Keeping your PC clean of rubbish.
Recently I have been called upon to solve some PC problems, including resolving some slow machines, and by slow, I mean very slow, taking minutes to perform a simple operation.
Basically there are a couple of reasons besides the obvious of older machines (>5yrs) with older slower processors, but more importantly, little memory.
There comes a time when one has to wonder whether it's worth upgrading it or splashing the cash on a new unit, which have come down over the years. A £1000 base unit 3 years ago can now be bought for around £400 and it has generally speaking a higher specification thrown in! Galling but then, that's the pace of advancement in computers and electronics in general.
Before deciding which route is for you, you need to identify your needs and requirements. If you're only surfing the web, email or word processing, and you have a limited budget, a simple clear out and memory upgrade might be adequate for your needs. If however, you're into more computer hungry applications like graphics – photos and videos, gaming, etc., then you're probably needing to look at an upgrade. If undecided then talk it through with someone who can help you decide, but please be careful when taking this route, as some of the high street stores, in shop or on line, might want to shift models so just beware! Never buy on the run up to Christmas as that's when they shift the “older” models. You can get them cheaper after Christmas in the sales.
Clean Up
At this point let's have a look at a general clean up of the current system. This is the first consideration and usually has an effect on the computer's efficiency. For this I like to use some software called “CCleaner.exe” (stands for Crap Cleaner) which you can read about and download from the web site (http://www.ccleaner.com/). When asked, save the file to your HDD and when it's finished down loading navigate to where you saved it and double click on the file to install it. Be warned when it installs it will install the Yahoo Toolbar unless you uncheck the tick box and unless you specifically want that installed, uncheck that box! Open up the application and you will get the following screen as shown here.
Using the default settings at this moment, click on the Analyse button and you'll be presented with a screen detailing the rubbish that it's found.
Have a quick look and you'll see it's found quite a bit of dross if you've been using your system for a little while and not been "cleaning" out the rubbish. Click the “Run Cleaner” button and let it do it's magic.
This will have removed a fair bit of rubbish, but not necessarily all of it. If your system has closed down unexpectedly you'll find there's some rubbish in another area that will benefit from a clean out and we can set this up in Ccleaner to check and delete during it's running.
If we click on Options in the left hand column and then Include, you'll see something like the following but the main central column will be empty at this stage.
What we need to do is to include the Temp directory of your user space and here we find it's in different areas depending on whether you're using XP or Vista.
In the example here where we're using Vista you can see that I've added a few folders I'd like cleaning out the Temp file areas and the area that my AVG puts files when it isolates them.
To add a folder is quite simple, just click on Add Folder and navigate to the area you want and then select the folder.
If you can't see the Temp sub-folder in the Username/Local Settings area it could be that you have system files hidden and you might need to make them visible in order to do this. The easiest way to do this is to go to Start, Help, and type Show hidden files in the Search bar and follow the screen prompts – see Appendix A for further details. When you have completed the exercise to add the folder to the above, then go back and re-hide the system folders accordingly, for safety.
Having added these directories you can then click on Cleaner, top left of the window, and re-run Analyse or just click on Run Cleaner.
For ease of use, close down all applications and web access before running the cleaner and then you won't get messages popping up prompting you to close open applications.
This should have made some difference to your system if it was running slow!
System Memory
Another cause of slow running systems is a lack of system memory.
Whilst Ccleaner is open, take a look at the top of the window where it says Ccleaner.com and the version, etc. It will also list details of our system, including the amount of system memory your pc has. Now if this is below at least 1Gb of ram you might want to upgrade your system, and before you trundle your PC to your local PC dealer, you might want to have a look see if your system is upgradeable in the memory stakes.
This is quite easy to do yourself by visiting the website of Crucial memory experts, http://www.crucial.com/uk/ and downloading the Scan and running it. Stay connected to the web whilst this runs.
If your system is identified as upgradeable, it will then tell you what you have installed and what options are available to you along with associated costs. It will also present you with the opportunity of ordering there and then which is very useful.
I have used this site a number of times now and can safely recommend it. If you do order from there you'll get your memory usually within a few days so the normal free delivery is adequate I've found.
If you're not happy installing it yourself, at least running the test will let you know if your system is upgradeable and may help you to decide whether you want the upgrade route more suitable for you.
You might get a message about re-initialising your copy of windows once your system has restared. This is unusual, but if that does happen, just go online and follow the instructions, or make a phone call but make sure you have your Licence Number to hand if using the phone. It should be straightforward. Just explain that you've done a memory upgrade when th emessage appeared. Youe system should be re-initialised there and then.
Another reason your system could be slow is to do with your Hard Disk Drive (HDD).
Does it have any free space? Has it been defragged at any time?
To check for free space, open Windows Explorer – Windows Key + E – and then right click the mouse on the drive letter we're interested in, usually C: and read off the free space value. If this is below 20Gb after the clean up above then it might be worth looking at an upgrade and unless you know what you're doing, ask for assistance.
If you've not done a defrag ever on your system, whilst you have the window open in the previous paragraphs, select Tools Tab and then click on the Defreg Now button. This could take a long time so be prepared to go make a drink or something else for a while whilst it sorts the drive out.
An alternative defrag program is defraggler and can be downloaded from http://www.filehippo.com/download_defraggler and this is my preferred version.
Defrag (defragment) does as it's name suggests, it defragments the files on your HDD. This can make accessing quicker as the files are then all together rather than dispersed across the drive surface.
Conclusions
Having plodded through the above you might then be in a clearer frame of mind as to which upgrade route is best for you. Until you identify your needs and budget, you can't make a reasoned choice so I hope the above has helped you to reach an acceptable path to a happier experience with your system. If you have any other comments or feedback then please feel free to contact me and I'll attempt to either incorporate or modify the article accordingly or just reply to yourself.
Alan Wiseman (awiseowl@gmail.com)
Appendix A
Show Hidden Files
Go to Start, Help and type Show Hidden Files and then follow the screen prompts as shown below.
Check Show hidden files and folders and uncheck Hide extensions for known file types and Hide protected operating system files temporarily.
Once we have set up Ccleaner then you need to repeat this exercise to return these options to original settings.
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