For a few easy ways to make your computer faster we should start and see what exactly your computer is currently running. One of the top factors of computer speed is having enough available resources. Obviously if your computer is busy doing other things it isn't going to have enough resources to do what you want it to do.

Determine what your computer is currently using.

     Do you need all the programs that are running? If you are running Windows XP simply click on 'Start' then 'Run' then type 'msconfig', by then clicking on the Startup tab you can all the startup programs for this computer. Most of these are generally not needed and take up valuable resources. It is outside this scope to determine what exactly you need and do not need. Un checking un-needed programs and then restarting will result in your computer doing less things you don't and more things you want.

     You will notice in above image the startup item qttask is highlighted. This is a perfect example of a un-needed startup program. This is put there by the Quicktime application, an application that allows your PC to play MOV files. Now when you want to play a MOV file you either access it via a website or you double click on the file. You do not need this task constantly running. Now how many other applications have a un-needed constantly running program. All that adds up rather quickly and soon your PC is running slower for no reason.

Let's look at some other un-needed startup programs from the above image.

• QTTASK
  Used by Quicktime, not needed - remove it!
• CTFMON
  Used by Microsoft Office, totally optionally - remove it.
• REALSCHED
  Used by Real Player, ugh the worst company ever, their applications are filled with so much junk and they add annoying shortcut programs, definitily remove it!

Make sure you have enough free space.

     This is not as a big issue as most people make it out to be. A common misconception is that storing too many photos or games on a computer will slow it down. If you have a 80 GB hard drive and you are using 40GB on your photo and game collection that will actually have little impact on your computers performance. Again the main factors are having available resources, aka Memory. Hard drive space is different than your computers Memory or RAM. That being said it is still in good practice to be should your computer drive is not more than 90% full and de fragmenting your hard drive is always a quick way to speed up performance. For more information on disk de fragmenting including a full tutorial, please click here.

Check your systems for Spyware / Virus infections

     Many computers currently are infected with Spyware or Virus programs and do not know it. Run a full virus scan and check for Spyware. This is outside the scope of this document but we also offer tutorials for both of these.

Hardware upgrade

     If you do everything you can so far to be sure your computer isn't allowing rogue programs to hog up resources you may want to consider purchasing additional Memory for your computer. 

If you own a computer there is a very good chance that your computer is infected with Virus or Spyware programs. They come in many shapes and forms and come at you from many different directions. There are also many tools to help you remove Virus infections once they happen, but the best bet is to avoid these problems all together. How you can prevent infections is what this article is all about.

Be careful of the web sites you visit

Many Virus / Spyware infections actually use exploits in the operating system itself to have their code automatically install when you visit an infected web site. This often happens when people visit certain web sites. For example certain adult web sites have been known to try and infect your unprotected computer with code that will take over your computer's modem and try to dial 1-900 numbers on your phone line. Some web sites will offer 'Free Screensavers', or other forms of something free, once installed the 'free' software will install Spyware that is very difficult to remove once installed. Unless you know it's from a trusted source, do not install any software from a web site. If you are browsing a web site and something pops up and asks to you install a plugin it is very important that you close that window, unless you trust that web site. Clicking 'Yes' on one of those windows may let in a stream of spyware programs.

Keep your Windows updated

Now that you are careful of what web sites you visit you must also make sure that your operating system is up to date. This is something that should be done regularly, basically when Microsoft discovers problems or security vulnerabilities with their software they fix it. If you never visit this site you will never get that update and your system will be vulnerable. Windows update doesn't only fix problems, but offers free upgrades to Windows components, such as Windows MovieMaker and Windows Media Player. These are great additions that are totally free! Windows users can visit http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com to update your system at anytime.

Protect yourself

Now that your computer is updated you still need additional software to be safe; Anti Virus software. I personally recommend Norton Anti Virus 2006. There are many different versions to choose from, Norton Internet Security, McAfee, etc. I recommend just the basic Anti Virus 2006, it costs $49.95 and includes one year of updates. Once installed it will automatically keep itself updated and continuously scan your system for any Virus or Spyware programs. If it finds anything that shouldn't be there it will automatically remove it for you. If you are running Windows XP you should also turn on your firewall. This can easily be done by clicking on Start then Control Panel, Network Connections, then right clicking on 'Local Area Connections' (If you are connected via a wireless network then you want to right click on 'Wireless Network Connection') then click on the 'Advanced' tab, Then switching the button to 'On'.

That is just three simple steps you can take to better prevent your computer from being infected with Virus programs.