Let’s face it; anyone who owns a computer ends up becoming annoyed and frustrated at times, especially when the computer slows down to a snail’s pace. While this can sometimes be painfully obvious whenever you try to load a program, it can also mean that your computer takes forever to boot up.

Even though there are several reasons for a computer slowing down, a slow computer is something that millions of people around the world are faced with almost daily. The good news is however, even though there is no magical quick-fix solution, there are certain things you can do, which in many cases will help to speed up your machine.

#1. Reboot your computer

You’d be amazed at just how many people never bother rebooting their computers, considering that this in itself is one of the biggest culprits in terms of slowing down a computer. After all, so many people now use 24 hour Internet access, with their computers being a part of their daily life, but what they don’t realize is, all computers need to be rebooted frequently in order for them to function as they should.

You need to bear in mind that there are several programs which don’t shut down completely even when you close them. Furthermore, many software programs tend to have memory leakage, and over a period of time this can have an adverse effect on your computer’s available memory. Obviously, when your computer is short on available memory it inevitably begins slowing down until it reaches a snail’s pace. By rebooting your computer you’ll be allowing it to reset its memory and you’d be surprised how this alone can result in your computer speeding up.

#2. Memory upgrade

The amount of available memory has a direct impact on the speed of your computer. At the very least you should have 512 MB RAM, and that if you’re running one of the earlier versions of Microsoft Windows such as XP. On the other hand if you’re using the new Windows 7 operating platform then you’ll need at least 1GB of RAM. In fact, even though Windows Vista is an earlier system, it requires a whopping 1.5GB. Ideally you should have at least 2GB of available memory on your computer if you have a 64-bit system, or if you enjoy playing games.

#3. Defragmenting the hard drive

A fragmented hard drive is an inefficient hard drive. If you havent run your computers built-in defragmentation tool yet, you are probably losing out on a lot of speed that you could be enjoying. When your files are heavily fragmented, it takes your computer more energy to open those files, and subsequently other files, and it just clutters up your whole computing experience.

Bear in mind that Microsoft has included a defragmenting tool with all the operating systems for a very good reason, in that it should be used at least once every 30 days in order to ensure that your hard drive does not become overly fragmented. If you have not used in the tool for an extended period of time, you’ll notice to a substantial difference in speed once you do.

#4. Registry cleaners

The windows registry inevitably becomes full of clutter and this is why it is necessary to run a registry cleaner from time to time. In simple terms, the registry is virtually like the brains of a computer, and whenever you choose to install or uninstall a program, data is either added or removed respectively. Unfortunately however, very few programs uninstall as they should, and as a result pockets of data remain left behind. Because this data then has no use, it simply occupies available space, not to mention the fact that it can cause serious conflicts between different programs and different drivers. In fact, a cluttered registry can cause your computer to slow down to a snail’s pace. As a result, it is highly recommended that you use a registry cleaner frequently if you want your computer to continue operating at its best.

In the vast majority of cases the speed of a computer can be improved simply by applying the tips which have been mentioned above. Even though so many people experience their computer slowing down, that doesn’t mean it’s any easier to cope with, particularly if it gets to the stage where the computer will need to go in for repairs. Providing you put the above mentioned tips to use, you’ll at least be able to enjoy having an efficient computer rather than becoming frustrated with a sluggish machine.

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