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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.

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.