Ten years ago, nobody ever considered having a website with videos. The enormous size of the multimedia files would make the site almost impossible to access, considering how slow the internet connection was at that time.
There were many tweaks invented in order to survive the snail-like internet connection speed in the past. Some were just bogus tricks to make the user feel it was going faster, others went further by optimizing the data traffic to make the most of the limited ability.
Windows Vista has often been criticized for being bloated and slow and everyone unanimously seems to agree that Vista is a beast that Microsoft needn’t have confronted us with. Beast or not though, Vista is here to stay. It is bundled with nearly every computer now sold and it looks like we’ll have to live with it for some time to come.
I’ve been using Vista since it came with my notebook and actually find it to be better than Windows XP. Although I have the benefit of using a fairly recent machine and, even then, I have had to customize Vista quite a bit to save on some memory and speed up daily tasks.
Slow, cluttered up, lots of dangling shortcuts, invalid registry entries, long startup times, these are all common problems for Windows users. Keeping track of everything and performing maintenance tasks can get cumbersome sometimes but not if you use “Glary Utilities”.
Glary Utilities presents you with a bundle of tools to take care of these common problems and makes system maintenance a breeze! It’s an approx 6MB file which you can download from here. Install and fire it up and you get a host of utilities that help you take care of the most common problems.
Today we will be taking a look at nCleaner. It is a free Windows system cleaning application. This app will let you clean your system, applications, free more disk space, boost your system’s speed and get more stability and privacy protection. All for the low, low price of free…
Who could say no to all of that?
Plus in case you’re wondering how this differs from apps such as CCleaner, read on for a full list of what Ncleaner will do for you….
Macs, like Windows machines, will eventually bog down after a while. The major problem on Windows is disk fragmentation — in layman’s terms, that’s when bits and pieces of your files are scattered all over your hard disk so your operating system has to work harder to find them. Mac OS X runs on a different file system (HFS, as opposed to Window’s NTFS) that automatically defragments and optimizes itself. So if you’re a Mac user, chances are you would never need to defragment your hard disk, thanks to Apple. However fragmentation is only one of the many problems we face regarding system optimization.
Your friendly neighborhood admin is back again with another Windows tool to help you tame your computer.
I shared with you my favorite application for tweaking the Windows Registry (safely) with WinSecret and how to use SteadyState to keep your machine the way you like it even after letting others mess around on it. Now how about we look into what your machine does when it starts up?
AutoRuns a SysInternals tool that has been converted into a Microsoft Windows utility is a much more powerful alternative to Microsoft’s built-in MSConfig tool (seen below). Both of these tools shows you what starts up with Windows and allows you to change it. AutoRuns just has a lot more options to help you out than its Microsoft predecessor.
Does your ISP deliver the speed you pay for? It’s rather easy to test your broadband internet speed. However, there are a few things to keep in mind. For one, ISPs usually promise an “up to” speed, so you can’t expect top performance at all times, that’s part of the deal. During high traffic times your ISP will suffer from high loads and will certainly not be able to deliver the maximum speed. Thus you’d best perform different speed tests at different time points, to see whether you ever reach the top speed. Also, when running a speed test, make sure no other applications are using the internet, else the result will not be accurate.
It’s time for another poll. Today we want to ask you about disk defrag tools. What program do you use to defragment your hard drive?
Anyone who’s owned a Windows PC for a long time will probably agree that eventually you have to defrag the hard drive. As you move files around and keep installing new programs your disk gets fragmented. Fragmented files take longer to run and results in slower performance. So if you want to keep the hard drive at its peak performance, make sure to defragment your computer once in a while.
If you have spent anytime at all customizing your Windows machine to act and function exactly as you want it to then you have definitely come across registry entries. They are all over the net. Ranging from simple changes to exotic or wacky mods. Every single one of them is preceded by a warning that normally looks something like this:
Changes made to the Windows registry happen immediately, and no backup is automatically made. Do not edit the Windows registry unless you are confident about doing so.
Microsoft have issued the following warning with respect to the Registry Editor:
Summer starts today. It’s the longest day of the year and it’s not too late for some last minute spring cleaning. Of course keeping your system clear of junk is always a good idea. However, here’s a quick six step guide to unclutter your system, increase its performance and speed it up.
The image to the left was graciously provided by Roma Flowers via stock.xchng.
Remove excess software through >start >control panel >software. If something won’t uninstall because it was never installed properly in the first place, try Microsoft’s Windows Installer CleanUp Utility.
There is far too much spyware, adware, malware in general. Unfortunately, all of this can be easily received involuntarily. Unfortunately as well, many people do not have sufficient enough programs to make sure these pieces of junk are removed properly and your computer is safely restored. Here I will show you the best free applications to keep your computer secure.
AVG Anti-Virus
As much as I like Windows XP, I am constantly aware of its severe limitations. I realised this when I installed Teracopy to replace the standard Windows moving & copying function and it shot out the gate like a bat out of hell.
Piky Basket is something similar although it isn’t a software program. It is a shell extension which integrates itself into your Windows Explorer right-click menu. But where Teracopy is best suited for large-sized files being moved between drives, Piky Basket is more for your standard day-to-day folder maintenance, when you’re cleaning things up and generally staying organized.
Firefox may be my browser of choice but there are times when it is REALLY slow, so slow in fact that I am sorely tempted to defect to Opera or even *gasp* Safari!
It’s sometimes even worse when you’re opening up Firefox. You click on that little Fox icon and it sits there thinking “hmmm….he wants me to start up…will I or won’t I? Let’s think about it for a few minutes”. Meanwhile you’re sitting there gnashing your teeth and flirting with the idea of walking on the wild side with Flock.
Ubuntu is a linux based Operating System that’s getting more attention than ever before. It’s very user friendly, and lots of people are downloading it because it comes with better hardware detection and works well out-of-the-box. If you haven’t got yourself a Live CD, get a copy for free from ShipIt
Some reasons why you should give Ubuntu a try:
* It doesn’t need expensive hardware to run, it can run perfectly on a machine with a normal configuration. Doesn’t crash often like Windows.
Your computer running Windows isn’t running in the same speed that it used to run when you first used it. It’s slower, crappy, takes a while to start and tests your patience like anything. There are many reasons for this, let’s try fixing up a few things on your slow Windows PC:
Slow Start Up
There can be a variety of reasons to Windows loading slow during start up. Go to Run, type msconfig and hit enter. Under the ‘Start Up’ tab, uncheck the unwanted programs and press OK. Things should be a bit fine the next time Windows boots.
Yes, it takes only 7 shortcuts, master them and you’ll defintiely be a lot faster. These 7 shortcuts are meant to make browsing and basic PC tasks easier. While couple of shortcuts are Firefox only, most should work pretty much on any browser.
Mouse Scroll Button
Anyone who spends a considerable amount of time on the web should find this shortcut absolutely invaluable. I am not sure about whether this works in IE 7, but if you use Firefox then you can use your mouse scroll button to open links in a new tab. It’s a finger-tip shortcut to the frequently used ‘right click -> Open Link in New Tab’ combination. Plus, since it’s at your finger tips it’s really easy to get used to it.
There are literally hundreds of freeware applications and utilities that you can download for Windows XP to tweak and improve computer performance, however, it’s still hard to find really good ones for Windows Vista. If you’re looking for some good free programs to configure, customize and tweak Windows Vista, check out the list below. The programs range from system configuration tweakers to Windows Vista boot screen modifiers. Enjoy!
Last time I discussed finding drivers for your software programs and also how to set up a printer on Windows. Well today I am going to get onto a more interesting topic - what to put on your computer. I know countless other blogs have done lists like this so this isn’t anything groundbreaking. But I know quite a few people at the moment who are buying their first PC and who are asking me “so what do I put on this PC-thingy-ma-jig then?”. Well, here’s your answer.
So for all the newbies, parents, grandparents, techno-phobes and computer doofs out there, here’s what should be on your computer.
If you’ve owned a PC for a long period of time, you’ll know that eventually you need to defragment the hard drive. As you use the PC more and more, files become scattered across different folders and the system slows down as a result. Defragging may be a pain up the rear but it’s unfortunately a fact of life which you can’t escape from, if you want to continue installing programs, watching video files and listening to music. But there’s a school of thought that says that defragging is unnecessary. I’ll leave that for you to decide whether or not that argument has any merits.
While going through most popular software stats on Download.com, I decided to pull out top 10 most downloaded FREE security AND Windows optimization programs. Not surprisingly, I ended up with 10 excellent FREE programs. Check them out below, most of them seem to be really good. (Note: Program popularity was measured by the total number of downloads during the last week)
TOP 5: Free Security Programs (Antivirus, Spyware Removal, etc.)
(1) AVG Anti-Virus Free Edition Memory-friendly free antivirus program that comes with lifetime free access to virus definition updates. Highlights include automatic update, real-time protection, free virus database updates, and some more. With nearly 1 mil. downloads (926,832) last week alone, this gotta be a good tool.
1. HowTo: Setup Quick Searches in Firefox.
Last month I posted about my favorite Gmail feature, well this one is my TOP 1 for Firefox. Probably the most underestimated (and yet VERY USEFUL) Firefox feature ever.
2. Three Awesome Firefox Quick Searches (via JimmyR.com)
3. Quickly Find and Download FREE MP3s from Google (using FF Quick Search) (via JimmyR.com)
for Windows
4. HowTo: Hide Files inside JPG images
5. HowTo: Speedup Windows Star Menu
Quick registry tweak that lets you speed-up Start Menu navigation.
As a writer, I virtually live inside Microsoft Word, creating and editing up to 20 documents a day. But it is so slow that barely a week goes by without me getting so annoyed that I seriously start to consider uninstalling Office 2003 and going with Open Office instead. Why? Quite simply because Word has the potential to slow down to a snail’s pace and take its sweet time opening up.
So for the past few weeks, I have been scouring the Information Super Highway looking for tips on how to speed Word up. Here’s what I’ve found so far and they seem to be having a positive effect so far.
While I am busy compiling some more Registry tweaks for you, I realised that there are some tweaks you can make to your PC without ever having to touch the Registry at all. So here’s some off the top of my head.
1. Tweak your trash bin
If you right-click on your trash bin and choose “properties”, you can tweak a few trash features. For example, you can turn off the eternally annoying “are you sure you want to delete this?” dialogue (I love being rid of this stupid feature). You can also reduce the space in your trash bin (to prevent it from filling up too much) and you can even disable the trash bin so that anything you delete bypasses the trash and gets deleted off the system immediately (I would use this one with caution though).
For those brave enough to face the Windows registry, the possibilities to alter your Windows operating system is endless. When your PC is made at the factory, Microsoft sets everything at what they think is the best. But nine times out of ten, the default settings that Microsoft chooses on your behalf are downright irritating. Do we really need to be asked “are you sure you want to delete this file?” (no, I hit the delete button for kicks). Do we really need to wait an eternity for the start menu to start moving?
Yesterday I looked at three tools which you can use to tidy up and speed up your computer.Today I want to put the emphasis more on speed because that is really the most important function of all isn’t it? If you have DSL broadband internet, then you want the speed of DSL, not the speed of a 56k modem. But over time, your computer will start to slow down as you install more and more stuff, download security and upgrade patches and handle files. So on a regular basis, say once a week, you should use the following two tools :
Back in 2002, my computer was drowning. Drowning in countless start-up programs, temp files, cookies, caches, out-of-date Windows Registry entries, viruses, spyware….you name it, I had it. The Windows trash bin was full to bursting and the Clipboard was jam-packed. After only really embracing the internet in a big way the year before, I was having the time of my life, downloading and installing everything I could get my hands on. An executable email attachment called “Naked Britney Spears”? I’ll take that! A complete stranger telling me to download his “special new program”? Sure thing! Yes I was naive and very stupid back then.
