PC tune up

Update and eliminate

Make sure that your operating system is updated when needed and make sure you have the latest anti-spyware and anti-adware to eliminate spyware and adware that may be slowing down your computer dramatically.

Spring clean

Dust and heat can cause build up on the fans of your PC or oil breakdown on its bearings. This can be one of the reasons behind your computer slowing down. When cleaning the insides of your computer then, there are a couple of things that you should take into consideration. Firstly, some of the stuff that you will need will include: a can of compressed air, Endust for Electronics or any household plastic or metal cleaning fluid, a soft brush (such as a paintbrush) and an anti-static rag, plus a dust mask if you're allergic to dust.

Ground yourself to the computer with any professional grounding equipment you have or ground yourself by touching a metal part of the chassis. Spray the compressed air on the fan blades, power supply chassis, drive chassis and circuit boards and gently brush off dust that the forced air didn't dislodge. Then brush any remaining dust out from the bottom of the chassis. Spray Endust for Electronics or another cleaning fluid onto an anti-static rag and wipe the inside and outside of the cover thoroughly.

Barebones

All the paraphernalia that comes with the display on your computer can be one of the culprits that are assisting in slowing down your computer. You can however turn off the visual effects for optimum performance. If you're running Windows XP or Vista, it's just a matter of going into your control panel and selecting the performance and maintenance category and then choosing adjust visual effects. Otherwise, if you still have the old view, you can navigate into your control panel, select the system icon and then click on the advanced tab. From there you can select the performance tab and then click on the visual effects tab and choose the ‘adjust for best performance'.

Speed up your web

So you've got your old PC running at a slightly faster tick. Now that you're PC is running a lot faster, it's time for you to also get you're internet experience moving at one tick faster. Here's some of our top tips

Temporary files

Delete some of the temporary files that are stored on your browser. All internet browsers generally have an option that allows you to clear you're browser's cache or history folder. For Microsoft Internet Explorer click on Tools and then Delete Browsing History. For Mozilla Firefox, it's just a matter of clicking on Tools and then Clear Private Data.

Use OpenDNS

Domain Name Service (or DNS) is the service that usually attributes the typical web address names (such as www.google.com) to their relevant IP addresses (which are in number format, such as 192.23.189.23). Depending upon your internet speed, the process involved with DNS can slow your connection.

For example, if the DNS server of your ISP is slow, the time it takes to resolve the web address adds to the overall loading time of the website.One way to solve this problem involves using OpenDNS, which speeds up your Internet connection and also assists in making your web browsing safer. To use OpenDNS, all you have to do is open your Network Connections or Router's settings page and update the default DNS server to point to the OpenDNS nameservers, which are 208.67.222.222 and 208.67.220.220.

You'll also need to sign up for an OpenDNS account and remember the previous IP servers you were connected to just in case you come across problems. OpenDNS servers store the IP addresses of millions of websites in their cache. Therefore, it takes less time to resolve your requests. So if you have asked for an IP address of a website that has been previously requested by another OpenDNS user, you will get the feedback instantly.

Go with Chrome or Firefox

Google's Chrome and Mozilla's Firefox are two of the fastest browsers out there. Put that Internet Explorer away now.

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