Over time, ALL computers
will have a decrease in performance in
other words, becoming much slower as
time passes, for many different reasons....
Downloading software, having too many temporary files stored
on the hard drive, Windows
registry becoming full
of unneeded entries, free space on the hard drive
decreasing, incompatible or problematic drivers, and other reasons
- can cause users to pull out their hair!
A PC Tune up is
essential after a virus
infection (or other malware), is removed from a
computer. In many cases, virus, Trojans and other
malware actually damage
system
files that Windows needs to function ,as well asdamaging the registry; therefore causing
computers to become extremely
unreliable!
I will share the “secrets” of
performing a successful PC Tune Up, so you no longer
have to pay out of pocket for this sometimes costly
service!
-------
1.)
Increase the performance/speed of the hard drive by
disabling search
indexing
Navigate to My Computer. Right
click on the root drive - the hard drive that contains
your installation of Windows. Choose Properties Uncheck
the box that refers to "Indexing" or "Search indexing"
etc. Click Apply. Next, wait for the drive to scan and
make the changes!
---
2.) Speed up the program
menu by editing entries within the
registry
Go to the Search
box (Windows Vista and 7) or the Run
box (XP) This "box" can
be found by clicking on the Windows icon on the
left lower side of the desktop.
Type: regedit and
hit Enter
(the registry editor will appear)
Double click:
HKEY_CURRENT_USER
Click on
Desktop
On the right hand pane, navigate to
Menu Show Delay
Double click Menu Show
Delay
Change Value
Data,to 1
(it should've been 400 previously)
Click OK
Click File, then
choose Exit
in the Registry Editor
Restart the
PC
, and the
program menu should load much faster!
*The menu speed will be noticeable in
XP, not so much Vista or 7*
---
3.) Prevent your hard drive
data from becoming “scrambled", by turning on
auto
defragment
Go to the Search
box (Windows Vista and 7) or the Run
box (XP) This "box" can be found by clicking on the
Windows icon on the left lower side of the
desktop.
Type defragment
and press Enter. The Disk Defragmenter
utility will then pop
up.
Click on:
Configure Schedule, and
choose the desired schedule (time/day) preferred to auto-defrag the
drive.
Click OK when done, then
close!
---
4.) Clear your browsers’
internet cache
Clearing the cache will
increase the browser's load time, and can help troubleshoot various internet browser problems. This is
a vital step in performing a PC tune up, due to the fact
that a high percentage of computer usage is online
surfing and as more temporary files are stored, the
browsing experience suffers
significantly.
Mozilla Firefox
Users:
Click
Tools
Go to Options
Navigate to the
Privacy tab
Choose Clear All Current
History
---
Internet Explorer
Users:
Click Tools
Click on Internet
Options
Next, click on the
General tab
Under Browsing
History, click elete (see
next page for diagram) Make sure everything is checked,
except: Form Data, Passwords and
"In Private..."
Click Delete...all
done!
---
5.) Separate video, picture & music
files, with individual
folders
A good way to minimize hard drive
fragmentation, which in turn will speed hard drive
access time, is to separate files by categories. For
instance, ALL music files should be kept in one folder
that is labeled (named) accordingly; and the same
applies to video files, pictures, bookmarks, documents
etc.
Windows has default folder
locations for files such as: My
Documents, My Pictures,
My Videos etc; which work perfectly in
separating and centralizing these file types. A PC tune
up is not only needed to restore performance, but to
also prepare a computer to prevent data
loss.
---
6.) Scan for viruses,
Trojans, etc using your antivirus
software
Many computers that have recently
"slowed" or are no longer reliable often have some type
of malware infection. If a PC tune up has been
performed, but a virus or other threat remain on the
computer, a PC tune up will do very little good, because
the malware will soon slow the performance of the
computer all over again!
Use your favorite antivirus and antispyware
software to check for threats such as viruses and
trojans. Remove any threats that are found.A PC tune up
should ideally be performed after removing infections,
so be sure to scan for viruses prior to doing any type
of optimizing on your computer!
THE PC TECHNICIANS VIRUS
REMOVAL MANUAL
gives step by step, detailed
information on removing malware, as well as the best
FREE antivirus solutions, unlimited support and
more!
---
7.) Remove unneeded
programs and toolbars by using add/remove programs,
or
uninstall
programs
Installing new software can sometimes be
exciting! Unfortunately, many
people don't realize that every time software is
installed on a computer, (as well as taking up more hard
drive space), it creates an entry into the "Windows
Registry." As the registry gets updated with program
installation entries, it becomes
cluttered.
As programs are uninstalled, the
registry still contains many entries, such as
paths to the programs that no longer exist. Invalid
entries can cause registry related errors (BSODS,
restarts, pop up errors etc) as well as an extremely
slow computer. It's important to install only trusted,
needed programs and toolbars, and make sure to uninstall
any software that has not or will not be
used!
Thank you for taking the time to learn how
you can successfully tune up your computer. I hope these
tips will prove to be excellent PC tune up tips that you
can do all by yourself, for a much more enjoyable and
reliable computing experience! Now, you can finally roll
up your sleeves and get to tuning that
PC!
---
Visit the Virus Removal
Manual website, and subscribe for our email list to
receive a totally FREE copy of The PC Technician's Tune
Up Manual, which includes many steps not listed here, to
fully tune up your PC! Get it today by clicking
here!
