Community Newsletter: Q&A: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer?
- 8/15/08 9:58 AM
RE: All Answers for All Questions
by dkniskern - 8/3/08 6:53 AM In reply to: All Answers for All Questions by ranman54And who made you God and able to pass judgment on someone based upon a single question? You should be banned from this site.
Regarding with Too Much Ram
by frescar_11 - 1/21/09 7:29 PM In reply to: RE: All Answers for All Questions by dkniskernGood day! will for me, using too much ram is just one way of supporting your system to work well merely not to crash out the operating system. We should remember that good system quality is base on system requirement like for mother board, comply the requirement and will give you the best performamce of the unit you have... HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!
clean up
by pdoyle - 8/9/08 7:23 AM In reply to: All Answers for All Questions by ranman54This works well...... I just tried it!!!
First Of all check for viruses, worms or trojan that may slow down your processing speed of the computer.
In case of any infection use some effective measures to clean up those by either quarantine or clean or delete the infected files option provided in the antivirus menus.
Now check the processes running on the computer by pressing alt+ctrl+delete keys from the keyboard, then select the processes Tab and end the unnecessary processes that are running under your computer's name do not stop any system process.
If your computer is completely free from any kind of infections try to find the services provided the various applications that are installed on your pc.
Stop the unnecessary services by the following steps:
1.Right click on My Computer Icon on your desktop
2.chose the manage option.
3.In computer management option select services and applications by double clicking on it
4.Select services again by double clicking.
5.click on every service listed and you will be able to view the operation performed by that particular service.
6.Stop or Pause the un neccesary services.
If any of the above tips do not work try to format your hard disk
If any of these do not work to upgrade your PC config
try this.
by blueman96 - 8/2/08 6:41 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
there is a free program on the internet called ccleaner. it deletes all kind of things that build up on your pc. it also has a registry cleaner that fixes errors that slow your computer. now this program isn't bad, i have been useing it for quite some time now. and if all else fails you can just format your hard drive. google search ccleaner, and you should find it without much problem.
ressponse to question of how to speed up a slow computer
by kphfx51 - 8/2/08 7:18 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Personally,i'd run all my scans for adware /spyware/and virusees...then do a disk clean up and get rid of the temp files that you don't use,and most of all I would add all the ram that your computer will take,..more ram=more speed....
I'm with her.
by jennifer.2559 - 8/2/08 7:33 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I'm with you Gail thanks for asking that question as I would like the answer to that as well delivered in the same text! Cheers Jennifer.
XP Tweaks for faster computer
by frollo17 - 8/2/08 7:49 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
If its a faster computer you want then i recommend "Uniblue Registry Booster" to clean up the lost shortcuts and incorrect registry entries. It worked for me.
You also might like to try the "Microsoft Configuration Utility"
Start>Run...> Type: Msconfig
Open "Startup" on the tabs and disable the unwanted applications.
I completed these tasks and now my computer is much faster
Updating Drivers
by mgmikey30 - 8/2/08 8:05 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Several companys offer Automatic Driver Updates.You need to purchase one of them. THE DRIVER UPDATING SYSTEM WILL DO EVERYTHING FOR YOU.
Try Geek Squad or Firedog
by gemartin - 8/2/08 8:11 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I know this is supposed to be step-by-step, but my experience is that it is too complicated for novices to actually optimize a PC. These services have been reviewed and discussed on CNET many times. If you are serious about needing a tune-up, that is my suggestion. I am sure many qualified individuals will give you guidance here on how to do it yourself. Good luck.
General recommendations
by qaam - 8/2/08 8:25 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
I've just changed PCs & am now running Vista rather than XP, but the following recommendations apply to both. My computing ability is variable, but I'm fairly brave at trying new things, so I have had to have lots of practice at prising out rubbish that has built-up. Getting rid of the rubbish certainly makes a difference to the PCs speed.
The main thing I've found from trial & error, with the above PCs & others; is that you must use a combination of apps to keep your PC running smoothly, & you must use them to a fairly regular schedule.
The first thing is to keep things off your hard-drive that you didn't ask for! So make sure you have good firewall, anti-virus & anti-spyware apps. My choices are fairly predictable, I use the free versions of Zone Alarm (firewall), AVG (anti-virus) & AdAware & PCTools Spyware Doctor (anti-spyware).
A good tip is to be very careful when installing apps to check whether there is any 'bloatware' included. Things like toolbars & search engines. You can end up with loads of programs all designed to do the same thing & never used, & not even realise they are there. If an installer gives you the option to 'uncheck' these extra apps, fine. If it doesn't, I wouldn't load any of it.
If you wish to load multi-prog applications, like Adobe Master Suite CS3 which contains many programs, try to only load the programs that you would actually use. Most installers of any salt will give you a check list at some point in the install.
Keeping your hard-drive as empty as possible always helps, the more you have on it, the slower your PC will perform. Large collections of music, for instance, should be kept on an external hard-drive if you have one. I'm informed that if you have less than 25% free space on your hard-drive you could be in trouble, but I'm sure that's arguable.
Now to cleaning up the hard-drive -
"don't use register cleaners" why not? My choice is CCleaner (freeware). It's multi-talented, as it can run a clean through both Windows & your applications, check your registry for you & give you the option of making a registry back-up before correcting any problems, it can even be used to remove apps, though I use Revo Uninstaller for that (see below). Once installed, it is simplicity to use:
1. Take the option to put entries on the recycle bin's context menu, it's a great reminder to keep everything clean!
2. Take the option to run CCleaner at start-up - this will do a clean through of Windows & your apps before you start using the PC, just in case you didn't do one before you closed it last.
3. Take the option to overwrite your deleted items more than the standard (Secure file deletion). Goes as high as you can stand! (It's slower the higher). Might not make much difference to PC speed, but it's good practice. I have mine at 3 passes.
All the above can be found at 'Options' >> 'Settings' on the app window.
Getting rid of left over files & folders etc. can be problematic if you use Windows 'Add/Remove Programs'. I recommend Revo Uninstaller, a superb application remover (& surprise! - it's free). It lists ALL the apps on your PC, many more than you can see in the Windows list. Click on the item you wish to uninstall, then on 'Uninstall' on the toolbar & away it goes. It uses the apps built-in uninstaller, but the clever bit is that it will then read the hard-drive & give you the chance to remove all the junk. Nice. When you get to the 'delete' section, pay attention to the buttons, they are a bit confusing. Just click on 'Select All' & then 'Delete'.
De-fragging is also dead easy - I use Auslogics Disk Defragger & Auslogics Registry Defragger, both freeware & both very easy to use & very effective. No need to make any comments - the on-screen instructions are clear & easy.
It may be true that none of the above ON THEIR OWN would speed your PC up, but taken together & used regularly they have certainly helped me keep things chugging along at a fair belt!
All the apps I've metioned are CNET favourites - you'll find many reviews here to check them. I've never had any trouble with any of them.
Cheers 
How to speed a slow computer
by MurrayA - 8/2/08 8:28 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Gail D.....
I have no answer for you but sure do look forward to reading the answer! Thank you...you are not alone!
Speed Up's For Your Computer
by ev_spad - 8/2/08 9:04 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
First, before doing anything else, download CCleaner (it's FREE) from the "Downloads" section of this website. Save the downloaded program to your desktop and double-click on it to run the the installation. Open the program from the newly created desktop icon and run both the "Cleaner" and the "Registry" scan (you'll see the links at the upper left of your screen after opening the program). Delete or fix any problems it finds. Be prepared for a lengthy scan on the "Cleaner" if you click on "Analyze" in the lower left corner, for the first cleaning. In fact, I recommend you bypass "Analyze" and click on "Run Cleaner" in the lower right corner (I never use the analyze option unless I'm evaluating a website for McAfee SiteAdvisor). I've never seen it fail to speed up a home user's computer or remove anything that later caused a problem. After running the "Registry" scan and fixing the issues (I never back them up before fixing them - it's that safe of a program) re-run the registry scan until it finally says there were no problems found. I won't go into details as to why you should re-run the registry scan except to say CCleaner is programed to "play it safe" and won't dig deep into your registry except by using repetition. I use the "Cleaner" every time after closing my browser and the "Registry" scan after every boot-up and/or program or driver update, in other words at least once each day.
Second, go to the Windows Online Safety Scanner and run the "Cleanup" and "Tools" ("Full Service" is also a good idea but it can take a long time depending on your machine & connection speed.
Second, right-click on "My Computer" and then left click on Properties in the drop-down menu. Look at the "General" tab and see how much RAM you have installed on your computer (next to last line under the subtitle "Computer").
You really need between 1-3 GB for normal home use if you want speed. If possible, add additional RAM (a reputable computer store can do this for you or a call a knowledgeable friend (make sure the "friend" is knowledgeable because too many individuals think you can just purchase memory, snap it into place and re-boot without checking on the manufacturer's website regarding your motherboard, matching it with what you currently have for RAM and checking CMOS settings, if necessary. Most desktops do not ship with optimal amounts of RAM installed unless you pay extra.
Third, I recommend a paid disk defrag program (they DO make a difference, especially when it comes to maintaining the overall health of your hard disk and you will notice some increase in speed. I have used PerfectDisk Pro by Raxco (available as a download from this sight) for years and highly recommend it. It's not hard to use in spite of the "Pro" label and it's basically a really good defrag program. Use both the on-line and off-line options once a week if add or delete files frequently (you can schedule them to run automatically).
Last, as well as the very last thing I would do for speed, is download and install DriverMax 4.4 (it's Free and again available from this website) and use the program to update your drivers. A word of CAUTION! Always MANUALLY create a System Restore Point within Windows (click on the "Start" in the lower left-hand corner of your desktop then on the "Help and Support" link and follow the instructions to create a System Restore Point) before updating a driver AND only update one at a time to avoid trying to figure out which driver update caused a problem if, in fact, problems occur after updating. DO NOT rely on a newly installed program to create a usable "System Restore Point" unless or until it proves itself and even then I really don't rely on it. Basically, I don't "fix" a driver by updating unless there is a proven advantage, or it's broke, unless I'm doing beta testing, or get bored & curious. Rarely will an updated driver give you a noticeable speed increase.
A clean PC is a quick PC!
by garethjames888 - 8/2/08 10:15 AM In reply to: In plain English, how do I speed up a slow computer? by Lee Koo (ADMIN)
Good Afternoon.
First I would like to say that I am sure that you are more knowledgeable about the use of PC's than you give yourself credit for. And being willing to ask for help is always a good start, in any situation in life.
I would just say that a few more details about your PC would of been nice but I will try to offer help as best I can.
Now I am going to make a few assumptions before I start offering ideas and I would like to apologise if any of these assumptions cause offence or harm in anyway.
Here is what I will assume in an attempt to help you. This PC is a standard form factor Dell desktop PC. The PC is owned 100% by you. You are the main, if not sole, user of this PC. This PC is more than 18 months old. You did not take out a extended warranty or service plan on this PC. You do not want to spend too much money on trying to sort your problem and finally that you will not be using this speed up process as a springboard to using/running some very new software. You would just like to be able to have your PC operate in a manner more reminiscent of it when it was new.
OK, with all those in mind. Lets start cleaning!
First I would like to suggest that we start with some actual physical cleaning. Begin by printing out this post for reference to when your PC is turned off (If you find that what I have written may help you that is!). PLEASE NOTE THAT THE REMOVAL OF YOUR PC CASE WILL MOST LIKELY VOID ANY WARRANTY THAT YOU MAY STILL HAVE REMAINING ON IT. Then please turn off your PC, monitor, speakers and printer. Once everything is turned off, remove all the power cables from their wall sockets, switching off any sockets before removing any cables (if applicable to you). Once all the power cables have been removed from their sockets move around to the back of your PC. Start to unplug every cable from the back of your PC: I would suggest that you start with the power cables which are normally located at the top of the box. Please be mindful of the fact that plugging the cables back in later may be a bit more complicated so you may wish to take a picture of the back of your PC with a digital camera for reference later (you could study the picture on the screen of the camera for a basic idea of where the cables go) and you may also wish to mark each cable with a small piece of tape marked with the name of the item that it is attached too. Also please note that some cables may need you to undo some screws that are holding them into the PC. Most commonly this the cable for the monitor. These can be undone without the aid of tools.
Once all the cables are clear of the box lift the box to place where it is at a comfortable height to work on and is well lit. For this next part you will need a screwdriver, most likely a Phillips (Crosshead). Around the edge of the rear of the box you will see a series of screws. Once you have removed all the screws plus any warranty stickers or plastic cables you can remove the lid of your PC by sliding or lifting it off, or a combination of both!
Once the cover is off clean all the vent holes in the cover with a cloth making sure to remove as much dust as you can see on the case. Now turn your attention to the inners of the PC. You may see several fans around the insides depending on the specifications of your PC. Do not attempt to remove any dust that you see around these fans with any sort of cloth or duster, this will just cause more problems than it solves. I use a standard vacuum cleaner on its lowest power setting and very quickly wave the nozzle over the fans to remove as must dust as possible. DO NOT hold the nozzle of the cleaner up against any fans or circuit boards in the case for any sustained period of time. Clean as much dust and fluff out of the case as you can.
Shut the case and replace the screws. Place the PC back in its place, reattach the cables double checking that they are all in securely and correctly. Once you are happy with that please restart your PC.
Now "drivers". These are pieces of software code that control the interaction between various pieces of hardware and software that go to make up your PC. I assume that you keep up-to-date with your Windows XP updates. "Drivers" will be pieces of software not totally unlike the updates that you download under the Windows update function. Once a piece of hardware is realised to the public the company that make it normally releases updates to the software that manages it, the "driver", as a way of either fixing things like compatibility problems, or to boost it's actual performance. "Drivers" can be found for nearly every single PC peripheral around today. From the simplest mouse to the latest, greatest, graphics card, they all have them! I have found that an issue that can cause some worries when confronting "drivers" is that the new driver can cause more problems that it solves. Yes they can, but it also an easy problem to rectify. OK so I hope that helped and did not confuse the situation any more.
What drivers should you be interested in? Where do you get the ones you want? OK, for a start, make a note on a piece of paper of the manufactures name and the model number of any piece of hardware that you have plugged into your PC. A big one might be a printer. I have an old HP printer, it's a HP PSC1315. Now the "driver" for this comes as part of the software that is on the CD that came with the printer. I have a web cam, a Logitech. I feel that unless you have upgraded your keyboard or mouse with relatively expensive models then the "drivers" for these can be ignored. Do you have a scanner? A bar code reader? Do you connect your mobile phone to your PC via a cable? An external hard drive? These are all things to make a note of.
From here on it gets a bit in-depth. Let's pick web cameras for a start. The "driver" for mine, like the printer, contained within the actual software bundle that came with it. When I installed the software it placed a small icon of a web camera in the windows Task bar alongside my clock. To see if there is an update for the software, and hence the "driver", I just right click on the camera icon and select "Check for Updates". You will find that if you have installed software for a specific piece of hardware from a CD/DVD then most often it would of place a folder in your "All Programs" list and that this folder may contain an option for checking for software/"driver" updates. If not just starting the software that controls the hardware will give you a chance to check for updates, often by clicking on the menus. Which menu it is can very widely! Now if this all seems to be a bit much, you can just type the name and model number of one of your peripherals into your favoured search engine and then go through, for example, the manufactures support site. You may have to make a selection from a series of drop down boxes/menus to get to the page that covers your peripheral but most sites these days are easy to navigate for anyone who has used the web for more than 10minutes! From here you will most often find software/driver upgrades. But here is a point that I will raise again during the post. Do you need to update the software for the peripheral, or just the “driver”? If you are given the choice that is! I like to explain that in the quest to give an older PC a speed up, you may not want to install larger more complex software that could indeed slow the PC down even more. Take my printer for example. The software, HP Director, has gone through many changes since I got the printer so that now I would say that is almost unrecognisable to anyone familiar to the version that I installed over three years ago. So what do you do? Well I can only offer pointers here. If your use of any given peripheral is largely dependant on using the software that came with it, then where possible just update the driver. If new software exists for a peripheral then look what has been changed on it compared to the version that you run (“See what's new” / “Compare”), do you want/need any of this? Again I would say that as your are doing this exercise to speed up a PC unless the programme specifically states a greatly enhanced speed of operation, then stick with what you got!
So far I have talked about external hardware, but where the term “driver” really comes into its own is in connection with the hardware inside the PC! And where they get really fun! The most common “driver” to get updated in my experience is the one that controls the graphics card or chipset. And one that I would really recommend that you update. So which graphics card/chipset do you have? Right if you don't know or would like some more specific information then I would point you in the direction of Ccleaner:
http://www.download.com/CCleaner/3000-2144_4-10315544.html?tag=lst-1&cdlPid=10837066
Download and install this. Open the program and at the top right of the screen next to the large red letter “C” with the blue paint brush on it you will see some basic information about your system. It should show your operating system, name and version, your name and Model of Processor, the amount of System RAM and your graphics card name and model/series number!! This bit of software will come in very handy later in my reply as well!
So now you have the name of your graphics card/chipset. Type the information into your favourite search engine and head to the manufactures website. From there head over to the support page and most likely using a set of drop down boxes/menus navigate your way to the relevant page and here I would suggest that you take the latest software and driver. Most likely the driver will come as part of the latest version of the software so just take the software! Once it has downloaded, shut all other running apps, install the new driver, and if prompted restart your PC!
And right there you are off to a great start with speeding up your PC. Most of the dust has been cleaned out of it, and your graphics drivers are up to date! If you feel that you would like to update any more internal PC hardware drivers then you need to go the Windows Control Panel. Double click on “System” . The first tab on the box that comes up, called “General” will give you some more information about your PC, note this information on a bit of paper and keep it too hand for any future technical support requests! Look for a tab called “Hardware”, click on it. The click “Device Manager”. The next box is where you will be able to discover the names of most of the components found inside your PC. To see the names of any components just click on the “plus” signs at the edge of the box. Clicking on any the names that appear on here will enable you to find out all the relevant information about a devices driver! I feel that you would not need to worry about updating any other drivers but if you have been getting warning messages about drivers then here is where to find the name of the offending part, search for it, and follow the instructions for the graphics card bit.
As most people have said already, keeping a clean PC is the best way to keeping a fast PC. And I think that Ccleaner is the best for helping here. Now many people have already talked about using Windows utilities to clean up your PC but I feel the the software mentioned gives you more control. If as I said above I assume that you are the sole user of this PC then there is a fair chance that depending on your surfing habits you may have set certain websites to remember your login details and just using the windows tool to clean things can delete all of these! You may or may not find this annoying depending on your abilities to remember passwords and your feelings about online security. One benefit that you can get from Ccleaner is that it gives you the option to clean up your internet browsing history and associated mess while still leaving the cookies for any site that you feel you can trust with information intact. In Ccleaner, under the “Options” window you will see a box called “Cookies”, click on this and you will be presented with two columns, “Cookies to Delete” and “Cookies to Keep”. Use the arrow boxes located mid screen between the two columns to move any cookies that you want around. Ccleaner gives you plenty of options for the actual cleaning of your machine, and I will leave you to set it up as you feel bests suit you. I would recommend that when you use the cleaner function the first time you ensure that every box under both “windows” and the “applications” tabs are ticked, and then when this has run, click on the registry button and run the registry cleaner. I feel that it can clean up more than enough of the problems associated with registry type things. I have used this several hundred times and never had a problem with the registry cleaner deleting an incorrect file but I always use the “backup changes to the registry function”! And I suggest you do the same.
Also if your PC suffers from annoying programmes that insist on loading into your taskbar when your machine boots, Ccleaner can also show you all the programmes that boot themselves at Start up. You can delete any that you do not want from this list safe in the knowledge that it will not break the full programme if you still need that. Also the Un-installer featured on Ccleaner is very good and somewhat more comprehensive in my opinion that the one that Windows has. Both of these options can be found by clicking on the “tools” button on the left of the screen.
Once Ccleaner is tweaked to your liking then just get into the habit of running it once a day. You also want to de-fragment your hard drive. Use the windows one found under Start->All Programs->Accessories->System Tools. I would suggest running the defrag once every two weeks.
Some other people have stated that you should reformat your hard drive and reinstall windows. Well if you do want to go down this path then please, please, please make sure that you back up all your data and files. And you will most likely need the help of at the very least a seriously computer literate friend and I would warn that you may find yourself without a properly working computer for a while. The re-install process is not fast, and you will be amazed what needs updating, how long it takes, and the length of time taken to achieve the level of customisation that you are familiar with now.
You could update your RAM but this needs some serious know-how. You need to find the mother board manual. You then need to ascertain what is the maximum speed of the RAM in Mhz that is supported by your motherboard and possible the processor as well. Also what configuration of RAM chips would be best for the motherboard. And while cheap to buy in most cases, can cause headaches when it comes to fitting so I feel that if you did want to go down this path, then get a professional to do it for you!
So I hope I have managed to offer some help to you Gail, and now I ask for some help. I have only written one long reply like this before and several other posters did, rightly as it turn out, accuse me of coming across as quite big headed. So if you read this Gail, or if you think that the situation that Gail finds herself in is one in which your also find yourself in, let me know how this answer reads. Is it to hard to understand? Do I come across as being to condescending? Or big headed again? I would like to feel more comfortable writing these sort of posts and would appreciate any feedback along those lines.
I'm with Gail - so thanks for your reply
by shar50 - 8/8/08 8:44 PM In reply to: A clean PC is a quick PC! by garethjames888Well put and very helpful :)! Your answer is in depth, yet clear and not too complicated sounding. I found that your ideas affirmed ones stated by others as well as giving some new insights. Most of all your lucid and detailed post made the strategies seem understandable and 'doable'. Thanks!
A clean PC is a quick PC!
by Honey Wool - 6/4/09 9:48 AM In reply to: A clean PC is a quick PC! by garethjames888I wanted to say your post was the most detailed one,and quite easy to understand,specially for a great-grand-ma and a newbie like me!
Thank you very much "garethjames888"
God bless you.
Honey.
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