The 4 Best Ways to Improve the Speed of Your Computer
No doubt, as a computer owner you’ve probably become frustrated on more than one occasion due to your machine becoming unbelievably slow. Let’s face it; nobody enjoys having to wait for what seems like an eternity, and that just so that you can access one of your programs. Of course, it can be even more soul destroying when you’re forced to wait for ten or fifteen minutes each time you boot-up your computer.
Irrespective of what’s causing it, slow computers are something which millions of users have to deal with daily. Even though there is no guaranteed cure for a slow computer, there are however four things you can do to speed it up.
#1. Reboot
Too many people never reboot their computers, and that is a major factor in the PC slowdown problem. In this day of always-on internet, and as our computers have become an integral part of our daily lives, many of us do not realize that PCs need to be rebooted from time to time in order for them to function at an optimal level.
Bear in mind that many software programs fail to shut down entirely even when you close them. Furthermore, many software programs also contain what is known as a memory leakage and this without a doubt has a direct impact on the computer’s available memory. This is because when a computer is using a large slice of its available memory, there is simply no way for it to be as efficient as what it was designed to be. By rebooting your computer you are essentially allowing it a chance to reset its memory and providing you do this from time to time, you’ll more than likely notice a considerable increase in speed.
#2. Upgrade your memory
The amount of available memory has a direct impact on the speed of your computer. At the very least you should have 512 MB RAM, and that if you’re running one of the earlier versions of Microsoft Windows such as XP. On the other hand if you’re using the new Windows 7 operating platform then you’ll need at least 1GB of RAM. In fact, even though Windows Vista is an earlier system, it requires a whopping 1.5GB. Ideally you should have at least 2GB of available memory on your computer if you have a 64-bit system, or if you enjoy playing games.
#3. Defragment your computer
The bottom line is; a hard drive which is never defragmented will always be inefficient. You can be rest assured that if you have not run a defragment tool, you’ll be sacrificing a considerable amount of speed. This is because when the files on your computer become fragmented, your machine has to work much harder in order for you to be able to access those files.
Bear in mind that Microsoft has included a defragmenting tool with all the operating systems for a very good reason, in that it should be used at least once every 30 days in order to ensure that your hard drive does not become overly fragmented. If you have not used in the tool for an extended period of time, you’ll notice to a substantial difference in speed once you do.
#4. Registry cleaners
Registry cleaners allow you to de-clutter your Windows registry. Which, if you dont know, your registry is like the brains of your computer. When you install or uninstall programs, add or remove drivers, etc, data is added to, and taken out of, your computers registry. However, sometimes programs do not uninstall correctly, or they leave information in the registry which is either just taking up space, or will cause conflicts with certain programs, which in turn can lead to a system slowdown and intermittent errors on your PC. Running a good registry cleaning tool every once in a while is recommended if you want to keep your PC at its optimal running state.
In the vast majority of cases the speed of a computer can be improved simply by applying the tips which have been mentioned above. Even though so many people experience their computer slowing down, that doesn’t mean it’s any easier to cope with, particularly if it gets to the stage where the computer will need to go in for repairs. Providing you put the above mentioned tips to use, you’ll at least be able to enjoy having an efficient computer rather than becoming frustrated with a sluggish machine.