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time you install a new program on your computer, chances are Windows will have it start up each time you boot Windows. Take a look at the bottom right-hand corner of your desktop. If you see a ridiculous amount of icons there, then chances are you've got way too many programs running that don't need to be. This can severely drain the life out of your PC and have it running like a slug. To compensate for this, click the START MENU, then click RUN and type MSCONFIG in the box, followed by ENTER. Navigate to the STARTUP tab and you'll see a bunch of entries preceded by checkboxes to the left of them. Each time you see a check in one of those boxes, its telling you that particular program boots with Windows. Be careful not to shut down all of these processes, as some are no doubt vital to the Windows operation. The file names themselves are highly ambiguous, so its best not to fool around unless you're sure of what you can and can't shut down. Navigate over to www.bleepingcomputer.com/start ups/ and type the name of the Startup Item into the search bar (ie: MsnMsgr). For each entry you'll get a detailed explanation of exactly what it is, what it does, and whether or not you should deactivate it. Once you're confident of your changes, simply hit OK and you'll be prompted to re-start your system. You'll notice that unnecessary programs no longer start up. Don't worry, you can still start them manually if you need to.

6) ADD MORE RAM TO YOUR COMPUTER

If none of the techniques listed above have given your PC any significant speed increase, it may be necessary to upgrade your RAM. RAM acts as temporary memory within your PC that Windows can use to swap data back and forth. This prevents it from having to put the full workload solely on your CPU processor. The less RAM you have, the quicker Windows will run out of room and have to start relying on the CPU to do more work. This can significantly slow down a system.

These days it is advisable that everyone be running their PC's with at LEAST 1GB (Gigabyte) of RAM in their system. Programs and applications have come a long way and have the ability to use up your RAM very quickly if there isn't enough present. 1 Gigabyte is a stable amount of RAM to have in your system, and more then 1 Gig would certainly not hurt, either. To check the amount of RAM in your system, click the START menu, SETTINGS, then CONTROL PANEL, and click the SYSTEM icon. In the GENERAL tab there should be info about your computer in the bottom right-hand

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