Fast Computer, Fast Work.

So, your computer is a magic of automation, but what if it’s running so slow all the tips in the world won’t help you? If your computer is relatively new (made in the last five years), it really shouldn’t struggle to open common programs, to load web searches, and to do word processing. If it does struggle at those tasks, here are a few things you can do:

Virus Check:

Viruses come in all shapes and sizes, but many of them slow your computer down significantly. alternativeto.net has a decent list of antivirus software, both free and paid. A few free for home use solutions that have ranked well from 2010-2012 are: Microsoft Security Essentials, Avast Antivirus Essentials, and AVG.

Defrag:

Many older computers and file systems don’t do a great job of keeping things straight on the hard drive. Hard drives are linear - they are disks across which a “head” moves. Defragmentation makes files that are part of the same folder “continuous” on the hard disk, so they are right next to each other.

Windows users can defragment their computer’s hard disks using the “tools” tab of the “properties” menu for your hard drive (usually accessed through My Computer)

Error Check:

Errors can happen over time on your hard disks (they are, after all, detailed, magnetic, spinning disks.) An error check will find and try to repair these errors. Windows users can run an error check from the “tools” tab of the “properties” menu for your hard drive (Usually accessed through My Computer)

Choose a good browser:

Some browsers are better than others - I recommend Firefox, Chrome, or Opera. I don’t recommend Internet Explorer, and that’s all we’ll say about that. Make sure your browser is up to date, it can have an impact on your computer’s security.

To see if your computer is reading the web properly, you can go to acidtests.org