How to speed up your computer

This site will do you right.

http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/registry.htm

but this will do you better

http://distrowatch.com/

thank you and also McAfee is crap it really hasn't helped me at all. Just use one of the recommended Virus Scanners so the dam thing doesn't take up a pomegranate load of space.

Virtual Memory
Virtual memory acts as extra RAM for your computer, used off your hard drive.
My Computer -> Control Panel -> Performance and Maintence -> System -> Advance -> Performance [Settings...] -> Advanced Tab -> Virtual Memory [Change]
http://i37.photobucket.com/albums/e7...ress/guide.jpg <- Image of the box

Depending on the free space of your HD, how much to set. Your computer will give you a recommended amount at the bottom of the box, which is what it most likely has allocated. If your computer has the HD space, double the recommended amount as your min, and multiply that amount by 1.5 to set the max amount. Once finished, press OK.

Also, remember... A clean desktop is a happy desktop. The less items on there, the faster it will be when you minimize and switch windows.

Windows manages Virtual memory for you automatically, so you dont need to manage it. However, it is best to acquire a continuous block, so you should set your virtual memory to its maximum capacity, otherwise, it offers little benefits managing your virtual memory manually.

If you're going to manage your computer's virtual memory, it is best to have multiple HDD, create a specific partition for it and finally relocate the cache stores on various apps.

However, this requires some understanding on HDD stroking and partitioning as well as concurrent data access on different HDDs. Also, it is wise to split your applications from your OS and cross mapping their caches store to the HDD.

As for deleting useless things, go to Start>Control Panel> Network+Internet Connections>Internet Options. Then go to where it says browsing history and click delete. It'll give you an option of deleting many things. I would say it's pretty much mandatory to delete the temporary internet files, cookies, and internet history. Everything else is optional. And even though this might be small, it can make the difference in Maple Story between lag and disconnect.

As for deleting useless things, go to Start>Control Panel> Network+Internet Connections>Internet Options. Then go to where it says browsing history and click delete. It'll give you an option of deleting many things. I would say it's pretty much mandatory to delete the temporary internet files, cookies, and internet history. Everything else is optional. And even though this might be small, it can make the difference in Maple Story between lag and disconnect.

Ccleaner basically does that.

As for deleting useless things, go to Start>Control Panel> Network+Internet Connections>Internet Options. Then go to where it says browsing history and click delete. It'll give you an option of deleting many things. I would say it's pretty much mandatory to delete the temporary internet files, cookies, and internet history. Everything else is optional. And even though this might be small, it can make the difference in Maple Story between lag and disconnect.

you know that this method doesnt really delete the files, right?

JKdefrag and learn how to let it run as your screensaver

My favorite defragger. Now known as MyDefrag as of Version 4. It has customizable scripts for better preferences (If you want to get into that stuff, that is).

And while not actual system speed increase, I've found TCP/IP Optimizer has let me squeeze some Kbps out of my connection to feel a bit faster.


Perhaps the original post could be divided up give a brief description of different sections (boot up, services, disk issues, etc.) and how they affect performance, with recommended downloads and useful links at the the bottom of each section. I also feel it should be mentioned in it that computers will reach a point where a piece of hardware will become the bottleneck point, and would require replacing it for best results.

 Example of what I mean

[General introduction what this thread is intended for]

System Boot
[Brief description]

• [Useful link]
  
• [Recommended download]
  

System Services
[Brief description]

• [Useful link]
  
• [Recommended download]
  

The Hard Drive
[Brief description]

• [Useful link]
  
• [Recommended download]
  

Et Cetera
[Brief description]

• [Useful link]
  
• [Recommended download]
  

__________
[Additional comments and references]

Since many people think that way, I think its worth mentioning that the sole existence of files on your hard drive will not slow your computer down (unless you have less than 1-2 GB left and theres not enough room to allocate virtual memory).

I'm running into a problem. Whenever I try to check for disk errors, it stops at Phase 2 and says "Windows was unable to complete the disk check". I followed the instructions on that link.

:f6:

I'm running into a problem. Whenever I try to check for disk errors, it stops at Phase 2 and says "Windows was unable to complete the disk check". I followed the instructions on that link.

:f6:

For automatically fixing file system errors runs Chkdsk by using the /f parameter. All files must be closed for this program to run. If the drive is currently in use, a message asks if you want to reschedule the disk checking for the next time you restart your computer.

Hey hey. I want to follow that advice:

 Spoiler

1. This is just a quick tip for those who want to Zakum but are afraid they're going to lag out. Right before Zakum, I suggest turning off your computer and giving it a few minutes before you reboot. That way, the RAM will clear itself and you won't have weird things hogging your memory. The next step is up open up Task Manager and kill the 'explorer.exe' task. At first, you might be a little freaked and want to kill me because your desktop disappears. But don't worry, you can fix that. Killing the explorer.exe task will make it so your CPU uses about 1% of its power. Very handy when you're scared of lag, and your computer is going to run like the wind. After your Zakum run, just fire up Task manager again by using the 'Ctrl+Alt+Del' combo in Windows XP or the 'Ctrl+Shift+Esc' combo in Vista. Select 'File'>'New Task' and type 'explorer.exe'.

But uhm, that means:

1. I restart comp-> I kill explorer.exe-> I run maple through task manager

Or

2. I restart comp-> I open up maple-> I kill explorer.exe

Will the 2nd option be as effective? If not, which way should I be doing it? Ya sorry F4. I'm noob at computers.

could i get someones opinion on the following programs please..

http://vista-anti-lag.software.informer.com/
http://www.iobit.com/gamebooster.html
http://www.tune-up.com/products/tuneup-utilities/?ab=3

game booster is the program i'm kinda "hmmm"ing over.. I just wanna know good, bad, or worth a try is all.

Hey hey. I want to follow that advice:

 Spoiler

But uhm, that means:

1. I restart comp-> I kill explorer.exe-> I run maple through task manager

Or

2. I restart comp-> I open up maple-> I kill explorer.exe

Will the 2nd option be as effective? If not, which way should I be doing it? Ya sorry F4. I'm noob at computers.

Both work.

I use the following tools for my clients and my home PCs and a few reviews on some of them I've had experience with. Most of these are free tools by the way.

Anti-Virus/Anti-malware/Firewall:

Microsoft Security Essentials - Free and has a low footprint to the memory. Works well and has daily updates. I haven't had any customers call me with complaints yet.
Avast! Free Home - Free and my normal inclusion with customized or restored PCs. Daily updates are a plus as well as being free and easy to register. Has a low footprint in the memory and has a Silent/Gaming mode to make updates quiet and less noticed when gaming. My top pick for Anti-Virus software.
Symantec EndPoint Protection - Not free but you can get a cheap copy off newegg.com for about 50 bucks or less. Normally this is sold in bulk packs of 5 or more. Has a low memory footprint and includes a Software Stateful Packet Firewall as well. Boot time scan is great for keeping the nasties off the system. Oddly this is the same as Norton Internet Security but without the memory hogging effects and flashy interface.

*Normally I recommend sticking to Windows Defender for anti-malware but some Anti-Virus software includes a malware scanner and active detection tools. Some will disable Windows Defender, others won't allowing for extra protection.
Spybot Search and Destroy - One of the best anti-malware tools I've used. Includes a few system tweaking tools, a registry cleaner, and an active scanner as well (if you install it). Has a tool to immunize the system to prevent malware from attaching to and infecting files. My top pick for malware removal and prevention.
MalwareBytes - Free if you need a standalone scanner, but the active scanner and website blocking tool is not free. Still good for finding deeply buried malware in a system.
SuperAntiSpyware - Corny name but great at finding malware. Free as a standalone scanner but not free for it's advanced tools.

*Normally I suggest people use the built-in Windows Firewall not only to save money, but keep the excess software off the system unless absolutely needed. Plus if you have a Router you should use it as a Hardware Firewall anyway.
Agnitum Free Firewall - I only recommend this Firewall as an additional tool to keep your PC safe and only if you're anti-virus did not include one already.

PC Tuning Tools:

CCleaner - One of the best tools I have used for cleaning up a PC. Great for cleaning the Registry, and includes some optimization tools as well. Also includes variated levels of file overwriting for security.
Steven Gould's CleanUp! - *For XP Only* Quick and dirty but it can find all sorts of garbage files to toss out. Do not use this on Vista/7.
Defraggler - From the same makers of CCleaner. It's not the best, but it does a lot better than the DeFrag tool included with Windows.

Misc:

Recuva - One of the best file recovery tools I've used. It's free and does deep scanning for lost and deleted data. Great for PC techs needign to recover deleted or lost files.

*Also word to the wise... You see a lot of these so-called one click fix products advertised on TV at times such as MyCleanPC, FinallyFast, and StopSign. As a licensed PC technician, I recommend avoiding these at all costs as most of these tools do little more than scan a computer and generate false positives and false reports of problems, and are little more than scams promoting scare-ware and fake anti-virus products that are loaded with malware. Great PC tools do not need to be advertised on TV.