Hints & Tips

This page will provide you with hints and tips that you can use to keep your computer running better. There are no warranties, expressed or implied, with the execution of any of this information. If you are unsure of any of these items, it is recommended that you contact a professional computer person to help you out.
Why is my computer running slower?
	There are a lot of reasons why your computer starts running slower, but the most common seems to be caused by "Internet Junk". Junk may be a bad term, but generally speaking, websites / pages are full of small images, text blocks, etc. These are downloaded to your computer, so the next time you visit the site, it will be quicker. But what happens when you never visit that site again? The text and pictures that were downloaded virtually never go away. That is "Internet Junk", and it needs to be cleared periodically.

	How do you clear it, you ask? That depends on the version of Internet Explorer that you are runnning. If you have Windows XP with the latest Internet Explorer 7, you can click on Tools (in Internet Explorer) and then Options. Then click on the DELETE Files button. The next screen that will be displayed, has the different types of data you can delete. Although, it is generally safe to delete the all, if you delete the "Form Data", it will clear any stored data that might be used to automatically populate screens with Name, address, etc information.

	Likewise, if you delete the passwords stored, then you will have to re-enter those passwords into the websites that you use. A lot of people do not clear those areas, but clear everything else. (The Temporary files area is the biggest to clear.)

	If you are running Windows 2000 or have Internet Explorer 6.0, the files need to be deleted manually. (There is a delete option in the Tools area of this version, but it does not work as well.) To clear them by hand, double click My Computer. Click on Tools, then Folder Options and then click the tab - View. Check to make sure that the "Show Hidden Files" is enabled. Then, using Windows Explorer (Double Click "My Computer" and double click the "C" Drive. In the folders List, double click the folder called "Documents and Settings". Then you will have a folder per user that uses this computer. Double click on your user folder, and then Double Click "Local Settings". ("Local Settings will not be visible, unless you have already enabled the Show Hidden files option.) Then, double click the TEMP folder and clear anything and everything in that folder. Then, under Local Settings, double click the Temporary Internet Files and then Double Click Content.IE5 folder. Delete all the directories and files in that area that you can. Some of the files listed under the user that you are logged on as will be in use and will not delete. That is ok, as getting rid of as many files as you can will help speed the system up. However, to get rid of them ALL, you will need to log on to that computer as a different user to clear all of your user files.

	DON'T FORGET TO EMPTY THE RECYCLE BIN!
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What is a Defrag?
	Defrag is short for Defragmenting and it does precisely that. For example, I compare a hard drive to a parking lot and then ask, "If the parking lot was 1/2 full, could you turn a 18 wheeler around in that parking lot?" The answer is "That depends", which is the answer you get a lot when dealing with computers.

	It depends on how 1/2 of the cars are parked. If they are in every other parking space, then no, you couldn't turn a semi around. However, if all the cars were at the front of the lot, then there would be plenty of room in the back of the lot for the semi to turn around.

	Defrag is the process that "valets" the cars to the front of the lot. It will reorganize your hard drive, putting files in a nice organized sequence, one right after the other.

	You can see the entry on this site; "How to run a Defrag" for information about how to run this utility, but there are a couple of important notes to make about this processs. YOU DO NOT want to run this process during a storm or at any time you might lose power. Defrag is literally moving files on your hard drive, and should the computer crash during this process, it could destroy your hard drive and all the data on it. Another important note about this is that you should Clear your temporary files AND empty the recycle bin before you start this process. (If you don’t, the defrag process will run longer and will basically organize "junk".


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How do I run a "Defrag".
	As explained in the "Why is my computer running slower?" article, defrag is a process to allow you to organize your hard drive.

	To start this process, double click My Computer. Then, Right Click on the C Drive and select Properties. On the screen that appears, there are several tabs across the top. One is labeled Tools. Click the Tools Tab and then click the Defragment Button. On the screen that will appear from that, you click on your C Drive and then click the Analyze button. This will look at the hard drive and determine if you need to run a Defrag. (Even if it suggests that you don't need to run it, you can run it anyway.)

	Once the analyze process is done, you can click on the C Drive and then click the Defragment button.

	NOTES: DO NOT RUN THIS WHEN YOU COULD LOSE POWER! You should always Clear the temporary files AND empty the recycle bin before you start this process. Otherwise, you will be organizing junk! Depending on how long it has been since you last ran a Defrag, this process took take a very long time! The more often you run it, the less time it will take. But, if this is the first time you have run this process, I have seen it take up to 5 hours to complete! (Start it right before you go home and let it run all night. Preferably on a "non stormy" night!


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Where did all the Temp Files come from?
	Most of the major programs you work with, like Word, will "copy" the document you open to a temp file. As you are working with the document, it is actually in the temp files. Once you tell Word to save the file (which you should do often), the computer will copy the file back to it's original location.

	At times, and for a number of reasons, these temp files do not get deleted. Word is usually pretty good about clearing it's own temporary copies of files, but not always. A lot of other programs do not clear it at all. So, over time, you can see how these files get built up. Also, you can feel free to delete all the temp files pretty much any time you do not have any other programs open.






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Why does my computer run better AFTER I clear the temp files?
	Computers are really very mechanical devices - and they are only as smart as the programmer who wrote the program! Overall, the computer operating systems want to keep track of ALL the files on the computer. The operating systems will keep an index of all the files and use that index to help you find files quicker.

	As you might have guessed by now, after you clear the temp files, the computer will run better because it has less files to index and keep track of.






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Why did you give me all this information?
	Because this is part - a small part - of some of the things we can do for you and your computers. And whether you do it or TechnoBiz does it for you, these things need to be done.

	Of course, when you get into something you don't understand or just don't want to deal with, we would like to hear from you. With the computer and accounting services we offer, your life can become a lot easier - and more profitable.

	We look forward to earning our way to becoming your technological partner.

	And please use the Contact Us button at the top of this screen to give us any thing you would like to see on this site - your ideas and suggestions would be greatly appreciated!


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