Set Visual Effects to: best performance
This may make some elements of Windows look a little less attractive, but won’t affect photos or videos you watch. Make the change from the Performance and Maintenance link in the Control Panel.
Detailed steps
1. Click the Start button and choose Control Panel. The “Pick a category” screen will appear.
Note: If the screen doesn’t say “Pick a category,” then click the Switch to Category View link on the left of the screen.
2. Click Performance and Maintenance.
3. Click Adjust visual effects. The Performance Options screen will open.
4. Choose Adjust for best performance, then click OK.
Delete Cookies and Temporary Internet Files
This will make Web sites “forget” you (your username, for example), and they may load a little slower. (Once you visit them again, they’ll start to “remember” you from that point on.) Make this change from the Network and Internet Connections link in your Control Panel.
Detailed steps
1. Click the Start button and choose Control Panel. The “Pick a category” screen will appear.
Note: If the screen doesn’t say “Pick a category,” then click the Switch to Category View link on the left of the screen.
2. Click Network and Internet Connections.
3. Choose Internet Options. The Internet Properties screen will open.
4. From the General tab, in the Browsing history section, click the Delete button. The Delete Browsing History screen will open.
5. Click Delete files, then confirm that you want to do so. The files will be deleted.
6. Click Delete cookies, then confirm that you want to do so. The cookies will be deleted.
7. Click the Close button to close the screen.
Run Disk Cleanup
Disk Cleanup helps you get rid of old or unused files hanging around on your hard disk. You can run Disk Cleanup from the System Tools folder inside the Accessories folder.
Detailed steps
1. Click the Start button, then choose: All Programs, then Accessories, then System Tools, then Disk Cleanup. Disk Cleanup will open and begin to assess your hard disk.
2. Click items in the list for more information about it.
3. Once you’ve decided which items you want to delete, put a check in those boxes, then click OK.
4. Confirm that you want to delete those files by clicking Yes.
Defragment Your Hard Disk
This will rearrange the data on your hard disk to make it easier for the computer to access it quickly. (But don’t worry, all your files and folders will be just where you left them. This rearranging goes on behind the scenes.) You can make this change from the Performance and Maintenance link in the Control Panel.
NOTE: This can take a very long time.
Detailed steps
1. Click the Start button and choose Control Panel. The “Pick a category” screen will appear.
Note: If the screen doesn’t say “Pick a category,” then click the Switch to Category View link on the left of the screen.
2. Click Performance and Maintenance.
3. Click Rearrange items on your hard disk to make programs run faster. Disk Defragmenter will open.
4. Choose either Analyze or Defragment:
• Analyze will determine how fragmented your disk is. (The more it’s fragmented, the more benefit you’ll receive by defragmenting it.)
• Defragment will defragment your hard disk.
5. Once you’ve chosen, Disk Defragmenter will begin. You can stop or pause the process at any time by clicking the appropriate button.
Scan for Spyware and Viruses
Use your spyware and virus protection software to scan your hard disk for malicious or unwanted programs. If you don’t have any protection software, PeoplePC offers some options. Click here to open a Web page with details.
NOTE: If you've already subscribed to this service, it'll appear in the "Current Service" section at the bottom of the page. You can then download the software by clicking its link in the "Software Downloads" section on the front page of My Account.
Remove Unwanted Programs
Excess data on your hard disk can slow it down. If you have programs that you never use, you might speed up your system by removing them. You can do this from the Control Panel’s Add or Remove Programs tool.
Detailed steps
1. Click the Start button and choose Control Panel.
2. Choose Add or Remove Programs.
3. Click the program that you’re ready to remove, then click the Remove (or Change/Remove) button.
4. Follow the onscreen instructions to remove the program.
Clean Up the Windows Registry
If you have a program to help you clean the registry, you might try doing so to boost performance. Without such a program, we don’t recommend that you try it unless you’re an advanced user. You can find more information in your Windows help.
NOTE: PeoplePC Fine-Tune can do this expert step and MORE to help optimize your PC. Click here to try it for 30 days FREE! If you've already subscribed to this service, it'll appear in the "Current Service" section at the bottom of the page. You can then download the software by clicking its link in the "Software Downloads" section on the front page of My Account.
Stop Certain Programs from Automatically Starting
You can limit how many (and which) programs start when Windows starts. We recommend that you use a program to help you with this, unless you’re an advanced user. You can find more information in your Windows help.
NOTE: PeoplePC Fine-Tune can do this expert step and MORE to help optimize your PC. Click here to try it for 30 days FREE! If you've already subscribed to this service, it'll appear in the "Current Service" section at the bottom of the page. You can then download the software by clicking its link in the "Software Downloads" section on the front page of My Account.
Scan Your Hard Disk for Errors
You can have your computer find and repair errors throughout the hard disk. Do this from the properties menu of the hard disk you want to repair.
NOTE: All files have to be closed before the scan can be completed. Make sure that you’re not doing anything else with your computer when you run this scan.
Detailed steps
1. Click the Start button, then choose My Computer. The My Computer screen will open.
2. In the Hard Disk Drives section, right-click on the hard disk you want to check for errors (the most common is “Local Disk” or just “C”). Then choose Properties. The Properties screen for the hard disk will appear.
3. Click the Tools tab.
4. Click the Check Now button. The Check Disk screen will appear.
5. Check the box called Scan for and attempt recovery of bad sectors, then click Start.
Add RAM to Your PC
Adding RAM (also called Memory) to your PC almost always gives a boost to performance. You can buy RAM at any reputable computer store, and we recommend that you have a professional install it. That same professional (or your computer’s manufacturer) can help you decide how much RAM you need.
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Use PeoplePC Accelerated and Keep it Up-to-Date
PeoplePC Accelerated helps you surf up to 5 times faster. Click here to open a Web page with details.
NOTE: If you've already subscribed to this service, it'll appear in the "Current Service" section at the bottom of the page. You can then download the software by clicking its link in the "Software Downloads" section on the front page of My Account.
Load a Few Pages at a Time, Then Grab Some Coffee
Open several browser pages (or tabs) at once, then type in the Web address for each one right away. While they’re loading, step away for a while and return when they’re all there. That way, you’re not waiting for each new page after you’ve finished with the previous one.
To open a new page while one is already open: Choose File, then New Window (or New Tab).
Adjust the Amount of Disk Space for Your Temporary Internet Files
The more space you allow for temporary Internet files, the more of a Web page your computer can save. That means less to download the next time you visit that page. If you have plenty of disk space, this can help speed up the Web sites you visit frequently.
Detailed steps
1. Click the Start button and choose Control Panel. The “Pick a category” screen will appear.
Note: If the screen doesn’t say “Pick a category,” then click the Switch to Category View link on the left of the screen.
2. Click Network and Internet Connections.
3. Choose Internet Options. The Internet Properties screen will open.
4. In the Browsing history section, click the Settings button.
5. In the Temporary Internet Files section, use the arrows to change the amount of disk space used to store Temporary Internet files.
6. Click OK to save the change.
Shrink Large Files before Emailing Them
There are several programs out there to help compress files to a smaller size. Check out www.download.com to find one that you like.
Sign Up for Newsletters Instead of Visiting Web Pages
Lots of Web sites allow you to sign up for a newsletter, or even an “RSS” feed, of their activities. Rather than waiting for a Web page to load, you can just check your email or newsreader.
Use PeoplePC Web Mail
PeoplePC Web Mail is free and fast. And you don’t have to wait for a big attachment to download before viewing the rest of your email. Sign in to Web Mail in a new window at: webmail.peoplepc.com
In Web Mail, save pictures to your computer before viewing
When you get a picture as an attachment in Web Mail, rather than viewing it in your Web Browser, click it and choose Save. That downloads the image to your computer and you can view it from there.
Use a Faster Web Browser
Many people find that Web browsers like "Chrome", “Opera” and “Firefox” surf a little faster than Internet Explorer. You can download these browsers for free from their Web sites: www.google.com/chrome, www.opera.com and www.mozilla.com.
Keep Your Modem Up-to-Date
If you use a dial-up modem, check to make sure that it’s a “V.92” Modem, rather than the older V.90. You can find this information in the Phone and modem option of your Control Panel.
Detailed steps
1. Click the Start button and choose Control Panel. The “Pick a category” screen will appear.
Note: If the screen doesn’t say “Pick a category,” then click the Switch to Category View link on the left of the screen.
2. Click the Printers and Other Hardware link.
3. Click the Phone and Modem Options link.
4. Click the Modems tab to see your installed modems.
5. Make sure that the modem has v.92 in the title (not v.90 or anything lower than 92).
6. If not, you should replace your modem.
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