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How Can I Make My Computer Run Faster, for Free?
One way to make your computer faster for free: upgrade to better browsers.
Associated Press/AP Online
Q. My computer has gotten slower and slower at doing basic things like booting up and running multiple programs at once. How do I improve its performance without spending any money?
A: You’re wise to try to fix this problem yourself, for free. There are a few things you can do to make your computer feel more like the brilliant multitasking machine you want it to be and less like the wheezer it’s turned into.
Let’s start by setting aside one thing that a lot of people try but we won’t recommend here. It’s called overclocking, and it involves tweaking your PC’s hardware settings to make the central processor or system memory run faster than their manufacturers officially intended. It can get tricky.
Besides, unless you’re running nuclear simulations or are a huge video game player, your standard home PC probably should be fast enough for what you need. The problem isn’t in the hardware. It’s in all the software that’s gotten larded onto it.
So here are some simple things to do to gain more control.
Jodith
14 days ago
26 comments
I set my computer to defrag once a week overnight. I log off instead of shutting down, so it'll run while I'm away.
For making websites load faster, if you use firefox, there's an addon called NoScript, that will shut down scripts running on websites unless you approve them. It's a huge timesaver in loading websites, since it will cut out most script ads and flash files. You can approve scripts individually, or approve all scripts for a given website. It'll also cut down on malicious scripts running when you hit a website.
pearlmarie
18 days ago
38 comments
thank you for the tips especially cutting down on add-ons and changing the way i use the web browser
Jafer
5 months ago
2 comments
well that is a good idea
bertrandjs
about 1 year ago
8 comments
The information on the web browsers is something that I never thought of. I do a defrag once every 6 months anyway, but never tried the disc cleanup. I usually manually delete the temp internet files. I will have to try it and see...
TallAnna
about 1 year ago
44 comments
What about Macs?! :D
Currin_B
about 1 year ago
214 comments
These are great, simple tips. Firefox is definitely better than IE. I am going to "defrag" my computer right now!