A few tips you can use to keep your computer running fast!

Here are a few tips to keep your computer running fast.

1. Keep your desktop and hard drive clean.

Is your computer desktop your virtual dumping group? Saving files or lots of shortcuts on your computer's desktop will use more memory from the computer. It's alright to keep a few commonly used items here but don't make a habit of just saving all of your work on the Desktop. If you're the type of person that deals with a lot of documents or files on a regular basis, create a temporary folder to work in, instead of just using the desktop.



If you like downloading lots of software, videos or music, make sure you clean up after yourself. Leaving setup programs or files on your hard disk that probably won't be used again just wastes valuable disk space. Also, don't let the recycle bin or temporary file folders fill up your hard disk. If disk space gets too low for any of these reasons, errors and problems are sure to follow.

It's easy to clean out your recycle bin and various temporary file folders, using Window's build in "Disk Cleanup" utility. Open the "Disk Cleanup" utility by clicking:

Start - > All Programs - > Accessories - > System Tools - > Disk Cleanup

The tool is very easy to use; simply check the boxes next to the categories of files you would like to remove from your computer. The "Compress Old Files" option is only meant to save disk space if a drive is running extremely low, but for this option, that extra saved space is traded for slower performance.

2. Don't forget to defragment your hard drive.

The way your computer stores files to the hard disk is a lot less pretty than what you see in your file browser. The Windows operating system translates the digital mess of what is actually recorded on your hard disk so you can understand it.The hard drive is read and written to in a sequences and references instead of the directory tree structure you may be familiar with.

Over time, constant reads and writes to the hard disk cause the data to be organized less and less efficiently. For example, a digital photo you have saved may be split up into a dozen or more segments on the disk and an instruction set for associating and locating those pieces. Even files that your computer needs access to very frequently may be stored on parts of the disk that are the slowest to read, while some other file you'll probably never even look at again is on the fastest part of the disk. When your hard disk gets all out of order like this it is said to be fragmented, and your computer will suffer from a loss of performance.

Fortunately, this can be fixed. Windows has a built in tool for defragmenting your hard drive here.

Start - > Programs - > Accessories - > System Tools - > Disk Defragmenter

The program is very easy to use and can help clear up the fragmentation. All you have to do is click the "Defragment" button and let it go. The time this process takes to complete depends on how bad the hard disk is fragmented. If you have never "defragged" your hard disk before, you will probably see improvement in your computers performance as soon as the process is complete.

Remember to delete all the files you need to delete and do your cleaning before you defrag. It is pointless to deframent files that you are just going to delete anyways, as this could add a considerable amount of time to the defragging process.

You can also defragment as often as you like. Keeping the fragmentation on your hard drive low will help your computer perform better and will reduce the time needed for future defragmenting.

The Windows tool works but I prefer the free program Defraggler. Next time you defragment your hard drive give Defraggler a try!

3. Keep viruses and unwanted software off your computer.

If you have an Internet connection, it's just too easy to come into contact with viruses. Some viruses slow your computer down. Some may corrupt your files, while others can completely destroy your software and render the machine virtually useless. It is important that you keep your computer equipped with updated anti-virus software. There are many to choose from, but Avast! and Avira are some of the best free ones for personal use.

Always make sure you keep the anti-virus software's "definitions" up to date. Virus definitions let anti-virus software distinguish known viruses from other software. New virus threats are created every day, so it's important for your anti-virus to regularly update these definitions.

Viruses aren't the only internet threats that can plague your computer experience. There are two other groups of software that can cause many headaches... adware and spyware. These types of software aren't technically considered viruses because their purpose is not purely malicious. Adware advertises products and services to you through your computer. Spyware captures information and transmits it to a 3rd party. Obviously, you do not want any of this software on your computer, as it can invade your privacy and degrade your computer's performance.

Some anti-virus software packages are bundled with anti-spyware software. Other programs are just designed to remove adware and spyware. However, just like the anti-virus software, these detection and removal tools need to be kept up to date to be effective.