Speed up your PC remove the clutter

Introduction: Is it time for a clean up?

Has your computer been running very sluggishly? Or is your computer taking longer than normal to get to your desktop screen? If your answer is yes to any of these questions then it may be time for a computer cleanup. By preforming these simple steps below periodically this will help to keep your computer up and running.

 

 

 

 

 

 

What tasks can I preform to help speed up my computer?

Windows XP/Vista/Windows 7

1.)    Scan for Viruses.

Anti-virus software provides a layer of protection to your system from viruses or worms. If you don’t have a virus scanning application then you should definitely look into getting one.  You can either go to your local electronic store to by one, Buy a program online at a trusted website like: Norton.com or Mcaffee.com, or Download one of these great Free virus scanning applications listed below.

  • Microsoft Security Essentials
  • AVG  Anti-Virus Free Edition
  • Avira Antivirus Personal Addition
  • Avast Free Antivirus

2.)    Clean up Disk Space using DiskCleanup

Windows comes with a cleanup tool that will allow you to clean up error logs, the recycling bin temporary internet files and more. This also may give your Hard Drive more free space.

Here is what the disk cleanup utility looks like as shown here in the diagram.

 

Method 1: To get to the disk clean up utility

1. Click on your start Menu and select all programs

2. Then click on accessories and look for a folder that says systemtools.

3. Once you see the systems tools folder select it and click on diskcleanup

 

Method 2:

  1. Click on the start button and
  2. Then click on Computer (Windows XP users select “MyComputer”) Once you do this a new window will open showing you your hard drives, CD-ROM drives and other devices. You will want to select your hard drive it should be listed as Drive C. to do this click on your C: Drive once and it will highlight in blue.
  3. Then right click on that selection and click on Properties. You will then see a circular pie chart that’s blue and purple.  Below that pie Chart should be a box that says DiskCleanup. Select that and that will open the disk clean up utility as well.

 

3.)    Disk Defragmenter

Disk Defragmenter is a tool that speeds up access to your data. This helps keep your computer running quickly and efficiently. Below is a diagram of where to find this utility.

Method 1:

  1. Click on the start button and
  2. Then click on Computer (Windows XP users select “MyComputer”) Once you do this a new window will open showing you your hard drives, CD-ROM drives and other devices. You will want to select your hard drive it should be listed as Drive C. to do this click on your C: Drive once and it will highlight in blue. Next right click on that selection and click on Properties
  3. Then Click on the upper tab that says tools and select Defrag Now

 

Quicker Method

 If you’re a windows 7/Vista user click on the stat menu and in the search box type Disk Defragmenter  and select that tool when the list shows up.

 

 

4.)    Remove unused programs

Sometimes we may have programs that we use rarely or don’t use at all. Often clearing out this clutter can help add more Disk space  and improve performance to your computer.

If you have a lot of programs that you don’t use anymore or files that you downloaded and are taking up room you can remove it to clear up space and help your Hard drive preform faster.

*** If the files you are deleting are important to you then it’s a good idea to back then up to an external device like Cd’s/DVDs or a USB Flash dive. If you want to learn more on this you can read about The importance of backups by clicking here

 

 

5.)    Clear your temporary internet files and unnecessary tool bars in Internet Explorer

Often there are times where internet explorer speed may be impacted by performance hits because there are Too May Tool bars that are installed. These tool bars could be preventing your favorite webpages from opening due to spam blockers, or conflicts between tool bars.

You can do this by clicking Start > Control Panel > and click on Internet Options.

Here is a diagram of what the internet options window should look like.

It will give you the options to disable tool bars, clean browsing history, and reset internet explorer to default settings (Doing this will disable all tool bars)

 

Another step you should do is make sure your browser is up to date. Currently Internet Explorer 9 is the latest version for Vista and Windows 7.  For window XP users the current version of Internet explorer is Version 8.   The reason for being on the latest update is because windows may have critical security and performance updates that can help improve the stability and safety of internet explorer.

 

6.)    Stop unnecessary start-up programs.

You can prevent unnecessary start up from loading when windows is loading the desktop by editing the way windows starts with “MSCONFIG”.  I recommend using this for advanced or intermediate users. The reason why I say this is because if you change the wrong file of disable the wrong thing Windows may not start up correctly.

To use MSCONFIG  Click on Start > Run> and type MSCONFIG

A new window will open as shown here in diagram 1.

Once in the MSCONFIG Window click the tab that says Startup

As shown in the diagram below

In here you have the option to choose what programs you want to prevent when windows is starting up.

 

Closure

To keep your computers fast and reliable try to schedule a time weekly or monthly to perform any of these Steps mentioned above to help keep your system clean and healthy.