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G7SRI > PC 27.03.09 14:11l 202 Lines 10437 Bytes #999 (0) @ GBR
BID : CB1542G7SRI
Read: ON4CBL GUEST
Subj: Speed up your PC
Path: ON0AR<F4BWT<ON4HU<ON0BEL<VE2GPQ<VE2RXY<VE3UIL<KC8FWD<N9PMO<GB7LDI<
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Sent: 090320/1643Z @:GB7NND.#23.GBR.EU #:35420 [Worksop, Notts] $:CB1542G7SRI
From: G7SRI@GB7NND.#23.GBR.EU
To : PC@GBR
[T:1641. D:20/03/09 #:1542 N:Geoff B:GB7NND {IO93JG, Clowne}]
Most women are not so young as they are painted.
Hello,
Here are a few more tips to help sort out your computer. Most of these are
aimed at Windows XP and having tried them I know that they work with the
particular version of XP-pro that I use. They will most likely work with
most versions of Windows, but I accept no responsibility if you find they
are no good for your operating system.
Since defragging the disk won't do much to improve Windows XP performance,
here are 23 suggestions that will. Each can enhance the performance and
reliability of your PC. Best of all, most of them will cost you nothing.
1.) To decrease a system's boot time and increase system performance, use
the money you save by not buying defragmentation software -- the built-in
Windows defragmenter works just fine -- and instead equip the computer
with an Ultra-133 or Serial ATA hard drive with 8-MB cache buffer.
2.) If a PC has less than 512 MB of RAM, add more memory. This is a
relatively inexpensive and easy upgrade that can dramatically improve
system performance.
3.) Ensure that Windows XP is utilizing the NTFS file system. If you're
not sure, here's how to check: First, double-click the My Computer icon,
right-click on the C: Drive, then select Properties. Next, examine the
File System type; if it says FAT32, then back-up any important data. Next,
click Start, click Run, type CMD, and then click OK. At the prompt, type
CONVERT C: /FS:NTFS and press the Enter key. This process may take a
while; it's important that the computer be uninterrupted and virus-free.
The file system used by the bootable drive will be either FAT32 or NTFS. I
highly recommend NTFS for its superior security, reliability, and
efficiency with larger disk drives.
4.) Disable file indexing. The indexing service extracts information from
documents and other files on the hard drive and creates a "searchable
keyword index." As you can imagine, this process can be quite taxing on
any system.
The idea is that the user can search for a word, phrase, or property
inside a document, should they have hundreds or thousands of documents and
not know the file name of the document they want. Windows XP's built-in
search functionality can still perform these kinds of searches without the
Indexing service. It just takes longer. The OS has to open each file at
the time of the request to help find what the user is looking for.
Most people never need this feature of search. Those who do are typically
in a large business environment where thousands of documents are located
on at least one server. But if you're a typical home user, or small and
medium business and if you have no need for this search feature, I
recommend disabling it.
Here's how: First, double-click the My Computer icon. Next, right-click on
the C: Drive, then select Properties. Uncheck "Allow Indexing Service to
index this disk for fast file searching." Next, apply changes to "C:
subfolders and files," and click OK. If a warning or error message appears
(such as "Access is denied"), click the Ignore All button.
5.) Update the PC's video and motherboard chipset drivers. Also, update
and configure the BIOS.
6.) Empty the Windows Prefetch folder every three months or so. Windows XP
can "prefetch" portions of data and applications that are used frequently.
This makes processes appear to load faster when called upon by the user.
That's fine. But over time, the prefetch folder may become overloaded with
references to files and applications no longer in use. When that happens,
Windows XP is wasting time, and slowing system performance, by pre-loading
them. Nothing critical is in this folder, and the entire contents are safe
to delete.
7.) Once a month, run a disk cleanup. Here's how: Double-click the My
Computer icon. Then right-click on the C: drive and select Properties.
Click the Disk Cleanup button -- it's just to the right of the Capacity
pie graph -- and delete all temporary files.
8.) In your Device Manager, double-click on the IDE ATA/ATAPI Controllers
device, and ensure that DMA is enabled for each drive you have connected
to the Primary and Secondary controller. Do this by double-clicking on
Primary IDE Channel. Then click the Advanced Settings tab. Ensure the
Transfer Mode is set to "DMA if available" for both Device 0 and Device 1.
Then repeat this process with the Secondary IDE Channel.
9.) Upgrade the cabling. As hard-drive technology improves, the cabling
requirements to achieve these performance boosts have become more
stringent. Be sure to use 80-wire Ultra-133 cables on all of your IDE
devices with the connectors properly assigned to the matching
Master/Slave/Motherboard sockets. A single device must be at the end of
the cable; connecting a single drive to the middle connector on a ribbon
cable will cause signaling problems. With Ultra DMA hard drives, these
signaling problems will prevent the drive from performing at its maximum
potential. Also, because these cables inherently support "cable select,"
the location of each drive on the cable is important. For these reasons,
the cable is designed so drive positioning is explicitly clear.
10.) Remove all spyware from the computer. Use free programs such as
AdAware by Lavasoft or SpyBot Search & Destroy. Once these programs are
installed, be sure to check for and download any updates before starting
your search. Anything either program finds can be safely removed. Any free
software that requires spyware to run will no longer function once the
spyware portion has been removed; if you really wants the program even
though it contains spyware, simply reinstall it.
11.) Remove any unnecessary programs and/or items from Windows Startup
routine using the MSCONFIG utility. Here's how: First, click Start, click
Run, type MSCONFIG, and click OK. Click the StartUp tab, then uncheck any
items you don't want to start when Windows starts. Unsure what some items
are? Visit the WinTasks Process Library. It contains known system
processes, applications, as well as spyware references and explanations.
Or quickly identify them by searching for the filenames using Google or
another Web search engine.
12.) Remove any unnecessary or unused programs from the Add/Remove
Programs section of the Control Panel.
13.) Turn off any and all unnecessary animations, and disable active
desktop. In fact, for optimal performance, turn off all animations.
Windows XP offers many different settings in this area. Here's how to do
it: First click on the System icon in the Control Panel. Next, click on
the Advanced tab. Select the Settings button located under Performance.
Feel free to play around with the options offered here, as nothing you can
change will alter the reliability of the computer -- only its
responsiveness.
14.) If you are an advanced user who is comfortable editing their
registry, try some of the performance registry tweaks offered at Tweak XP.
15.) Visit Microsoft's Windows update site regularly, and download all
updates labeled Critical. Download any optional updates at your
discretion.
16.) Update anti-virus software on a weekly, even daily, basis. Have only
one anti-virus software package installed. Mixing anti-virus software is a
sure way to spell disaster for performance and reliability.
17.) Have fewer than 500 type fonts installed on your computer. The more
fonts you have, the slower the system will become. While Windows XP
handles fonts much more efficiently than did the previous versions of
Windows, too many fonts -- that is, anything over 500 -- will noticeably
tax the system.
18.) Do not partition the hard drive. Windows XP's NTFS file system runs
more efficiently on one large partition. The data is no safer on a
separate partition, and a reformat is never necessary to reinstall an
operating system. The same excuses people offer for using partitions apply
to using a folder instead. For example, instead of putting all your data
on the D: drive, put it in a folder called "D drive." You'll achieve the
same organizational benefits that a separate partition offers, but without
the degradation in system performance. Also, your free space won't be
limited by the size of the partition; instead, it will be limited by the
size of the entire hard drive. This means you won't need to resize any
partitions, ever. That task can be time-consuming and also can result in
lost data.
19.) Check the system's RAM to ensure it is operating properly. I
recommend using a free program called MemTest86. The download will make a
bootable CD or diskette (your choice), which will run 10 extensive tests
on the PC's memory automatically after you boot to the disk you created.
Allow all tests to run until at least three passes of the 10 tests are
completed. If the program encounters any errors, turn off and unplug the
computer, remove a stick of memory (assuming you have more than one), and
run the test again. Remember, bad memory cannot be repaired, but only
replaced.
20.) If the PC has a CD or DVD recorder, check the drive manufacturer's
Web site for updated firmware. In some cases you'll be able to upgrade the
recorder to a faster speed. Best of all, it's free.
21.) Disable unnecessary services. Windows XP loads a lot of services that
you do not need. To determine which services you can disable, visit the
Black Viper site for Windows XP configurations.
22.) If you're sick of a single Windows Explorer window crashing and then
taking the rest of your OS down with it, then follow this tip: open My
Computer, click on Tools, then Folder Options. Now click on the View tab.
Scroll down to "Launch folder windows in a separate process," and enable
this option. You'll have to reboot your machine for this option to take
effect.
23.) At least once a year, open the computer's cases and blow out all the
dust and debris. While you're in there, check that all the fans are
turning properly. Also inspect the motherboard capacitors for bulging or
leaks.
Following any of these suggestions should result in noticeable
improvements to the performance and reliability of your computer(s).
73 from Geoff, G7SRI @ GB7NND.#23.GBR.EU
Message timed: 16:41 on 20-Mar-2009
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2 rules to success in life. 1. Don't tell people everything you know
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