Entries from April 2008 ↓

Internet Explorer is the web browser that is included in Windows XP and Vista. For most people this is their only exposure to web browser software. However there are alternatives which offer better security and improved performance.

Firefox is one such browser. Firefox is the awarded winning free web browser built from the foundations of Netscape. The browser source code was release freely a number of years ago and has a huge following.

You can download Firefox from the Mozilla website or even better, install Firefox with the Google tool bar. It will block pop-up ads.

Here are 10 things you can do to begin optimizing your system today. These are in no particular order but by doing just some of these you’ll begin to see a noticeable improvement in system performance. Click through the links to go to more in depth information on each item.

Each tip will has a brief how-to. If you follow-the links you will be taken to a more in-depth discussion of each topic.

1. Defragment your hard drive.

Windows has built in disk defrag software. Go to the Control Panel->Administration Tools->Computer Management applet. When the applet opens look for the Disk Defragment option. Click it, select which disk you want to defragment and then press the Defragment Button.

2. Cleanup your Start menu

If your Windows Start Menu has too many top level program folders than it will take longer for Windows to draw the Start Menu. This results in a rather unresponsive Start Menu. Group your software and shortcuts into a better hierarchy and your Start Menu will open more quickly.

3. Uninstall old applications

Uninstalling old applications will free up disk space, shrink the registry, and possibly stop unused start up programs and services. If you haven’t used certain software in a while, remove them.

4. Turn off unused services
5. Disable your themes

Right click on your Desktop and select Properties from your menu. On the Themes tab, change your theme to Windows classic.

6. Install Firefox

Firefox is gaining market share each day. This is because it’s a faster browser and offers better security over Internet explorer. If you install it through the bundled download from Google, you also get a great pop-up blocker for free.

7. Clean your registry

A clean registry goes a long way to improving performance but leave this to the experts. Get a good registry cleaner tool to do the job.

8. Keep your drivers up to date
9. Buy more RAM

RAM is cheap these days. Doubling the size of your RAM is a great way to improve your disk performance. Check New Egg or Pricewatch for great prices on RAM.

10. Move your swap file
11. Bonus Clean-up your desktop.

I would suggest dumping all of your desktop items into a single folder that you can view when you need to. It will reduce eye clutter and minimize the work Windows needs to do to refresh your display.

I’ll probably re-publish this as the Top 20 things in a few months. Subscribe to our newsletter or RSS feed to keep yourself up to date.

If you have any suggestions on how to improve your Windows performance. Post them here.

Data is stored on your hard drive in chunks. For your hard drive to perform it’s best, these chunks should line up likes links in a chain. Adding and removing files to your hard disk breaks up these chunks into many small chains.

In order for your system to perform optimally, you should periodically run disk defagment software. This software will rearrange the files on your disk, eliminating the fragments.

Windows includes disk defragment software. It is built into the Computer Management snap-in. To access the snap-in perform the following:

1. Open the Control Panel (Start->Control Panel)
2. Double-Click the Administrative Tools folder
3. Double-Click the Computer Management snap-in

You should see a display something like this:

On the left hand side of the Window, select Disk Defragmenter. This will display a list of fixed drives with buttons for Analyze and Defragment. Select a drive and click Analyze.

As you can see, I have some fragmented files. When the analysis is finished, the software will recommend the next step. In this case I’ll have to run Defragment. Click the Defragment button and go get something to eat. Depending on how fragmented your drive is, this could run for a few hours.

For even better performance, invest in a commerical defragmenter like Diskkeeper, it offers enhanced functionality.

Windows XP added updated the graphical interface over earlier Windows versions. If you have a fast machine, it’s great eye candy. It does however, slow things down if you are running a lot of graphic intensive applications or remote desktop. It’s easy to disable the graphics an revert back to the classic Windows look.

There are two ways to disable themes. Through the Display applet or by disabling the Themes service.

To disable the theme via the Display applet.

1. Right click on the desktop and select Properties
2. Select Windows Classic from the Theme dropdown list
3. Click the Ok button

The alternative is to completely turn off the theming engine, this may provided improved performance.

You can turn off your Windows XP themes by doing the following:

1. Open the Control Panel (Start->Control Panel)
2. Double click the Administrative Tools folder
3. Double click the Services applet

When the services applet opens, you will see a list of background programs that are currently installed on your machine. Scroll down the list until you see Themes. Click on Themes with your right mouse button and select Properties.

This opens up a windows which allows you to defined the startup mode of this service. Change Startup type to Disabled, and click the Stop button.

Your Window will change and you’ll notice that your fancy themes have disappeared.