Tips & Tools to Make Your Computer Run Faster
1. Upgrade Your RAM
Yeah, the most obvious tip but people hardly upgrade it. RAM these days is very cheap..
2. Get Rid of Unneeded Software
Most PCs come shipped with unneeded software. Uninstall all of them. There are better alternatives to those software. For example, a PC came shipped from hp with lots of bloatware such as HP Image Zone, Norton AntiVirus 2007, Record Now! CD & DVD Burning software etc. You can uninstall all of them and replaced them with better software like Picasa and Nero.
3. Keep Only One Browser
This is part of the getting rid of unneeded applications. Many people have 3, or even 4 browsers installed on their computer ie Internet Explorer, Firefox, Opera, and Safari. It is better to use Mozilla Firefox only and remove all others.
To update Windows from within Firefox, just download the IE Tab add-on. Using that plugin, you can access IE only sites like Windows Update with ease.
4. Get an All-in-One Solution for Your IM Needs
Most of us have at least 2 IM clients installed. Uninstall all of them. Instead, get Digsby. Digsby is an All-in-One solution for your social media and IM needs.
5. Limit the Programs that Start Automatically
The programs that load automatically after your Windows starts can severely cripple the load time. To reduce the number of programs that start auto-load,download Revo Uninstaller. Disable the auto loading of applications carefully though. The rule of thumb is that if you don’t know what the app does, don’t disable it.
6. Delay the Startup of Your Remaining Autoloading Programs
Even after you’ve disabled the auto loading of most programs, there still is room to improve. The thing is that when your PC starts up, all your startup apps are fighting to run at the same time, which creates a bottleneck. To mitigate this effect, you can delay the launch of each of your startup program by a few seconds or minutes . Startup Delayer is an awesome app that does this.
7. Tweak Windows’s Display & Animation Settings
Right-click on “My Computer” > Go to the “Advanced” tab and click on “Settings” under “Performance”. Now uncheck the checkbox next to “Animate windows when minimizing and maximizing”. Disabling them won’t make your PC behave quicker per se but it will fasten the minimizing and maximizing of windows.
8. Disable Desktop Shortcuts
Shortcuts on your desktop are a waste. Not only do they increase your computer startup time, they also are an inefficient way to open stuff. There are more efficient ways to access applications, such through the Start Menu, the Quick Launch menu, or through software such as Launchy. To hide desktop shortcuts, right-click on your desktop, go to “Arrange Icons by” and uncheck “Show Desktop Icons” by clicking on it.
9. Check for Malware, Spyware, Viruses Regularly
The most important tip is to 1) have a firewall 2) have an anti-spyware app 3) have an anti-virus app, and 4) Regularly scan for viruses, spyware etc. If there’s a virus or some spyware slowing down your computer then none of the above tips can help you. You’ll first have to disinfect your PC.Use Ad-Aware 2008 as anti-spyware app and Norton Internet Security 2009 or Kaspersky Internet Security as firewall and anti-virus app.
10.Slow Right Click Context Menu
Probably the Windows Right Click menu on your computer is loading slow because too many programs added unwanted entries there. Just download this program called Mmm, install it and then modify your context menu to remove unwanted items to speed it up.
Slow Send To Menu
If the Send To menu loads slowly, you can type ’sendto’ in the Run Dialog, and remove unwanted items in the Explorer Window that appears. This should add some speed to it.
11.Slow Defragmentation
The Windows Defragmenter can’t get any slower. You need to have an alternative to the Windows Defragmenter, and Defraggler is just one of the best ones available in the market. It’s free, and works like a charm and can speed up defragmentation manifold.
12.Delete all files on your temporary files, temp and cookies from the computer can make your computer faster and stable.
Follow these steps:
Tools > Folder Options > View > Show hidden files and folders
C:\Documents and Settings\your computer's name\Cookies
C:\Documents and Settings\your computer's name\Local Settings\Temporary Internet Files
C:\Documents and Settings\your computer's name\Local Settings\Temp
P.S: You can use Boot Timer to measure how much time your PC takes to startup fully.
Thanks to Ruchir Chawdhry
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