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Issue #179: December 26, 2010

Well, we’ve come around to the end of another year, fellow Geeks!  Only 52 short columns ago we were welcoming in 2010, and now we’re ready to do the whole New Year thing all over again.  It’s been another banner year here at It’s Geek to Me, and at the Geek Lights on the Corner.  Thank-you to all who have written in with questions and with your thank-yous for the assistance you’ve gotten from reading the column.  Your feedback is the fuel that keeps me cranking out columns each week.  I look forward to another good year in 2011.  If you’d like me to visit your group or venue, get your requests in early, as my calendar is starting to fill up.  My first engagement of 2011 will be on January 29th at the annual Computer Tech Expo at Okaloosa Walton College in Niceville.  Come-on out and join us!  Also, if you haven’t had the chance to catch my light show yet this year, you have a few days left.  The final show night is January 2nd.  Come see for yourself what everybody else has been talking about.

Recently, I read your article on reducing clutter by deleting unwanted games and short-term advertising applications.  You did not make a recommendation on a method; so using the MS add/remove program would suffice? No other removal programs or tools?

– JPD
Fort Walton Beach, Fla

A: Sorry!  Space limitations often restrict exactly what details I can include in my column, but you got it exactly right.  Simply go to Control Panel, and use the Add/Remove Programs link to divest your computer of all those programs that the manufacturer saw fit to supply.  If your computer has been around for a little while, it’s also worth going in there and looking around to see if there is anything that you have installed that you no longer need.

Let me take this opportunity to expand on my list from last week.  These tips are not just for new computer owners, but all computer owners who want to wring every last bit of performance that they can out of their hardware (and hey, if you didn’t, you probably wouldn’t be reading this column, would you?).

Disable Unnecessary Services:  This is a semi-advanced topic, so if you’re a newbie, you can safely skip it.  Windows machines run lots of services that aren’t really necessary.  For example, if you never send or receive faxes, do you REALLY need the Fax service running in the background?  Search the internet for the topic “Windows services that can be disabled” (consider including your version of Windows in the search) and follow the instructions.

Turn off Aero, and other screen enhancements:  Microsoft really did a nice job enhancing the look and feel of the interface when they moved from XP to Vista.  The new Aero features like animated menus, transparent borders, etc have a wonderful look, but they are very costly to memory and processor speed.  You can take that performance back from Windows by disabling Aero in Vista or Win7.  Right-click the desktop and select “Personalize”.  Then select one of the Basic Themes in Win7, or the Windows Vista Basic theme in Vista.

Set up routine maintenance:  Using your PC’s built-in scheduler (found at Control Panel –>Scheduled Tasks), set up Disk Cleanup and Defragmenter to run at least once a week.  Don’t forget to also schedule your virus scanner and anti-malware software to perform regular scans, and daily virus signature file updates.


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