by Joseph G. Trasna
You’re tired of it taking ten minutes for your computer to boot up so that you can check your email before heading out to work in the morning, an activity that should only take five minutes to both log on and check your inbox. At first, you just ignore it and hope it’ll go away and fix itself. But after a few more weeks, it frustrates you to the point that you spend what should be a relaxing weekend looking up and downloading free programs that claim they’ll do the trick. Which at first seems to be helping until you realize that your computer is moving slower and is more cluttered than when you began. You get what you pay for. So you shell out a few bucks for one of those fancy all-in-one programs that offer ten or more optimizing tools for under thirty dollars. But it doesn’t take long to realize the same thing happens as with the free programs, though to a lesser extent. Do the math, thirty dollars for ten programs. That’s three dollars a program, you’re still getting what you paid for. And you’re back to square one, if not slower than ever.
Does that sound like you? It probably does, I know I’ve experienced the same thing in my lifetime. That’s why I’m offering 5 easy steps to speed up your computer below:
1. Update Windows as often as an update is available. I know this should be obvious, but if you’re like me you’ll think it’s a, too much of a hassle so better left ignored or b, more likely to do damage than good. And while the latter holds true sometimes, for the most part Microsoft knows what they’re doing and their updates do refine the Windows operating system. After all, it’s their program that they know inside and out.
2. Run A Registry Cleaner at least once a week. I do this daily, but as I have multiple computers so that I can run the scan on one while using the other it doesn’t get in the way much. But make a habit of at least doing it once a week. Having a clean and organized registry increases the speeds of your program calls, which makes programs react and boot up quicker since your computer knows exactly where to find them instead of checking through hundreds of entries left behind from programs you thought you completely uninstalled. Below I’ve listed a few inexpensive programs that give you the best for your investment:
3. Run An Antivirus scan at least once a month. Again, I do this more often (about once a week). But even once a month is better than nothing as viruses are one of the main causes of PC slowdowns. And although I said that free in most cases isn’t helpful, this is the one exception as I’ve been swearing by Avast! for the past few years. So below are a couple (free!) antivirus programs:
4. Run An Anti-Spyware/Adware scan at least once a month. Another routine I personally do once a week. And believe me, it can work wonders. Especially if you went on one of those free downloading binges. You wouldn’t believe how often spyware or adware is attached to those programs, even some of the ones that claim to be 100% uninfected. And while there are a few free programs for removing this, keep in mind that this is what started the problem in the first place. And will either make it worse, or not clean it as well as possible (you get what you pay for!). So below I’ve listed a few inexpensive anti-spyware/anti-adware programs that are guaranteed to remove all those hindering infestations:
5. Defragment your computer at least once a month. Again, I do this weekly. And while Windows comes equipped with it’s own defragmenter, I’ve personally found that it doesn’t do near as good of a job as it should do. And definitely not as good as a job as some companies that are dedicated entirely to making sure your computer is running as smoothly as possible. And fragmented files on your hard drive is another of the leading causes of your computer running slow and it’s key to make sure your computer is properly defragmented. So in order to do this correctly, I’ve listed an inexpensive program that does just that:
Afterthoughts: So it may seem like a big waste of money to use any of these programs listed when there are hundreds of free ones claiming to do the same thing. But take my advice, nine times out of ten the free programs I’ve come across have done more harm than good. And most of the programs I’ve listed only require a one-time low fee, and get the job done right. And you could very well use all these steps and one of each of the programs I’ve listed and spend less than one hundred dollars. And believe me, that’s better than having to shell out over five hundred for a new computer that’ll probably run just as slowly as your last one in a few months. And if you take my advice, just remember that in order to get the most out of your computer, you have to set a routine and make it a habit to do all those steps at least as often as I recommended. So good luck everybody, and because I just have to say it, Godspeed.
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