by Donna Kiser

Created on: April 17, 2008

Tips to diagnose and fix a slow running computer

Computers run slow for a variety of reasons. This is why if you are experiencing a slow down in operation, either at start-up or in the operation of a program, it is vital to determine the cause. Unfortunately, the #1 culprit of slow running computers is a security breach, e.g. a virus, a worm, the dreaded Trojan, or even a hacker. Your first line of defense against a breach of this type is to have security software installed on your computer. The software will catch and halt most of the intruders before they damage your computer, however there are still a few steps you can take after the fact if you've been running without protection.

1. Scanning your computer for viruses or spyware. This is your first priority. If you've been running your computer without security software, there's no doubt that something is eating away at your system. You need to find it and destroy (delete) it. There are free scanners however not all will delete your problems for free and you need them gone! Once the scan is completed, the viruses and spyware removed then restart your computer to see if this has fixed the problem. This step should be preformed on a regular basis, at least once a week, to keep your computer free of infection.

2. Safe Mode Scan. If the first scan with the security software came up with nothing, try starting your system in Safe Mode and re-running the scans. To boot-up in Safe Mode, restart the computer and press the F8 key before you see the Windows logo. Use the arrow keys to move up and down to select the Safe Mode option, hit enter, re-run your scan, and restart.

3. Check Start Up List. Oftentimes there are just too many programs running at once and the computer slows. Some sites on the Internet automatically install programs to run on start up, as do some downloaded programs. Once again, if you have security software installed on your computer, it will catch these before they install themselves. The quickest way to clean your start up list is to have a software program that controls your start up items. It's always easier to click the mouse on a program than to do things manually, but if you must, it is possible. Click on Start, then Run, and type in "msconfig" (without the quotation marks), then click the Start Up tab at the top of the dialogue box. Here you can check the boxes of items you don't want to run at start up. The less running the better. Be careful! Unless you're a tech and know the items needed

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