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Slow Computer?   (page 1 of 3)
By Joy Stapleton    Printer-friendly version

When you use Windows for long periods of time and open and close several programs, the memory that each program was using isn't always completely released. This is called a memory leak, where a small chunk of memory (RAM) becomes unavailable for the system to use.

As you continue to open and close programs, more and more chunks of memory will be left behind, and this is one of the reasons your system slows down. You can resolve this problem by restarting Windows so that all of the memory is released and you have a clean start.

Additionally, each running application uses some of the CPU time, so the more programs you have running simultaneously, the slower the system response time will be. Try minimizing the number of applications that you're running so that the system won't be so sluggish. If you frequently run a number of programs simultaneously you might also want to consider upgrading the PC's memory. Adding more RAM will increase the speed of your computer.

You can also disable some of the programs that are automatically loaded at startup, and manually load them yourself when you want to use them. To prevent these programs from loading when Windows starts you can use the System Configuration Utility (msconfig.exe). Most of these programs are associated with the icons that you see in the system tray, which is located in the Windows Taskbar, and usually on the bottom-right side of the screen.

Windows XP users should click on the Start button, select Run (on the bottom-right side of the window), type in msconfig, and then click the OK button.

Windows 7 and Vista users should click on the Start button and type msconfig in the Search box. Then double-click on msconfig when it shows up in the search results.

When the System Configuration Utility window opens click on the Startup tab, and on the left side of the window you'll see a list of checkboxes. Now what you need to do is clear the checkboxes that are associated with the programs that you want to disable from startup, but first expand the Command column so that you can see the full path name showing the location of the application on your hard drive.

Most of the applications should be easy to recognize by name, but if you don't know what an application is being used for then it's best to leave well enough alone, particularly if the path name in the Command column is listing a Windows folder, such as C:\Windows\system32\. Otherwise it's generally safe to disable a Startup Item, and you can go back and enable any item that you've accidentally disabled.


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