Computer Tips

Hello and welcome to my site. I started this site to share with you some of the computer tips that I have come to know. Nothing too complicated. Just some basic things you can do to change the look, feel, and performance of your computer. I have used most of these tips myself with much success.

All tips are for Windows 98 unless otherwise stated and all software pointed to is freeware.

Because of the different configurations of operating systems and hardware computers can react differently to any changes made. Always backup your system before making any changes. I am in no way responsible for any errors or problems caused by using any of the material found on this site or any links found on this site. You are responsible for any changes you make to your system.

Now you can have a look around and see if you find anything you like. Enjoy!

With Windows 98 based systems you can increase the speed of your computer a little by changing the role of your computer.

Use this only if you have 64 MB or more of memory.
Right click on the 'My Computer' icon on your desktop.
Click on' properties'.
Click on' performance'.
Click on'File System'.
In the drop down box where it says'Desktop computer' click the drop down arrow and and click on 'Network server'
Click on'apply'.

Keep those temporary internet files cleaned up.

I recommend doing this at least once a week.
Click on start.
Go to 'settings'.
Click on 'control panel'.
Double click 'Internet Options'.
Under Temporary Internet files you will see three buttons.
Click on the one that says'Delete Files'.
A window will pop up.
Put a check in the box that says'Delete all offline content'.
Click 'OK'.
Your done.

MSCONFIG (startup programs).

This one works in Windows 98, ME, and XP. The more programs you have starting up with windows the slower your computer will boot.These programs will also be running in the background using resources that you could be using for the task at hand. A lot of programs do not need to be started with Windows.You can trim down this list by using MSCONFIG. The only things I have checked on my list are Scan registry, System Tray, Load Power Profile, and my anti virus and firewall programs.Any programs that you want to load after startup can be started manually.

Start by clicking on Start.
Click on Run.
Type MSCONFIG in the box and click ok.
In the window that comes up click on the "Startup" tab at the far right.
This is your list of startup items. Uncheck any items that you do not want to start with Windows.
Click Apply.
Click OK.

You will be prompted to restart your computer. Do it. You now have a leaner startup list. If you find you unchecked something that you didn't want to just go back in and check it again. If you are not sure about what to eliminate from your startup list you can go here for an extensive list of what you can live with or without.

Defragment your hard drive every two to three months.

Windows puts parts of files all over your hard drive. Defrag puts them all together so your computer spends less time searching.Defrag can be a slow process so you will have to shut down every thing you can before you start.Close everything in your task bar and everything you can in your system tray.Press Ctrl+Alt+Del and end all tasks except Explorer.Now for the Defrag. Click on start. Go to Programs. Go to Accessories. Go to System Tools. Click on Disk Defragmenter.

The Disk Defragmenter built into windows 98 is not all that good. I suggest installing the ME defrag on your machine.It is a lot faster.You can get it here.

Keep your computer free of Spyware and Adware.

If you computer is loaded with Spyware and Adware(I just call it Scumware) it will get slower and slower. The two best programs that I have found to rid you of this junk are
Ad-Aware found here, and Spybot-Search & Destroy found here. Just download, install, and update these programs before running them.You can delete anything these programs find safely as they backup anything you delete. You will be surprised at all the junk they find. Now,clean it up!

Clean up your Registry.

Over a period of time you can build up a lot of useless entries in your registry.You can clean out these entries by using a registry cleaner program. RegSeeker is the best registry cleaner that I have used. It backs up everything that you remove so it can be merged back into the registry if need be. When you uninstall programs from your computer there can be registry entries left behind. RegSeeker has a search feature which allows you to type in the name of the program that you removed and search for any entries left behind.Very handy.You can find RegSeeker here.

Don't settle for that plain old Internet Explorer tool bar.

This is for IE 5 but works just fine on IE 6. Jazz up that toolbar with a small program that puts a new face on it.Toolbar wallpaper can be changed as often as you like. It also works on Outlook Express. You can find it here.

Wheel mouse zoom.

Have you ever been on a web page reading text and found yourself wishing that the text could be a little larger? No problem if you have a wheel mouse. Just hold down the Ctrl key and use the mouse wheel to change the text size.Towards you larger. Away from you smaller.Simple as that.

Change the look of your Desktop

You can change the look of your Desktop as often as you want with Webshots Desktop.Collect professional photos of sunsets, wildlife, travel,and more for your desktop wallpaper and screensaver.Choose from 1000's including seasonal and holidays.The software is free but requires registration.Youcan find it here.

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