0 Ways To Speed Up Your Personal Computer

I see a lot of Windows users always complaining that their pc has slowed down drastically and they need a new PC. Upgrading the PC is always a viable option for better performance, but here are things that you can do to keep your PC healthy and i am sure this will help you to make your PC faster.

The last time u installed Windows it worked very smoothly on your first boot right? The boot process was faster, applications were running quickly and smoothly, no errors. Now why does it takes such a long time to boot and takes lot of memory? What can i possibly do to restore my PC that earlier state?

The answer is pretty simple. You have to take care of your pc and tweak a bit. Overclocking your PC is an option to try at your own risk which i don’t recommend hence not discussing in this post. You only have to understand why your pc is slowing down and do things to prevent from slowing down.

Here are 10 simple ways to speed your PC:

1. Using an Anti-Virus, Spyware and Adware removal program:

If you use Internet frequently, chances are that you pc is infected by any adware or spyware if you not using a good anti virus/anti-malware program. Most adware’s and spywares open multiple connections to access internet spreading infection all over the web. This may slow down your pc, other harmful viruses might crunch your memory and system resources mostly slowing down startup process. Therefore,

• Use a good antivirus, adware, spyware removal Software.
• Make sure you UPDATE it regularly.
• Enable the auto update mode for better security.
• Run regular scans (weekly scheduled scanning recommended).

2. Defragmenting Hard drives:

The files when moved or created on your PC are stored into small fragments randomly on your disk drive. When you open those files it takes time to gather all those chunks and put them back together to form that single file. When you defragment your drive all those scattered fragments are arranged properly on the drive thus loading application bit faster. There is a Disk Defragmenter utility in windows,

Open My Computer > Right click on the disk drive you want to defragment > Select Properties > Under Tools tab click Defragment Now. But i recommend Power Defragmenter a small free utility by sysinternals which is faster and with various options.

3. Clean Registry:

Windows registry is a database of information of all the files, folders and the windows configuration. This database grows as you use windows, can also become erroneous. Thus, it becomes necessary to clean and repair registry errors regularly. Use CCleaner a tiny Freeware to scan and fix registry issues.

4. Delete Temporary, Junk and Obsolete files/Clear cache:

Clean all your drives for free space, i personally recommend keep atleast 20% of your drive space free. Also, you have to clear the windows TEMP files, the web browsers temporary files, caches files, etc. All web browsers has that option. CCleaner will be a good choice for the same, it will analyze and clean all unwanted internet files, Windows Explorer files and system files.

5. Check Disk for errors:

Scan your disk for errors regularly. There may be some lost fragments or links which may lead to error in application. Run Scandisk once a week to keep things running smoothly. the error checking utility in windows will scan and attempt to recover bad sectors. Open My Computer > Right click the drive > Properties > Tools > click Check Now Button. Else simply type chkdsk /r at the command prompt.

6. Remove Startup items:

Removing unwanted startup programs will speedup the windows boot process and your desktop will be ready quickly. some programs like Limewire or MSN messenger take time to load at startup, you can remove those and run them when needed.to remove Startup items: Start > Run > type msconfig > press OK. Now in the System Configuration Utility uncheck the unwanted programs (better Disable All).

7. Remove unnecessary Programs:

Remove those programs which you don’t use anymore. This will free disk space and even help windows perform better. Also, remove the windows unwanted components like Indexing services & Outlook Express from the Add/Remove windows programs.

8. Keep PC updated:

Look for regular updates, Enable Windows Updates, Updates includes major bugfixes which can be helpful. Look for new Service packs for better hardware compatibility. Update all device drivers, anti-virus programs and other applications. Hardware Manufactures keep updating their device drivers for better and smooth functioning. I have written earlier on a Free Software To Update Windows Device Drivers do read that.

9. Remove unwanted visual effects:

The animated windows and fading menus can slow down your pc unknowingly. You can remove those fading effects, Use windows classic style theme, remove the heavy graphic wallpaper(none), You can even lower the color quality( to medium 16-Bit) and lower the screen resolution. Lower the screen resolution, better the performance.

e=”text-align:justify;”>10.Use Lightweight programs:

Replace all those resource consuming programs and look for better alternatives, especially for those who have RAM less then 512 and an old PIII machine.

use Lightweight antivirus programs like NOD32, AVG instead of Norton Antivirus.

This will really help you improve performance.

Any more suggestions will be appreciated.