Speed Up Your Computer - by Len Pulchin

Define the Problem

•         Too many icons in your system tray

•         Open programs draining PC’s resources

–        Press CTRL +ALT +Delete, then

–        Choose the Process tab to see what is running

AOL 9.0

•         Disable AOL and it’s associated programs from opening until needed

•         Right-click the AOL System Tray icon, select AOL 9.0 & choose Start-up Settings.  Then deselect the Enable Fast Start option.  Click Save & close AOL

•         Reboot your computer.

QuickTime

•         Open Windows’ Control Panel from the Start button

•         Open its Control Panel icon

•         Choose the Advanced tab

•         Find the Tray Icon section

•         Deselect the Install QuickTime Icon

•         Click OK

Msconfig to the Rescue

•         Click the Start button

•         Choose Run

•         Type msconfig in the open field & click OK

•         Choose the Startup tab

•         Review the list of each startup item

•         Deselect any you know are not needed

•         Restart your computer

What’s a Ctfmon or a Ccapp?

•         Many of the names of startup items are meaningless to us

•         The following slides lists some web sites you can use to identify them and determine which you can disable

Startup Application Web Sites

•         Sysinfo.org/startuplist.php

•         www.windowsstartup.com/wso

•         www.processlibrary.com

•         www.answersthatwork.com/Tasklistpages/tasklist.htm
www.windowsstartup.com/startupinspector.php

•         www.mlin.net/StartupCPL.shtml

•         nirsoft.net/utils/strun.html

•         StartUpMonitor checks if new items pop up

•         www.mlin.net/startupMonitor.shtml

Automatic Startup Of Services

•         Services are programs that run in the background as you use your computer

•         Some are required to insure a smooth operation

•         Some are not required for your needs

Determine the Services You Have

•         Click Start

•         Click Run

•         Type “services msc”

•         Click OK

Startup Types

•         Automatic

–        Service starts automatically

•         Manual

–        Available, but you must start it

•         Disabled

–        In your computer, but not available

Possible Unneeded Services

•         Computer Browser: Disable if you don’t use Microsoft networking

•         Error Reporting Service: Disable if you don’t want to report errors

•         Fast User Switching Capability:  Lets you switch to a different XP User by pressing Windows-L.  Disable if you don’t use

Possible Unneeded Services

•         Help And Support: You can change to start manually

•         HTTP SSL:  Only needed if you use your computer as a personal web server

•         Indexing Service: OK to start manually

•         Messenger: If your computer is not networked, disable

•         Network Location Awareness: This service works with PCs sharing an Internet connection. It is safe to start manually

•         Server: Disable unless you share files or printers with other networked computers

•         Task Scheduler: If you do not use the Scheduled Tasks feature, disable

•         Windows Image Acquisition: If your PC doesn’t connect to a scanner or camera, disable

•         Wireless Zero Configuration: This service provides wireless networking support. If your PC does not use wireless service, disable

How To Change Services

•         Right click the desired service in the Services list and click Properties

•         In the Startup Type drop-down menu, you can select Automatic, Manual or Disable

•         Click OK to save your changes

•         Restart your computer

Remove Unused Soft/Hardware

•         If your PC has software or hardware not used, remove them to free up resources

•         To remove click Start - Control Panel – Add Or Remove Programs

•         Once you locate a program you no longer use, select it and click the Change/Remove button

•         Follow on-screen instructions to remove

Remove Unneeded Desktop Icons

•         If you don’t use a particular shortcut icon, select it and drag it to the Recycle Bin

•         Alternately you can right-click it and click Delete, then click OK

Run Disk Cleanup

•         Select Start – All Programs – Accessories – System Tools - Disk Cleanup

•         It will take a couple of minutes to load

•         Make sure all Temporary files are checked as well as the Recycle Bin

•         Click Yes

Run Disk Defragmentor

•         Select Start – All Programs – Accessories – System Tools – Disk Defragmentor

•         Click on Defrag

•         If you haven’t done this for a long time it could take hours to complete

•         When complete you will get a message asking if you want a report. Just X it out

Remove Startup Sounds

•         To remove the sounds that play when the computer starts, click Start – Control Panel –Sounds, Speech And Audio Devices 

•         Select the Sounds tab.  In the Program Events box, Change Start Windows and Windows Logon to None