As technology advances, so do our expectations for our computer performance.  The average life a computer is only three to four years.  What can we do to maximize the speed of our computer as it ages with the speed of these advances?  The following is a troubleshooting checklist:

¨ Run disk cleanup and defragment the drive.  The disk defragmenter is located on PC's under the Control Panel.  Click on Administrative Tools then Computer Management.  The disk defragmenter is under the Storage option.  Disk cleanup can be added as a Scheduled Task.  Scheduled Tasks are located also under the Control Panel.

¨ Run a full anti-virus and anti-spyware scan.  The computer picks up changing types of viruses through the Internet.  It is vital to the computer's performance to maintain an updated anti-virus and anti-spyware scan software on the computer that serves as it's immune system.  Just like human viruses, computer viruses mutate and change to penetrate computer systems.  These viruses can cause a range of damages from simply clogging up the computer to causing a complete crash of the computer's hard drive.  For this reason, it is encouraged to backup the computer frequently for easy restoration and to minimize the loss of data.

¨ Delete old network connections.  To find out if the computer is attempting to connect to shared hard drives that may no longer exist, go to the Windows Explorer.  Click and delete on any network shares that are no longer actively used.  Also check under System Tools under Accessories in the Start menu by clicking on "Disconnect Network Drive."  This will certainly not apply if the computer has never been connected to a shared network.

¨ Stop auto-starting programs.  New computers or newly loaded programs may attempt to start up when the computer starts up.  Adobe Reader is notorious for starting up when the computer starts.  To stop these auto-start programs, click on the Start menu then Run and type "msconfig" at the prompt.  Click on the Startup tab and turn off any unnecessary programs that show will load when the PC starts.  It is important to be careful not to disable Windows system components.

¨ Reinstall Windows.  It is sometimes helpful to refresh the computer by starting over.  Be sure to backup the computer prior to starting the process of reinstallation.  It is time consuming, but easy with the recovery software that should have come with the computer.  This process can help remove unnecessary and hard to find files that are taking up room.

¨ Remove temporary Internet files.  Go to Internet Options either under the Tools button on your Internet tool bar or under the Control Panel.  Select "Delete Browsing History" and determine what can be removed.  This action will help optimize the speed of the Internet.

¨ Upgrade with additional RAM and/or a larger hard drive.  If all else fails as the computer ages, it may be necessary to load more memory and a larger hard drive onto your computer as the size of files increases.  This is a costly solution, but perhaps not as costly as a new computer.

It is helpful to schedule these maintenance tasks frequently to optimize the computer's life and performance.  Have you found other tasks helpful?

Just a Couple Other Recent and Related Articles:

~ Help for a Slow PC by Christopher Null
~ Why is My Computer Running So Slow? by AskNerd.net