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Community Newsletter: Q&A: How do I get my PC back in shape?
- 5/10/07 8:43 PM
Clean up
by coffeedrinker56 - 4/27/07 8:00 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
[If your antivirus software is up to date, this should help. If it's not, IMMEDIATELY download Norton Antivirus and run it against your hard drive. Viruses will slow your system down markedly even if they don't wreak havoc on it!]
You should be cleaning up your computer on - at the least - a weekly basis. Start by doing the simplest thing: Empty your Recycle Bin. [Right click on the bin, then left-click on "Empty ..."]. Then click on the Start button -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Disk Cleanup. Run that program. When it finishes, Click Start -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Disk Defragmenter. Run the program. It can take quite awhile - especially if you haven't run it before - so don't be surprised if it takes 3 or more hours to run.
That's the easy part.
To really speed things up you need to remove some XP features like the ads for AOL, Earthlink, et al; support for languages you don't speak/read/write, and all of the "junk" programs you've installed over the past two years. Finally, get a copy of PC Doctor or other such tool that will remove the unused progam pieces that didn't go away when you uninstalled the other junk.
After that: run the disk defragmenter again!
Finally, here's a quick tech lesson for you: RAM = SPEED. If you're a novice to the tech world have your neighbors kid come over and show you what a RAM card looks like. Your RAM can probably be upgraded cheaply enough - around $80 for a 2 year old machine - and it's easy to do. You'll notice the difference immediately.
If you're not up to it, take your box to CompUSA or other local PC shop near you. They can clean it up for you, usually for about $75. [That doesn't include additional RAM.]
Cleaning the computer
by Grammy IsMe - 4/27/07 8:02 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Take a computer class. It's fun and you meet new people. If you don't want to take any classes then perhaps you would like a computer book for dummies. (No, I'm not saying you are a dummy. That's the name of the books). BTW, I'm almost 71 years old and I clean my pc everyday.
Replacing Vista with XP in new computers
by philiptang - 4/27/07 8:13 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
My solutions are:
(1) Microsoft is obliged to give those who have Windows Vista installed in their new computer a copy of Windows XP Professional without delay.
(2) At the same time CNET should collect signatures of those affected to sue Microsoft if they do not comply with the suggestion in (1).
(3) Demand a refund plus costs (for time wasted installing and uninstalling it) for those who have bought Vista. It is a poorly designed product.
(4) Switching to Linux would be the best and long-term solution.
re: Item #4
by PhotoMan - 5/8/07 8:20 PM In reply to: Replacing Vista with XP in new computers by philiptangLinux is not an option for a machine with Windows based programs and files, like the one this thread is concerned about.
i have found two steps that i take, both are free, to clean
by snowpapa - 4/27/07 8:28 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
first, go to the maintenance and performance under the start menu and do a disk clean-up. second, re-arrange things on the hard drive. there is a free registry cleaner available which will clean the registry. it is also free, and is available on the web. these three should really help your speed and performance.
Why Switch ?
by fleubis - 4/27/07 8:31 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Unless you bought your printer, scanner or whatever last week, chances are NOT good that it will work with Vista. Older peripherals bought a year or two ago will NOT likely see Vista drivers anytime soon if ever. This issue seems to be conveniently ignored by all the Vista advocates.
My advise is that if you need your hardware to work RIGHT NOW, then use XP then wait until you need to replace that hardware and your chances of having Vista drivers available will be much greater. There is no technical reason to run out and by Vista unless you are a Microsoft stockholder.
Spring cleaning a PC.
by Rocker452 - 4/27/07 8:32 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
If you haven't done this in a while it's going to take some time. To start off I would do a complete anti-virus and anti-spyware scan and let them remove anything they find. If you don't have these installed on the computer (you need them),but you can find online scanners at most of the main security vendors sites. Trend-Micro has a good one for virus scan and for spyware Webroot I think has one for spyware online, these will do for now if you don't have one installed.
Next you will want to clean out the junk files. XP has a built in file cleaner (click Start, run, and type cleanmng.exe in the box, enter) that does a fair job but can take some time to run if you haven't run it before. when it starts it will show what it can get rid of and how much space it will save, but before you click ok uncheck the option to compress old files as this will save a little time off the run. Other programs you can use are Easy Cleaner or CCleaner. Easy Cleaner is a good program as it has not only a file cleaner but a registry cleaner too.
Next you'll want to go to the Add/Remove programs panel in control panel and remove any programs you no longer use.
Next you'll want to clean the registry. This can be tricky in that registry cleaners vary on there level of safe removal of errors, but the one in the Easy Cleaner program I mentioned earlier is pretty safe to use for this as it's not too aggressive in finding errors so the ones it finds are usually safe to remove.
Next up is defragmenting the hard drive. Again XP has one built in but it's rather slow especially if you haven't done it in a while if ever. AusLogic makes a good free one thats fast. Get it here http://tinyurl.com/ya92sm. Even with this it will probably take a while if you haven't done it before or lately.
This should get you a good start, if you want to go further you can manually go through your program files folder and delete any folders of programs you know have been uninstalled and delete all the update folders in the Windows directory, the ones that begin with $UninstallKB, that are over a couple month old.
To further speed up your system you might want to add more memory to it. This is not too expensive and is probably the easiest upgrade to do or have done.
Well this should give you a good start and put some speed back in your system. One thing else you can do to speed up the boot time is get rid of the unnecessary start up programs that load when Windows starts. The easiest way to do this is click start,run,type msconfig,enter. Click startup tab and uncheck the programs you don't need to start. An easier way is to download this program Startup Control Panel here: http://www.mlin.net/ and run it. It will put a startup icon in control panel. In category view it's under the Other
Control Panel Options on the left side.
Good Luck, Rocker452
Re-Installing Windows XP
by samirmm - 4/27/07 8:46 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Well I am not too technical either but this is what it would do if I ran in to that problem.
Note: You will lose all your data, programs etc. and you should have a backup.
When your purchased your Dell Computer it probably came with a Windows XP recovery CD. You just need to put this in and when you are booting up press the F12 button at the DELL screen. You will then be given a list of your installed drives (CD Drive/Floppy Drive/Hard Disk etc.). Choose the CD Drive. You will then be prompted with a series of questions. You need to install XP on a new partition and delete the old one. Now XP will be re-installed. Once it is over it will restart and boot as normal. You will now need to install all your programs which you want (try to avoid unnecessary one as that slow done your computer). If some of the drivers don't work you can visit the Dell website (support.dell.com) and download any drivers you need. You are all done! Your computer will work as good as new.
In future you should try to minimize the number of programs you install and since you only have 256MB RAM you can try to upgrade to 512mB. To do so you can visit Kingston.com.
Cheers,
Samir
answer for Sandy
by veerraju - 4/27/07 8:57 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi,
first of all you clean your computer by doing the following points and Install few softwares to speed up your computer.
1. Go to internet opitons , clean cookies, files etc., when ever possible. ( atleast once in a week)
2. Open "my computer"> drive "C" >properties>General> Disk clean up.
Do it when ever possible.
3. Defragment the drives, at least once in a month.
4. Install "Registry repair Pro", which corrects the registry and software links , speeds up the computer , increases hard disk mangment.
5. You can also instal " RAM PRO" a soft ware maintains the "RAM" cleans up the RAM and sees that it functions well with full swing.
Verify the settings in the "RAM PRO"
6. If nothing works simply install Higher capacity "RAM" card in your computer to slove the problem. >Minimum 512 MB.
Hope these things will update your computer.
with best wishes.
Computer Pal
The Proper Steps, in the Proper Order
by Flatworm - 4/27/07 9:24 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
1. Use Control Panel/Add or Delete Programs to delete any programs you do not need. You probably have a lot of these. If you're running an older version of certain BIG-NAME anti-virus programs (hint: One sounds like "Horton" and another is something like "McAfoo", older versions of which are NASTY resource hogs), delete these and replace them with a brand new version of them or something completely different like AVG Free.
1a. Get a utility that allows you to modify your startup programs and deactivate anything you don't need (for example, a lot of programs like RealPlayer, WinAmp and WinZip run "agents" that you can usually do without, and a whole lot more totally useless cruft is invoked on startup on nearly every PC on earth). Take care, though, that you don't terminate something you might actually need.
2. Run a registry cleaner like Tweaknow Registry Cleaner, which is freeware. Delete everything it finds and marks "Safe to Delete." Then reboot and run a registry optimizer like the freeware NTREGOPT. Reboot again.
3. Run a good disk cleanup utility like Webroot's Windows Washer. As the first step, run a cleanup on your drive. Fair warning, though: Make sure you haven't "overconfigured" it because it might delete files you'd rather have kept. It's particularly nasty with older versions of Forte's newsreader "Agent," where it deleted my entire subscribed list.
4. Run a couple of adware/spyware FULL scans. I run both Spybot Search & Destroy and Ad-Aware, both freeware. Each finds different things and misses different things but both together do a pretty good job.
5. If you haven't already done so as part of Step #1 above, run an anti-virus scan. In this case, though, you should only have one of these installed and only run one. I have never had an infection get past AVG Free.
6. Run sfc /scannow from file/run. This will repair corrupted system files, and if your computer has ever crashed (whose hasn't?) you certainly have some of these. They can really slow your computer down.
7. After reboot, run Windows Update. Sometimes sfc will replace a patched file with its original version, and you will need to repatch it.
8. Invoke Webroot's Windows Washer again. Run another disk cleanup, which should only take a few seconds to complete. Then go to Wash Utilities and run a "Wash Free Space." A single pass is enough, but even this takes quite a while.
9. As the last step, run a disk defragmentation pass. The one supplied as part of Windows is marginally OK, but MUCH better and more effective defragmentation is achieved by programs like my favorite, Raxco PerfectDisk. This can be obtained for free for a 30-day trial, but after you see how much it improves your computer's performance you'll probably fork over the $40 bucks. Run a scan, which takes only a couple of minutes, and then take the steps the program suggests, which will probably include a "Smart Scan" of your entire drive and an "Offline (System Files Only)" pass. Reboot after each step.
After you take these steps, your computer's performance should be noticeably, perhaps even shockingly, improved. The whole procedure will take the greater part of a whole day, but several of the steps (the full anti-virus scan, the free space wash, and the disk defragmentation, will take enough time themselves, and run just fine completely unattended, that you'll be able to do other things, like grocery shopping and whatnot, while they run.
I hope this helps.
For loading older program in vista
by abdaheer_urs - 4/27/07 9:33 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
hi,
i read ur problem of program compatibility in vista.( ie vista is not supporting ur older program that is supported by xp.) microsoft has provided some provision for changing the compatibility setting.
i think this will work out for u.
steps to solve the program compatibility problem.
1. go to start menu and open control panel.
2. notice programs in it. below it u will find the program compatibility.
3. go on as per the wizard.
and change the compatility by setting it to windows xp or windows 2003 or what u want in the list.
regards
abdaheer.
Clean up!
by mrlemarquis - 4/27/07 10:27 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I'm like you, not technical,but like to try and learn!I have a couple of little things which help me, for example to know my PC insides/outsides,I have a little thing called "Belarc Advisor"(do a search for it)which tells me almost everything about my PC.I also use the inbuilt windows System Information, although this is much less detailed.Having found out from Belarc Advisor where I am, I look and decide what programmes I still use (can change a lot in 2 years)or if I can group certain things together (doesn't really save space,but makes it easier to clean or control).What I no longer use says "byebye" to me and my PC!There are a lot of "cleanup disc and Registry" programmes around,but to avoid costs, I use the inbuilt Windows facilities,and Windows live one care programme,which also cleans the Registry!I don't doubt for one minute that after 2 years you must have a heck of a lot of "Temporary Internet files" probably taking up G's of space!Those (and Cookies) can be deleted easily enough - OK you may have to re-sign in to enable Cookies on your favourite sites, but at least you know where you are!The last thing I do is use the "defrag" option, to analyse and eventually to defragment the hard disc, if it says it's necessary!I doubt not that after 2 years, it will tell YOU - Defrag me - please.....!Finally (with my older PC) I simply look into the most important things from the past (mainly photos or written projects)and make back ups.That done, out comes the Win XP SP2 Installation disc, my collection of clean boot floppies, and goodbye to everything that's left!Newly installed, I take care (at least for a couple of weeks) about what I reinstall from my back ups, otherwise it would be Spring all year round! (iwmpop)
Housecleaning your PC
by Gary DVF - 4/27/07 10:38 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
1. Create a restore point.. Start -> Administrative tools -> System Restore.. This will be done multiple times so you can always go back.
2. Download CCleaner and install it from here: http://www.filehippo.com/download_ccleaner/ . Start it and go to options -> cookies and save all of your important cookies first! Then Cleaner -> run cleaner. Then Issues -> Scan for Issues -> Fix selected issues
3. Now comes the real work. It involves 2 programs.. Process Explorer and msconfig.exe. Download process explorer here: http://www.pcworld.com/downloads/file_description/0,fid,23780,RSS,RSS,00.asp
Run process explorer and see how many processes are running. If you do not know what they are, then right click the process and select google. It will tell you if the process is necessary or unnecessary. Make a list of the unnecessary ones and decide if they are important to run. For example, do you need Yahoo Messenger on all of the time or just the times you use it.
Now open msconfig.exe through the start -> run box. Hit the start tab. You can turn off a lot of unnecessary programs through here. If you have any doubts, you can also read the thread at Digital Digest here: http://forum.digital-digest.com/showthread.php?t=56373 and then this thread here: http://forum.digital-digest.com/showthread.php?t=60313
4. Now to start scanning for viruses and trojans, etc. If you do not have a firewall installed, I would recommend Comodo firewall. The Windows XP firewall is just insufficient in this day and age. Go to Filehippo.com and get as many free virus scanners as you can. I run AVG all of the time but also scan with Spy-bot and Ad-Aware. Sometimes one program will miss a virus but another will catch. And last, I run Windows defender as a monitor of my registry. It will tell me if a program is trying to modify my registry or start up file.
5.If everything comes clean, then finally run disc defragmenter. If you have a lot of photos or videos on your HD, you should consider backing them up to DVD and an external HD. I used to have 40 GBs of pictures on my C drive, but I removed them by backing them up to 2 external HDs. This way if a drive fails, I always have a back up. BTW: Do not be afraid to run Disc defragmenter 3 or 4 times so the maximum compaction can happen.
6. Last of all, consider backing up your whole internal HD to an external HD. There are many programs that come with external HDs that do this. This way, you have another recovery point if your main drive will fail.
Gary DVF
PC Cleanup
by Lightiain - 4/27/07 10:39 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Not too difficult Sandy, for a start,clean out recyle bin,Go start- programs - accessories - disk cleanup to get rid of old or unused items,go to start, settings,control panel, add/remove programs and get rid of old or unused programs. then go to start,programs, accessories, defrag. You also may have too many programs running in the background, (kittens,dogs,sheep etc running around your screen, they all take up space,slowing your computor down), good luck!
Spring Cleaning
by ManSinha - 4/27/07 10:40 PM In reply to: How do I get my PC back in shape? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Hi
The surest way you can reclaim space as well as the sleek speed that came with your computer 2 years ago is to reinstall windows. But BEFORE you do that, do the following:
a) Go through your PC and BACK-UP your important files on a separate partition or preferably a storage drive
b) Make sure you have CD ROM copies of your favorite software or if it downloaded and on your PC that it is backed up and available
c) Back up your legacy email; if you are using Outlook 2003 the .pst folder is located at c:\Documents and Settings\yourname\Local Files\Application settings\Microsoft\Outlook
or simply search using the Search function
You will be surprised at how much junk you can get rid of and also restore your registry to its pristine condition.
Please feel to write should you need help
Good luck!!
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