as
Internet surfing habit, sites that have been visited, but can also interfere
with user control of the computer in other ways, such as installing additional
software, redirecting Web browser activity, accessing websites blindly that
will cause more harmful viruses, or diverting advertising revenue to a third
party. Spyware can even change computer settings, resulting in slow connection
speeds, different home pages, and loss of Internet or other programs… (Read more).
Spyware (also called Adware) can record your Internet surfing history, as well
as the websites you have recently visited. Spyware packages often include
PC surveillance tools that allow a "spy" to monitor all kinds of
activities on a computer, ranging from keystroke capture, screen snapshots,
email loggins, chat loggins, passwords, and just about everything else
you type! Although spyware is perfectly legal, these tools are frequently
abused by hackers, and can be installed on your computer without your knowledge.
Protect yourself, and your business.
Other Helpful Links.....
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