One thing that Redking has alluded to, it is IMPERITIVE to make sure you have up-to-date operating system and application software on your computer. Because all of the software is so complex in interacting with each other, problems and conflicts are often quickly resolved and patches posted on the mfr's websites.
For Windows updates, which generally occur every few weeks, go to: www.windowsupdate.com
At a minimum, download all of the critical updates. I would also recommend several of the Recommended Updates, especially Media Player-related and DirectX. Most machines do not need the .Net upgrade. Some of these are huge and unwieldy on dial-up connections, so if you're using those. plan on doing them overnight.
Media Player, Real Player and Quicktime have had notorious battles trying to sabotage each other's installations, so make sure you keep each of those up to date. Conflict problems seem resolved in the most recent versions. Each will try to claim all file formats to default to its player, but you can manage that through the Preferences.
Sometimes sluggish performance is caused by spyware programs that are often installed unbeknownst to you. Redking made a good list of these and I reiterate to get rid of these. Gator and Comet Cursor are the worst offenders.
There are several free programs that can help you protect against spyware and viruses as good or BETTER than the pay software like Norton or McAfee. I like AVG from www.grisoft.com for virus protection and Ad-aware from www.lavasoftusa.com for spyware. Make sure you get the updates for these too about once a month to protect against new threats.
Lastly, it is hard to overestimate to positive effect of more RAM and a bigger hard drive. If either is insufficient, Windows compensates by moving stuff back and forth to disk increasingly often, which slows down performance. If you have a relatively new computer (< 2 yrs old), an upgrade to at least 256 mb is a must and fairly cheap. The computer mfr's website should have detail for exactly what type of memory your machine takes and how to do a plug-n-play install.
These simple maintanence steps will solve 95% of all performance problems.
For Windows updates, which generally occur every few weeks, go to: www.windowsupdate.com
At a minimum, download all of the critical updates. I would also recommend several of the Recommended Updates, especially Media Player-related and DirectX. Most machines do not need the .Net upgrade. Some of these are huge and unwieldy on dial-up connections, so if you're using those. plan on doing them overnight.
Media Player, Real Player and Quicktime have had notorious battles trying to sabotage each other's installations, so make sure you keep each of those up to date. Conflict problems seem resolved in the most recent versions. Each will try to claim all file formats to default to its player, but you can manage that through the Preferences.
Sometimes sluggish performance is caused by spyware programs that are often installed unbeknownst to you. Redking made a good list of these and I reiterate to get rid of these. Gator and Comet Cursor are the worst offenders.
There are several free programs that can help you protect against spyware and viruses as good or BETTER than the pay software like Norton or McAfee. I like AVG from www.grisoft.com for virus protection and Ad-aware from www.lavasoftusa.com for spyware. Make sure you get the updates for these too about once a month to protect against new threats.
Lastly, it is hard to overestimate to positive effect of more RAM and a bigger hard drive. If either is insufficient, Windows compensates by moving stuff back and forth to disk increasingly often, which slows down performance. If you have a relatively new computer (< 2 yrs old), an upgrade to at least 256 mb is a must and fairly cheap. The computer mfr's website should have detail for exactly what type of memory your machine takes and how to do a plug-n-play install.
These simple maintanence steps will solve 95% of all performance problems.
:lol:
