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You may be wondering why it is important to know what's running on your PC besides the programs or software you are currently running. There are two important reasons to this. The first reason is to make your PC run better, and the second reason is to ensure any important information you have is not being compromised. This is especially true in our modern days of networking, and the Internet.

Finding out what's running on your PC is not as difficult as you may have thought. On a Windows XP machine, all you have to do is to press and then let go the Ctrl, Alt, and Del keys together to cause the Task Manager window to appear on your screen. Once it is displayed, you can see the application, processes, performance, networking, and users tabs. The first two tabs tell you what is running on your PC. From the application tab, you can see what applications you are currently running. For example, if you are currently running Internet Explorer, and Notepad, you will see the Internet Explorer, and Notepad listed under it. However, knowing what applications are currently running on your PC is not sufficient. It is not unusual for more than one processes to be running for a single application.

Click on the processes tab to view the processes. You should be able to list a list of processes with their image names, user names, CPU, and memory Usage. The image names are simply the names of the processes. The user names are the nicknames or names of the sers who initiated the process by loading certain applications. At the bottom of the window, you can click on a small box next to "Show processes from all users" until a tick appears in it to display every process of every active user on your computer. This option is only available to you if you are an administrator of the PC your are using.

Every process requires some memory to run. You can see this in the memory usage (Mem Usage)column of the processes window. Stopping unnecessary processes can free up more memory for for more important processes, and applications. As a result, there is better chance for your PC to run faster, and smoother. This may also help reduce the possibility of having a lack of memory problem. Unless, you know exactly what you are doing, do not end any of the processes as this may cause problems to the operation of your PC. However, if you are pretty sure what you are doing, you can do so by selecting the processes, and then clicking on the button marked "End Process".

No one likes his or her privacy being compromised. Unfortunately, sometimes, while surfing the Internet, an unknown program may enter into your PC, and begin to run. While such programs is running, it can detect, and even steal sensitive information from your hard drive. Such program is known as a spyware, and its running may only be listed under the processes tab. Do not simply purchase or download any anti-spyware program just because the website claims that it works. You may be tricked into buying an inferior product or the product itself is a spyware in disguise. It is best that you consult reputable anti-spyware program, and Internet Security software manufacturers like Microsoft, Norton, and McAfee concerning spywares. If you suspect your PC has been infected by a spyware, consult the website of one the reputable companies for advice on what to do, and if necessary, how to end any processes safely using the task manager.

Learn more about this author, Rainier Wong.
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