Note: This material is provided for educational purposes only. Consult with a computer expert at MyCuredComputer for professional assistance and the best intended outcome.

Overtime, you may find your computer freezing, restarting, and gradually slowing down. Not only that, but in most cases, booting up takes 5 to 10 minutes, and another 5 to 10 minutes for it to shut down. It becomes frustrating that it continues to deteriorate until you realize you either need help or want to buy a new computer. However, before deciding on replacing your computer, consider first on checking the causes that made your computer slow. You can save money by making your computer work as good as new.

We recommend that you always keep a backup of your important documents, music, and pictures in the event something goes wrong.

Basic steps to improve your computer’s performance:

1. Run Windows update. Microsoft occasionally releases updates and patches to make the operating system work better and more secure for future threats. They provide updates not just for the operating system but also for some important drivers that are compatible with the operating system. Also be sure you have the latest service pack.
2. Remove viruses. Everyday thousands of new viruses are created. In reality no antivirus program is capable of detecting and removing every threat. Nevertheless if you do have antivirus software we recommend keeping it updated.
3. Remove spyware and adware. Spyware consists of malicious applications that collect information from you when browsing the web and builds marketing profiles. Some of them change your computer’s configuration resulting in slow performance and internet connection problems. They gather various types of personal information and invade your privacy.
4. Empty Recycle Bin. It is recommended to periodically emptying your Recycle Bin as it will eat up space in your hard drive and can slow your computer down.
5. Delete temporary internet files. Whenever you browse the internet, download a file, or do anything on your computer, Windows creates temporary files, logs, and history. Over time it will slow down your computer as well as take up space on your hard drive.
6. Run Scan Disk. A bad sector is a sector in a storage device that is physically damaged and can no longer be used. Bad sectors can also make your computer run slow. Running disk check marks the bad sectors unusable so that the operating system can identify them and skip in the future.
7. Defragment the hard disk drive. When you use your computer, it generates temporary files and saves them all in your hard drive in small pieces that eventually become fragmented. When your operating system searches the hard drive, it takes time to find all the files that were scattered into pieces.
8. Prevent programs from loading at startup. Whenever you install software, parts of it saved on the operating system’s startup items. Those applications take up space in the random access memory waiting for them to be used. Overtime, it can use up almost 100 percent of your random access memory and will noticeably slow your computer down. Modify your system configuration and disable all unwanted software to run on startup.

Applying these steps will improve your computer’s performance without the inconvenience of buying a new computer. Consult with a MyCuredComputer expert today and find out how we can help get your system running like new again.

Category: Computer Tips & How Tos