It is so annoying to sit in front of
the monitor and waiting for ages to get google up and running. You also
experience some lags and choppy playing games, music, or videos... In other
words, your computer is running like a turtle. So, just follow these simple
steps and your computer will run like new again.
Step 1: Check your
hard disk space first. Go to My
Computer, right-click Local Drive, then click Properties. There you'll see a
pie chart of your free versus used space. If the disk is mostly full, you will
need to remove programs and files; if there's still plenty of room, there may
be something wrong with your operating system.
ü As a rule, you want to keep at least
15% of the hard disk space free to keep the computer running smoothly.
ü If you find you simply need more
space, consider buying and installing a Solid State Drive (SSD) to complement
or replace your hard disk. They are faster and much more secure than hard
drives.
Step 2: Remove any programs you do not use. Go to Control Panel, then click Add or Remove Programs
(or "Uninstall a Program", depending on your operating system) to
find a master list of programs installed on your computer. Some things will
strike you as useless immediately, in which case you can remove them right
away. Others won’t look familiar to you and may require some research.
ü It may help to see how often you use
the program. If you right-click one of the column titles above your program
list, you should be able to add additional characteristics by which to organize
your programs. Check Last Used On and a column displaying the last
time you used each program will appear. This will quickly show you which
programs you use frequently and the ones you haven't used in years.
ü Don't forget to empty your recycling
bin.
Step 3: Prevent
unnecessary programs from starting when the computer boots up. Some programs may start as soon as you turn on your computer,
running in the background so they will load quickly when you open them. Open
the Start Menu and run a search for "msconfig". Click on Startup to
see a list of all the programs that run when you boot up your computer and
uncheck anything unnecessary.
ü You can also check the taskbar to see
which programs are running on startup (be sure to click Show Hidden Icons so
you don't miss any).
Step 4: Change the power plan of your desktop computer to High Performance. Go to the Control Panel and select Power Options. You
will find a list of power plans, usually Balanced, Power Saver, and High
Performance. These settings control how your computer uses power--either by
lowering performance to optimize battery life, maximizing performance with
major power consumption, or a balance between the two. Selecting High
Performance may increase the speed and overall performance of your computer.
ü This is only helpful if you have a
desktop PC--using the High Performance setting on a laptop will drain your
battery power.
Step 5: Remove any unnecessary entries from the Windows Context Menu. The context menu is the menu that pops up when you
right-click something. Sometimes programs will ask to be added to the menu,
others will add themselves automatically. To remove programs, press ⊞ WIN+R to open the
Run box. Type in regedit and click OK. Click
HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT → * → shellex → ContextMenuHandlers. From this list, delete the applications
you don't want to be included in the context menu.
ü Be extremely careful whenever editing
something using the Registry, as using it incorrectly can damage your system.
If you're not comfortable using regedit, try searching for freeware that will
allow you to edit your Context Menu.
Step 6: Install an anti-virus program, spyware scanner, and an
anti-malware. The fewer
bugs, viruses, and bits of adware your computer has to manage, the more time it
will have to devote to other processes.
ü Keep Windows up-to-date. Not only
will this keep Windows itself running smoothly, but some viruses ride in on
Windows updates that are downloaded long after the update is available (and
therefore are not monitored as closely).
Step 7: Run a Disk Cleanup. This
can clean up hundreds of megabytes by deleting temporary files, unnecessary
system files, and emptying your recycling bin. Click My Computer,
right-click Hard Drive, then click Properties. Click Disc Cleanup (within the
General tab). A window will pop up asking which files you'd like to remove.
Check those you wish to delete and run the cleanup.
ü You'll want to keep any game files
(unless you want to delete your saved games) and setup files.
ü If you have multiple drives or a
partition, you must select the one you want to be cleaned.
Step 8: Run a Disk Defragment. When data is fragmented, your computer must search for the fragments
of files that could be spread all over your hard drive. Defragmenting will
organize your data and free up space so your computer can access data
faster. Click My Computer, then right-click Hard Drive. After you have
right-clicked, click Properties, Tools, then click Defragment Now.
ü Fragmented data can be on your hard
disk or removable drives, like USB and flash drives.
Step 9: Disable visual effects. There
are 20 visual effects that you can turn off or on. To turn off all effects and
maximize performance, click Control Panel, System, then click Advanced System
Settings. Select the bullet which says "Adjust for best performance".
ü If you don't want to sacrifice all
the visual flair, try selecting the option which says: Let windows choose
what's best for my computer.
Step 10: Add RAM to your computer. To see if you need more RAM, initialize the Windows
Task Manager by pressing CTRL+ALT+DEL. Under the Performance tab, find the area devoted to
Physical Memory (MB). If the number next to "Available" is less than
25% of the Total MB, you may need to add RAM.
ü Adding more memory may not
necessarily make your computer run faster. If your computer is slow to switch
between windows or tasks, or if you often have many browser tabs open at once,
additional RAM may help.
ü You can take your computer to an
expert to add RAM, like the Geek Squad at Best Buy, or you may decide
to add more RAM yourself. Just be sure to do your research before
attempting to do it on your own.
Step 11: Remove gadgets you don't use. Right-click on the desktop and click Gadgets.
Right-click on the gadget you wish to delete and click Uninstall.
Note: These steps are intended for
Windows users only and not included hardware upgrade instructions.
