10 July, 2010
Your PC is a year or two old and it is just not running as fast as it used to – why is that? The most common misconception that I hear from customers is ‘I must have too many files on it’. This is rarely the case except if the hard drive is actually ‘full’ of music, movies or photos. Apart from viruses, spyware and other internet based problems what is responsible for many slowdowns is simply too much software or a lack of maintenance. Yes PC’s need maintenance and we normally schedule this at least once a year when we renew customers’ virus scanners. So what needs doing? Well to start with software updates – but again which ones. Certainly Microsoft updates with workstations & laptops at least will keep your system patched and therefore less vulnerable to many internet based problems. Next we have the popular software programs like Adobe Acrobat, Apple QuickTime, Java & Flash Player that will ask you for updates – these are also fine to do and again fix vulnerabilities. On the other hand, some of your hardware peripherals (printers, scanners etc.) will also ask you for updates – this may be useful if there is a problem but also remember here the old adage ‘if it isn’t broke, why fix’. When we install many of these devices we select a custom installation and only install the bare minimum of software – without the auto phone home and update rubbish. General PC maintenance should also include going through the list of installed programs and uninstalling any games, software, toolbars and junk software that you are no longer using. This last step in particular can speed a PC up considerably. Many people think that defragging the hard drive is the maintenance king and even though it should be done every few months it will normally only increase performance by a couple of percent. Your car wouldn’t run too well if it wasn’t serviced for a couple of years so don’t expect your PC to be much different & always keep in mind that prevention is far better than cure – from every point of view. Kerr Solutions is at 128 Musgrave Street & is contactable on 49 222 400.
