Here’s the dirty little secret about most registry cleaners and defragmentation tools: they don’t work that well. Despite their boasting, most programs that claim to automatically “optimize” your system or “clean out the junk” generally leave users virtually unchanged system performance. And unless there’s a direct reason to suspect heavy disk fragmentation (if there is, try a third-party defrag tool rather than Vista’s built-in option), defragmentation usually provides little more than a placebo effect.
However, there are a few simple, straightforward procedures you can use to legitimately boost the performance of Windows Vista, which, although nearing its second service pack, is still sluggish for many users.
Here’s a list of the top 10 methods for delivering a genuine, noticeable speed boost to Vista without purchasing new hardware:
1. Check your WEI What’s a WEI you might ask? It’s the Windows Experience Index–a score, calculated by Windows Vista, that roughly indicates your computer’s capabilities. To see your score, click Start, right-click Computer, then click Properties. In the system tab, click Windows Experience Index.
Theoretically, a higher score means better performance. You can get a higher score by adding RAM, upgrading your graphics card, or replacing your processor. However, you can also sometimes boost your score by simply updating your drivers. The fastest way to do this: click the Start button, start typing Update, then click Windows Update.
Next check the manufacturer websites for any of the installed hardware components you know of: graphics cards, motherboards, or just the manufacturer of your computer. Install any pertinent updates then restart your computer.
Now come back to the Windows Experience Index score window and click “Update my score.” If your score went up, you should notice a performance boost.
2. Make sure your processor setting isn’t short-changing you Open the control panel, then navigate to Power Options. Choose “Change Plan Settings,” then click on “Change Advanced power Settings,” and finally select Processor Power Management. Unless you are trying to conserve battery power, try changing your maximum processor state to 100%. Many manufacturers ship systems with a lower setting.
3. Turn off or modify indexing; update search Windows Vista uses a persistent indexing mechanism to catalog new or changed files on your disk for search purposes. Unfortunately, the indexing process can eat significant CPU cycles and memory, especially if files are changed often. First, try modifying indexing settings to exclude certain folders, especially those in which files are changed often (browser caches, system files, etc.). Open the control panel then navigate to System and Maintenance > Indexing Options. Remove locations that are modified often, as well as those in which you are unlikely to search.
Also, you will likely want to update to Windows Search 4.0, which can provide a dramatic performance boost when you actually do want to search.
4. Switch your antivirus software Antivirus software can be a performance boon, protecting your system against things that can slow it down, or a bust, actually slowing down your system itself. If you’re still using the antivirus software that shipped with your system, try switching to one of the many free alternatives and tweaking your antivirus settings. Some restrictions can severely impact performance and do not deliver an real security. For instance, although there is some risk involved, you can try excluding certain frequently used or memory-intensive processes from your antivirus protection list. Never do this for Web browsers or other network-connected applications.
avast!, AVG and NOD32 deliver solid mixes of performance and protection.
5. Check for unnecessary services Click the Start button, type services.msc and press return. Here you’ll find a bevy of services, processes and programs–some critical, some not. Disabling certain items, especially those that launch at startup, can provide a real speed boost, but don’t get trigger happy; disabling the wrong process can result in stability problems and other issues.
To disable a service, right-click it, then select properties and choose “Disable.” This article provides a decent rundown of services and their purposes. When in doubt, thoroughly inspect the description of a service.
Filed under Windows Vista by on Mar 27th, 2009. 1 Comment. 
Several users have reported an issue wherein, after opening several tabs and or windows in Internet Explorer, newly spawned tabs or windows come up blank and non-functional, or do not appear at all. In other words, when some number of tabs or windows is reached, the program (for all intents and purposes) stops functioning. Other system problems can manifest when this issue occurs, including an inability to right-click items in Windows Explorers and more.
This issue, and other problems–such as sluggishness, rendering problems, and others–that occur when many windows have been opened in Internet Explorer (and generally after extended periods of use) can sometimes be resolved by resetting the browser. This can be accomplished by clicking on the “Tools” menu, then navigating to Options > Advanced > Reset. Close Internet Explorer, then launch it again.
Resetting an also resolve persistent crashes in Internet Explorer, at least until the problematic settings and other data resurface, at which point you’ll need to reset the browser again.
Note that resetting Internet Explorer will delete any custom settings, history, form entires, as well as other personal data.
Filed under Internet Explorer 8 by on Mar 29th, 2009. Comment.
A number of users have reported inordinately slow file copying between folders, across networks, or across local drives. There are a few very simple, very effective fixes for this issue, as follows:
Update your system board drivers The drivers included with some boards may be prone to slow and or corrupt data transfers. Updating your motherboard’s and or various chipsets’ drivers/firmware can sometimes result in a massive speed boost.
If you don’t know what type of motherboard your computer has, try running either EVEREST or Belarc. Then navigate to the manufacturer’s website and look for any driver updates.
Some chipsets from VIA have been known to cause slow data transfer; you can find updated drivers for them here.
If you are using an Intel-based chipset, download and run the Intel Chipset Software Installation Utility.
Turn off thumbnail previews In some cases, turning off thumbnail previews can speed copy times considerably. To do this, open a window in Windows Explorer and click the Organize button, then choose “Folder and Search Options.” Click the View tab, then select “Always show icons, never thumbnails,” then click OK.
Turn off Remote Differential Compression Click the Start button then open the Control Panel and select “Programs and Features.” Next, select “Turn windows features on or off” on the left side, and uncheck “Remote Differential Compression,” then click OK.
This feature is designed to allow data to be synchronized with a remote source using compression, but may cause inadvertent slowdowns in some cases.
Filed under Windows Vista by on Mar 30th, 2009. 2 Comments.
Determining whether or not malware is to blame for any given troubleshooting issue can be tricky. Some malware-caused issues manifest as simple application instability, slowness or seemingly random freezes. However, there are a few instances in which malware is a more-than-likely culprit. In this series of articles (“Signs That You Have Malware”), we’ll explore some of the tell-tale signs and reiterate the best methods for ridding your system of the infection.
Today’s sign: One or more flashing windows that suddenly pop up then disappear. Generally these windows are blank and cannot be closed, re-opened or otherwise manipulated.
Why it might be malware A constantly reappearing but non-functional window can be the result of an unwanted executable attempting to run.
How to get rid of it Start with Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, a shareware malware and spyware removal tool that can eliminate many types of unwanted executables.
Next, move on to Microsoft’s Malicious Software Removal tool. Microsoft releases an updated version of this tool on the second Tuesday of each month, and “as needed to respond to security incidents.” You can keep it up to date with Microsoft Update, Windows Update and the Microsoft Download Center
Finally, run a scan with a good anti-virus package. AVG is free, and comes highly recommended by users and experts alike. Just remember, stick to one good anti-virus package. Installing multiple anti-virus programs can actually weaken your protection and introduce performance and stability issues. The following anti-virus apps are also recommended:
Filed under Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP by on Mar 31st, 2009. Comment.
April 1st is here, and early indications are that the much-ballyhooed Conficker worm is more bark than bite. Aside from a modest increase in junk mail that may be completely unrelated, users have yet to report any rise in infection or other adverse effects. Regardless, there is a drop-dead simple process you can use to protect against virtually any potential Conficker maladies, and the same process should be put in place under any circumstances to protect against other malware, viruses and other security threats. Here are the steps:
1. Make sure your Windows system has all pertinent updates Launch Internet Explorer and go to windowsupdate.microsoft.com. Install the ActiveX control if necessary, then use the “Express” option to download the latest and most important updates. That’s it–your system now has Microsoft’s latest Conficker protection mechanism installed. Microsoft may issue “zero-day” updates over the next few days, so check back regularly.
2. Install one (and only one) strong anti-virus package and make sure it’s up-to-date There a number of free, regularly updated anti-virus packages that do a fabulous job of protecting against worms like Conficker. Here’s a list:
Pick one and only one package and make sure it is updated frequently. Installation of multiple anti-virus packages can create conflicts that might actually weaken your system’s immunity and can create stability and performance issues.
As mentioned above, vendors may issue “zero-day” patches over the next few days to counteract any new variants of Conficker. Check the developer’s website or intra-application auto-update mechanisms regularly for the latest updates.
3. If you’re already infected, run this One of the nastiest elements of the Conficker worm is that it can disable antivirus and anti-malware tools, making it difficult to find and eliminate the worm after it’s been hatched. However, Microsoft offers a free OneCare system scan that is done over the Web, meaning it will be more likely to work if Conficker has crippled your software. Click here to access the scan.
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If you’re still paranoid, you can rework your password to make it stronger and disable AutoRun.
Filed under News, Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP by on Mar 31st, 2009. 1 Comment.