Speed up start menu searches
Right-click the ‘Start’
button and select ‘Properties’. Click ‘Customize’, scroll down the list of
available options and select ‘Search without public folders’ under ‘Search
other files and libraries’. Click ‘OK’ and results should appear much quicker
than before, as there are far less places to search. Public folders are rarely
used by most people, so axing them in search is a cost-free speed up trick.
Load the websites more
quickly
By changing your DNS
servers to OpenDNS, you’re able to browse the internet more quickly and safely.
Visit http://www.opendns.cpm/start to sign up for a free basic plan.
Scale back visual effects
If you don’t have a lot of
memory installed (1GB in Windows 7 or Windows Vista, or 256MB in Windows XP),
click ‘Start’, right-click ‘Computer’ or ‘My Computer’ and select ‘Properties’.
Select ‘Advanced system settings’ (Advanced tab in Windows XP) and click
‘Settings’ under Performance. Select ‘Adjust for best performance’ and click
‘OK’ to give yourself a speed boost.
Speed up your drives
If you’re not afraid of
data loss, press [Windows] and [R], type devmgmt.msc in the box that
appears and press [Return] to open Device Manager, Expand Disk Drives,
double-click each hard drive or USB drive in turn and switch to the ‘Policies’
tab/ select the option for best performance, but make a note of the warnings
before clicking ‘OK’. If you’re not backing up your system, then avoid this
tip, as it dramatically increases the likelihood of a disc failure, which can
be catastrophic.
Give your PC a helping hand
If you have spare USB
flash drive, you may be able to use it to give your PC a small boost. Plug the
drive in and – if prompted – choose ‘Speed up my system’. Otherwise, click
‘Start > Computer’, right-click your flash drive and choose ‘Properties’,
then choose ‘Use this device to enable ReadyBoost’.
Make your PC as good as new
Get that shop-fresh
feeling back by reinstalling Windows, using the disc that came with your PC.
When you’re done, go to Start > Search, type Back up and Restore and
set a restore point, so you can roll back to this clean setup in the future,
bypassing the installation process.
Manage your fonts
Over time, the number of
fonts installed on your PC swells and each one uses up precious system
resources. Use a program such as AMP Font Viewer (on the cover disc) to remove
those fonts you never use. Windows Vista and Windows 7 users should right-click
the program shortcut, choose ‘Properties > Compatibility tab’ and tick ‘Run
this program as an administrator’ for it to run properly.
Defrag on a schedule
Choose ‘Settings >
Program Settings > Schedule’ to have your drive defragged regularly without
having to remember it each time. We suggest no more than weekly.
Defrag in the background
Alternatively, choose
‘View > Auto Defragmentation’ to have Disk Defrag defragment your drive in
the background when necessary, preventing fragmentation building up in the
first place.
Minimise disruption
If you find that the
defragging process is interfering with your other work and slowing down your PC
when you’re trying to get things done, choose ‘Settings > Defrag Priority
> Low Priority’. Your drives take longer to defrag, but you should find your
other programs perform better in the meantime.
Tweak library settings
Edit an existing Library
or create a new one by clicking ‘Start > Computer’ followed by ‘Libraries’
in the Navigation pane. Click ‘New Library’ or right-click an existing Library
and choose ‘properties’ to include new folders in the library or reo=move
existing ones.
Set up your favourite
folders
If you want even quicker
access to specific folders – again from any folder window or when choosing Open
or Save in a program – just browse to the drive or directory containing your
target folder, then click and drag it into place on the Navigation pane under
Favorites.
Use the ‘send to’ folder
The Send To Folder contains
a number of useful shortcuts available to any file or folder, simply by
right-clicking them and choosing ‘Send To’. You can open a file in a specific
program, compress it into a zipped folder in order to save space and create
desktop shortcuts. And that’s just for starters.
Invert selection
If you need to select a
large group of non-consecutive files within a folder, it’s quicker to select
the files you don’t need before choosing ‘Edit > Invert Selection’. If you
can’t find this at first, don’t worry – the Edit menu is hidden by default in
Windows 7 and Windows Vista. Choose ‘Organize > Folder and Search Options
> View tab’, then tick ‘Always show menus’ and click ‘OK’ to show it.
Speed up internet explorer
If Internet Explorer takes
an age to open, select ‘Tools > Internet Options > Programs tab’. Click
on ‘Manage add-ons’ and view the Load Times for each add-on (you may need to
scroll to the right to view this). Add-ons cause Internet Explorer to run more
slowly, so have a go at disabling sluggish add-ons unless they’re important,
such as those linked to your security program.
Add-ons cause IE to run slower, so disable them.
This isn’t a problem
that’s confined to Internet Explorer. Firefox is a browser whose unique style
point is its array of add-ons. If you’ve added applets that you’re not using,
slash them and enjoy the feeling of a more responsive browser.
