Y
You should do this
Everyone who owns there own PC should know by now that PC
maintenance is a very
important part of keeping you PC running smoothly.
Everyone should follow these few
simple steps to keeping the PC clean, safe and running
like new.
Anti-Virus:
Anyone who is online must have anti-virus software. Some
viruses are almost harmless, some
you won't even know were there, others will destroy your
system and all the information
on it. You can purchase an anti-virus program at any
computer store or you can download
a free version off the internet. Here are some good FREE
anti-virus programs:
AVG Free Edition -
http://www.grisoft.com/us/us_dwnl_free.php?
status=ok&affiliate=&product=
AntiVir Personal Edition 6.24.00.07 -
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download955.html
No anti-virus scanner will pick up everything, things
will always slip through. For a full
system scan you should use a variety or programs. Some
you will have to download,
others are web based and easy to use.
A2 - http://www.emsisoft.com/en/software/free/
Panda Avtice Scan -
http://www.pandasoftware.com/activescan/com/activescan_pri
ncipal.htm
Trojan Scan - http://www.trojanscan.com/
Firewalls:
Hackers are out there, and you must protect yourself
against them. The best way to do
this is to use a firewall. Firewalls stop hackers from
being able to access you system from
an outside source. Some good free firewall software is
out there and some examples are;
Outpost - http://www.agnitum.com/products/outpost/
I personally use this one sygate pro
Sygate - http://www.sygate.com/
Adware/Spyware:
The major problem high speed internet service is that
your computer is always connected;
you're always online so your pc is always subject to
hijackers, spammers and adware/spyware.
There are a few easy ways to combat this problem. The two
best programs for combating
this problem are listed bellow. Download and install the
following.
Ad-aware 6.0 : http://www.lavasoftusa.com/
Spybot 1.2 : http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?
page=download
Spyware Blaster 3.0 :
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html
Registry Cleaner: http://www.hoverdesk.net/freeware.htm
With use and over time your system registry will get full
of invalid entries that can clog your
system, a registry cleaner is your answer to this. This
is something I don't recommend for
those of you who are not familiar with dealing with the
registry. So if you're not familiar
with it leave it alone.
Reg Seeker : http://www.hoverdesk.net/freeware.htm
All In One Utilities:
There are some programs on the market that have a wide
variety of uses. Some programs
can clean the registry, clear temporary files, restore
deleted files, customize your operating
system and much more. 'All In One' programs are good for
novice users because they do
not have to hassle around with a lot of programs. But
it's always better to use a specific
program made for a single use. Below are three of the
best 'All In One' programs.
Norton Utilities - http://www.symantec.com/index.htm
Tune Up Utilities - http://www.tune-
up.com/products/tu2004/
Ace Utilities - http://www.acelogix.com/
Temporary Files
Temporary files are a problem for all users. Though they
don't pose any risk to your
system they take up needed hard drive space. It is very
easy to rid your system of these
files. Windows comes with 'Disk Cleanup' which can be
found in the tools menu.
The best temporary file remover is 'DustBuster XP' and
can be downloaded for free below.
DustBuster XP - http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?
det=1182
MRU Blaster -
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/mrublaster.html
Unused Programs:
Try to keep track of what programs you download, what
programs you installed and
what programs you use and don't use. There is no point in
having programs installed
on you're computer that you never use. Its clutters
you're system and takes up hard
rive space. Getting rid of unused programs if very easy,
all you need to do is go to
add/remove programs in the system control panel. Make
sure you know what the
program is and that you don't need it before you
uninstall it.
Defragging:
Defragging your hard drive cleans up files and makes
programs run faster and more efficiently.
Your operating system will come with a defragging
utility. It doesn't need to be updated but
make sure you use it on a regular basis.
Update:
If you use windows make sure you keep it up to date. They
make these updates for a reason
so use them.They fix many flaws and help with a lot of
things. Windows XP has a very
easy to use update system. Make sure update all other
programs on your computer.
Make sure you also update Games, Anti-virus software,
P2P, and media payers for
optimal performance. Updates are there for a reason. USE
THEM!
Conclusion:
Follow this list and your online experience will be a lot
more enjoyable. A little maintenance
will go along way to prolonging the life of your PC. It
may seem like a lot at first but your
PC is a very complicated piece of hardware and when
things get complicated, things go
wrong. It's a small price to pay to protect you
investment.
maintenance is a very
important part of keeping you PC running smoothly.
Everyone should follow these few
simple steps to keeping the PC clean, safe and running
like new.
Anti-Virus:
Anyone who is online must have anti-virus software. Some
viruses are almost harmless, some
you won't even know were there, others will destroy your
system and all the information
on it. You can purchase an anti-virus program at any
computer store or you can download
a free version off the internet. Here are some good FREE
anti-virus programs:
AVG Free Edition -
http://www.grisoft.com/us/us_dwnl_free.php?
status=ok&affiliate=&product=
AntiVir Personal Edition 6.24.00.07 -
http://www.majorgeeks.com/download955.html
No anti-virus scanner will pick up everything, things
will always slip through. For a full
system scan you should use a variety or programs. Some
you will have to download,
others are web based and easy to use.
A2 - http://www.emsisoft.com/en/software/free/
Panda Avtice Scan -
http://www.pandasoftware.com/activescan/com/activescan_pri
ncipal.htm
Trojan Scan - http://www.trojanscan.com/
Firewalls:
Hackers are out there, and you must protect yourself
against them. The best way to do
this is to use a firewall. Firewalls stop hackers from
being able to access you system from
an outside source. Some good free firewall software is
out there and some examples are;
Outpost - http://www.agnitum.com/products/outpost/
I personally use this one sygate pro
Sygate - http://www.sygate.com/
Adware/Spyware:
The major problem high speed internet service is that
your computer is always connected;
you're always online so your pc is always subject to
hijackers, spammers and adware/spyware.
There are a few easy ways to combat this problem. The two
best programs for combating
this problem are listed bellow. Download and install the
following.
Ad-aware 6.0 : http://www.lavasoftusa.com/
Spybot 1.2 : http://www.safer-networking.org/index.php?
page=download
Spyware Blaster 3.0 :
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/spywareblaster.html
Registry Cleaner: http://www.hoverdesk.net/freeware.htm
With use and over time your system registry will get full
of invalid entries that can clog your
system, a registry cleaner is your answer to this. This
is something I don't recommend for
those of you who are not familiar with dealing with the
registry. So if you're not familiar
with it leave it alone.
Reg Seeker : http://www.hoverdesk.net/freeware.htm
All In One Utilities:
There are some programs on the market that have a wide
variety of uses. Some programs
can clean the registry, clear temporary files, restore
deleted files, customize your operating
system and much more. 'All In One' programs are good for
novice users because they do
not have to hassle around with a lot of programs. But
it's always better to use a specific
program made for a single use. Below are three of the
best 'All In One' programs.
Norton Utilities - http://www.symantec.com/index.htm
Tune Up Utilities - http://www.tune-
up.com/products/tu2004/
Ace Utilities - http://www.acelogix.com/
Temporary Files
Temporary files are a problem for all users. Though they
don't pose any risk to your
system they take up needed hard drive space. It is very
easy to rid your system of these
files. Windows comes with 'Disk Cleanup' which can be
found in the tools menu.
The best temporary file remover is 'DustBuster XP' and
can be downloaded for free below.
DustBuster XP - http://www.majorgeeks.com/download.php?
det=1182
MRU Blaster -
http://www.javacoolsoftware.com/mrublaster.html
Unused Programs:
Try to keep track of what programs you download, what
programs you installed and
what programs you use and don't use. There is no point in
having programs installed
on you're computer that you never use. Its clutters
you're system and takes up hard
rive space. Getting rid of unused programs if very easy,
all you need to do is go to
add/remove programs in the system control panel. Make
sure you know what the
program is and that you don't need it before you
uninstall it.
Defragging:
Defragging your hard drive cleans up files and makes
programs run faster and more efficiently.
Your operating system will come with a defragging
utility. It doesn't need to be updated but
make sure you use it on a regular basis.
Update:
If you use windows make sure you keep it up to date. They
make these updates for a reason
so use them.They fix many flaws and help with a lot of
things. Windows XP has a very
easy to use update system. Make sure update all other
programs on your computer.
Make sure you also update Games, Anti-virus software,
P2P, and media payers for
optimal performance. Updates are there for a reason. USE
THEM!
Conclusion:
Follow this list and your online experience will be a lot
more enjoyable. A little maintenance
will go along way to prolonging the life of your PC. It
may seem like a lot at first but your
PC is a very complicated piece of hardware and when
things get complicated, things go
wrong. It's a small price to pay to protect you
investment.