Do you need a computer health check? When your computer is new it is properly setup and has very little software installed and as a result it works very efficiently. Over time software is added, updated and removed and this process causes the computer to slow and it’s performance to suffer. Your computer is also subject to infiltration by virus, spyware, trojans etc. all of which impact performance. In this article we look at 6 ways to improve your computers performance.
Computer Health Check Tip 1
Spring Clean – Like me I’m sure you install software to try it out or have software installed that you no longer use. We often neglect to remove this from our computer which can lead to significant effect on performance. We recommend you review software installations twice per year removing any old and/or no longer used programs.
Computer Health Check Tip 2
Windows Registry – The registry holds many of the vital files needed to run your PC. Unfortunately many programs leave behind bits of code that are no longer needed when software updates are carried out and when programs are removed. Over time the strain really tells and a poorly optimized registry file can bring your computer to a virtual halt. A registry repair tool is an excellent way to return the registry to health and one of the best is available free of cost. It is called ccleaner and it is simple to use but very powerful. You should however exercise extreme caution as should essential files be removed by mistake it can lead to an unusable computer.
Computer Health Check Tip 3
Computer Pests – Unfortunately, if you use the internet, your computer is under threat on a daily basis from viruses, spyware, malware, trojans and various other malicious code. These pests often reside on your computer unnoticed and can have a dramatic affect on your machines performance. Make sure you have appropriate software installed to combat these threats. One of the best solutions for those requiring a simple solution is Norton Internet Security 2011
Computer Health Check Tip 4
Startup Programs – One of the biggest causes of a slow computer is the number of programs that load automatically when you first turn on your computer. There is no real friendly way to manage these which is freely available. They are all a bit techy. The best is called WinPatrol but you do need to understand what you are doing when making any changes as you can easily create more problems than you solve. Probably the best way to manage startup programs is to make sure you remove any software from your computer that you no longer use. That way you know anything that does load when the computer is turned on is genuinely needed.
Computer Health Check Tip 5
Fragmented Disk – Essentially your disk drive is very lazy. When data gets saved rather than keep it in chronological order (like a book) it saves it wherever it feels like. This means the data is broken into a number of smaller pieces and scattered all over the place. When you want to access that data your disk drive has to track it down and put all the pieces back together again which can take a lot of additional time. To keep your disk drive in optimum health you should run a disk defragmentation utility. Auslogics provides an excellent free utility to carry out this task called, funnily enough, Disk Defrag.
Computer Health Check Tip 6
Insufficient Memory – With software becoming ever more complex and powerful the computing power required to run programs at an acceptable speed requires upgrading every 3-5 years. That said many home computers lack sufficient memory to perform at their full capacity. These days memory is very cheap and this is an inexpensive purchase that can give new life to an aging PC. To find out what memory you need check out Crucial who will help to ensure you buy the right memory for your machine.
Computer Health Check Summary
If you have not previously implemented some or all of the above suggestions then doing so should dramatically improve the performance of your PC. I have attempted to put this information in none technical terms and I hope it enables you to diagnose and solve basic performance problems making a noticeable improvement in your computers health.
If you think your pc might benefit from a computer health check then please do not hesitate to give me a ring on 01258 858466 to discuss your requirements.