Want to Speed up your boot up time

1. Boot up in no time

Make your PC leap out of bed with these simple tips. Does it seem like the more time you spend with your Windows XP installation, the longer your PC takes to pull itself out of bed when booting up?

It’s not a sign of old age; it’s the ever-growing accumulation of detritus that various applications and hardware deposit on your hard drive when you install them. Whether these items are functional or completely useless, they all take time to load.

Here’s how to trim the bloat and reduce the time it takes your PC to get ready for action.

2.Tools for faster boot times

Before you get started with this project, we recommend that you have the following:

a. A backup utility

b. an auto run detection app

c. A stopwatch

d. Clock your PC’s boot up time

Although nothing in the following steps is particularly risky, Windows XP is unpredictable enough to warrant a nod to Murphy’s Law. So, before you do anything else, run a thorough virus check, and then create a safe place to go back to using Windows XP’s System Restore utility. (Right-click My Computer, then click Properties > System Restore.) For added protection, perform a full backup of your hard drive.

Using a stopwatch, you’ll time how long your start-up takes before you make any changes. But it’s not always obvious when the boot up sequence is complete, so first place a shortcut to the Notepad applet in the Windows Startup group as a point of reference. Now, each time you boot up, Windows will open a Notepad window on the desktop.

i. Right-click the Start button and click Properties.

ii. On the Start Menu tab, click Classic Start Menu > Customize > Advanced.

iii. In the Start Menu folder, find the Notepad shortcut (in the Start Menu\Programs\Accessories folder) and drag it to the Startup folder under Programs.

If you time how long it takes for the window to appear before and after tweaks are made, you’ll know if you’ve accomplished anything. You can always remove the shortcut once you’ve completed your before-and-after timing comparison.

Exit Windows, then power off your machine. Wait a few seconds, turn the power back on again, and start timing. If the start-up sequence pauses for your username and password, stop the clock at the pause, then restart it after you’ve entered the information.

4.See what’s automatically running

As your PC boots up, Windows looks in several locations for instructions on how to launch the various applications and processes that load at start-up. Depending on the program, the locations for these instructions vary.

Many are in the Registry, a hierarchical database of user, application, and hardware-device information. Others are in a Startup group folder, and a select few could be in your PC’s win.ini file. We’ll refer to these locations collectively as the Autorun group, because the items they contain run automatically every time Windows starts.

To see which ones are in the Registry, go to Start > Run, then type in regedit.exe to enter the Registry.Don’t alter just anything in the Registry! Changes to the Registry are irreversible and could cause serious damage to your PC. Even advanced users can run into trouble in a hurry if they’re not careful. The Run keys are the most important for finding Autorun programs. You’ll find them by drilling down to hkey_local_machine/software/microsoft/windows/currentversion. If you double-click the Run folder, you’ll see some items that load when you boot your PC.

You can examine the items in the Startup group folder by going to Start > All Programs > Startup. Finally, you can see if anything is in the win.ini file by selecting Start > Run, then typing win.ini. Look for anything listed on a RUN= or LOAD= line. It’s unlikely you’ll find anything there, but checking won’t hurt.

5.Delete unwanted Auto run items

Use the powerful System Configuration Utility to easily (but not permanently) remove software from the boot procedure.

Now you can use Windows’ System Configuration Utility to trim the fat from the Registry Run keys and the Startup group.

a. To start the utility, select Start > Run, then type msconfig.

b. Select the Startup tab to show a list of items executed during boot up.

c. To see the entire Command column, stretch it to the right. A scroll bar should now appear at the bottom of the window, enabling you to view more of the Location information.

d. Scroll down the list to see if you recognize anything that shouldn’t be there. If so, all you have to do is clear its check box to remove the appropriate Registry command line or Startup group shortcut.

6.Bust mysterious boot up apps

The Auto runs app displays a list of items that load during start-up. “Files not found” likely are remnants of uninstalled apps.

It’s not unusual for the System Configuration Utility’s Startup tab to display a Startup item with no name, making it next to impossible to determine whether it’s important. One way to find out is to disable that line by unshackling it.

If you’re running a safety utility such as Zone Alarm Security Suite, you may get a pop-up warning message that identifies the name of the item about to be changed. If so, just do a Google search on the name for more details?

If no alert appears, download the freeware app Auto runs to display a great deal of useful information about Auto run items on your system. Double-click any item on the list, and the utility opens the Registry Editor, highlighting the line linked with that item.

If that’s not enough info, right-click any highlighted Registry entry and select Google on the context menu to search the Web for more information about the tinted item.

7.Clock your new boot up speed

Does it right, and this boot up screen may become a remote memory. Once you’ve identified the items that don’t need to be launched every time Windows starts use the structure pattern Utility’s Startup tab or the Auto runs utility to clear the check boxes next to the names of these items. Then restart your computer to get a subjective feel for any speed development. Run a few of your often used applications just to make sure all’s well. If you discover you’ve by chance disabled something vital, just use either utility to recheck the box next to that item.

When you’re done, do a cold reboot and time the total start-up sequence, ending when your Notepad window launches. Contrast your before-and-after results to see how much time you neat as of the series. Depending on what you were able to remove, the speed difference will choice from modest to major. Either way, you’ll have a little less “stuff” dragging down your system, and more memory will be freed up for your utilize.

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Tags:auto run, autorun, backup, backup utility, boot, command, configuration, notepad, reboot, shortcut, speed, start-up, startup, system, system configuration, tweak, utility, virus check, Windows, windows startup, windows xp

Run Blocked Startup Programs In Vista

Windows Vista is good for security, but sometimes it can go too far making it hard to run programs that you know are safe and not giving a way to run them in the future. The way it treats some startup programs is a classic example, frequently displaying an annoying ‘Windows has blocked some startup programs’ error message.

I’ve finally found a way to unblock startup programs in Vista and to remove the ‘Windows has blocked some startup programs’ message. To do this follow the steps below:

step1: Click the Start button and enter ‘Task Scheduler’

step2: Enter an Administrator password or click Confirm as required by UAC

step3: Click the ‘Create Task’ link (not Create Basic Task)

step4: On the general tab give the task a name

step5: Select a user account that has Administrator privileges

step6: Check the option “Run only when user is logged on”

step7: Check the box “Run with highest privileges”

step8: Click the ‘Triggers’ tab and click the ‘New’ button

step9: Select “At log on” from the drop-down list at the top

step10: Check the “Any user” option

step11: At the bottom under Advanced Settings check the Enabled box and click OK

step12: Click the Actions tab and click the New button

step13: Click Browse and locate the program you want to run at startup

step14: In the “Add arguments” box enter /Startup

step15: Click the Settings tab

step16: Check the box “Run task as soon as possible after a scheduled start is missed”

step17: Uncheck the box “Stop the task if it runs longer than:”

step18: Click OK, then OK again

Tags:administrator, Block, check, error, error message, program, startup, startup programs, task scheduler, uac, Windows, windows vista, Windows Vista

Top Ten Tips to Speed Up Windows Vista

Windows Vista is a great looking operating system with some awesome features, but it can be slow, unless you’ve got a hugely powerful PC to run it. For most computers however, a few quick Vista tweaks can make a massive difference in the speed of Vista for everyday use.

Here are the list of recommended Vista performance and speed tweaks:

1. Turn off Windows Search Indexing
Windows Vista search indexing is constantly reviewing files on your system to make their contents available for quick searching. This is handy, but can severely impact system performance.

To disable this constant indexing:

* Click Start then Computer
* Right Click the C: Drive
* On General Tab, Uncheck Index this drive for faster searching
* On the subsequent dialog box, Select Include subfolders and files

2. Turn off Remote Differential Compression
Remote Differential Compression measures the changes in files over a network to transfer them with minimal bandwidth rather than transferring an entire file that has previously been moved. By constantly checking for file changes, this service can hinder system performance.

To disable this service:

* Open Control Panel
* Switch to Classic View
* Select Program Features
* Choose Turn Windows features on and off
* Scroll down and uncheck Remote Differential Compression

3. Turn off Automatic Windows Defender Operation
Windows Defender real-time protection against malware continues to run despite having Automatic operation disabled.
To disable this feature:

* Open Control Panel
* Select Windows Defender
* Choose Tools from the top menu
* Select Options
* Uncheck Auto Start at the bottom of the window

4. Turn off Automatic Disk Defragmentation
Windows Vista and its always-on defragment feature isn’t really that necessary and can cause system slow down. Just remember to run a defrag manually every week or so.

To disable this:

* Click Start then Computer
* Right Click the C: Drive
* Select the Tools Tab
* Uncheck Run on a schedule

5. Add a 2GB or higher USB Flash drive to take advantage of Windows Ready Boost (Additional Memory Cache)
Ready Boost is Microsoft’s name for using a USB thumb/flash drive to provide some quick access memory the operating system can use as extra RAM. The Ready Boost system can significantly improve system performance.

To set this up:

* Insert a USB Flash Drive (preferably 2GB or more)
* Click Start then Computer
* Right Click the USB Drive in My Computer
* Select the Ready Boost Tab
* Choose Use this device
* Select as much space as you can free up for RAM usage vs. Storage

6. Turn off Windows Hibernation
Windows hibernation background services can use a large amount of system resources. If you don’t use the Hibernate feature on a regular basis you may want to disable it to give Vista a performance boost.
To disable Hibernation:

* Select the Control Panel then Power Options
* Click Change Plan Settings
* Click on Change Advanced Power Settings
* Expand the Sleep selection
* Expand the Hibernate After selection
* Crank the selector down to zero
* Click Apply

7. Turn off System Restore
Analysis and restore point creation by Windows Vista can eat a fair amount of system resources. Disabling this service will obviously mean the system restore feature in Vista will not be available in the event of a system crash. Change this at your own risk.

* Control Panel>System
* Click System Protection on the left panel
* Uncheck the main system drive
* Agree to the confirmation

8. Disable User Access Control (UAC)
This much-loathed new Vista feature attempts to protect your system from malware infection by making you manually confirm a whole host of everyday user operations. While it doesn’t directly impact performance, it can be annoying and might be more hassle than good.

To disable User Access Control:

* Click Start then Control Panel
* Select User Accounts
* Select Turn User Account Control on or off
* Uncheck User Account Control Box
* Restart as recommended

9. Disable excess Windows Services that Auto-Launch at Startup
Just like Windows XP, Vista ships with all kinds of services enabled that load at startup and may never be used by most users.
To see what loads at startup and disable the ones you likely won’t be needing (they can always be started manually later):

* Click Start then Control Panel
* Select Administrative Tools
* Choose System Configuration
* Click the Services Tab
* You can safely deselect:
- Offline Files (unless you’re using Offline File Sync)
- Tablet PC Input Service (unless you have a tablet PC)
- Terminal Services
- Windows Search (If you have already disabled indexing)
- Fax (unless you’re using a fax modem)

10. Disable Excess Windows Features
Windows ships with other features that are listed separately in the Vista operating system from the startup services.
You can view and disable these features by:

* Clicking Start then Control Panel
* Select Program Features
* On the left panel, select Turn Windows Features on or off
* You can safely deselect:
- Indexing Service
- Remote Differential Compression
- Tablet PC Optional Components
- Windows DFS Replication Service
- Windows Fax & Scan (unless you use a modem for faxing)
- Windows Meeting Space (unless you use the Live Meeting Service)

Tags:Compression, Defender, defrag, disk defragmentation, hibernation, Indexing, memory, Performance, Settings, speed, speed tweaks, startup, system performance, tweak, User Account Control, Windows, Windows Defender, windows vista, Windows Vista

Optimize Windows Vista for better performance

No matter how fast or shiny computers might be when they are new, they all seem to get slower over time. That state-of-the-art PC you bought last year might not feel like such a screamer after you install a dozen programs, load it with antispyware and antivirus tools, and download untold amounts of junk from the Internet. The slowdown might happen so gradually you hardly notice it, until one day you’re trying to open a program or file and wonder, “What happened to my poor PC?”

Whatever the cause, there are a lot of ways to help speed up Windows and make your PC work better even without upgrading your hardware. Here are some tips to help you optimize Windows Vista for faster performance.

Delete programs you never use

Many PC manufacturers pack their new computers with programs you didn’t order and might not want. These often include trial editions and limited edition versions of programs that software companies hope you will try, find useful, and then pay to upgrade to full versions or newer versions. If you decide you don’t want them, keeping the software on your computer might slow it down by using precious memory, disk space, and processing power.

It’s a good idea to uninstall all the programs you don’t plan to use. This should include both manufacturer-installed software and software you installed yourself but don’t want anymore especially utility programs designed to help manage and tune your computer’s hardware and software. Utility programs such as virus scanners, disk cleaners, and backup tools often run automatically at startup, quietly chugging along in the background where you can’t see them. Many people have no idea they are even running.

Even if your PC is older, it might contain manufacturer-installed programs that you never noticed or have since forgotten about. It’s never too late to remove these and get rid of the clutter and wasted system resources. Maybe you thought you might use the software someday, but never did. Uninstall it and see if your PC runs faster.

Limit how many programs load at startup

Many programs are designed to load automatically when Windows starts. Software manufacturers often set their programs to open in the background, where you can’t see them running, so they’ll open right away when you click their icons. That’s helpful for programs you use a lot, but for programs you rarely or never use, this wastes precious memory and slows down the time it takes Windows to finish loading.

Decide for yourself if you want a program to load at startup.

But how can you tell what programs load automatically at startup? Sometimes this is obvious, because the program will add an icon to the notification area on the taskbar, where you can see it running. Look there and see if there are any programs running that you don’t want to load automatically. Position your mouse over each icon to see the program name. Be sure to click the Show hidden icons button so you don’t miss any icons.

Even after you check the notification area, you might still have missed some programs that load automatically at startup. You can find and disable them using Windows Defender.

If you’re unsure about whether a program should open automatically at startup, you can try disabling it, restarting your computer, and then using the program. If that causes any problems with the program, you can go back and re-enable it to start automatically.

Defragment your hard drive

Fragmentation makes your hard disk do extra work that can slow down your computer. Disk Defragmenter rearranges fragmented data so your hard disk can work more efficiently. Disk Defragmenter runs on a schedule, but you can also defragment your hard disk manually.

Clean up your hard disk

If you want to reduce the number of unnecessary files on your hard disk to free up disk space and help your computer run faster, use Disk Cleanup. It removes temporary files, empties the Recycle Bin, and removes a variety of system files and other items that you no longer need.

Run fewer programs at the same time

Sometimes changing your computing behavior can have a big impact on your PC’s performance. If you’re the type of computer user who likes to keep eight programs and a dozen browser windows open at once—all while instant messaging your friends don’t be surprised if your PC bogs down. Keeping a lot of e?mail messages open can also use up memory.

If you find your PC slowing down, ask yourself if you really need to keep all your programs and windows open at once. Find a better way to remind yourself to reply to e?mail messages than to keep all of them open.

Turn off visual effects

If Windows is running slowly, you can speed it up by disabling some of its visual effects. It comes down to appearance versus performance. Would you rather have Windows run faster or look prettier? If your PC is fast enough, you don’t have to make this tradeoff, but if your computer is just barely powerful enough for Windows Vista, it can be useful to scale back on the visual bells and whistles.

You can choose which visual effects to turn off, one by one, or you can let Windows choose a bunch for you. There are 20 visual effects you can control, such as the transparent glass look, the way menus open or close, and whether shadows are displayed.

To adjust all visual effects for best performance:

1. Open Performance Information and Tools by clicking the Start button , clicking Control Panel, clicking System and Maintenance, and then clicking Performance Information and Tools.

2. Click Adjust visual effects. If you are prompted for an administrator password or confirmation, type the password or provide confirmation.

3. Click the Visual Effects tab, click Adjust for best performance, and then click OK. (For a less drastic option, select Let Windows choose what’s best for my computer.)

Tags:Anti-spyware, antivirus tools, area, Clean, cleanup, Computer, Defender, defragment, defragmenter, Fragmentation, Hardware, memory, memory disk, Network, password, pc manufacturers, Performance, schedule, software utility, Spyware, startup, tools, Uninstall, usb, virus, virus scanners, Windows, Windows Defender, windows vista, Windows Vista

Cleaner PC in a Second

Registry Cleaning and PC maintenance software has got a bad name with so many ‘scareware’ products popping up on websites, telling you that your computer needs attention and offering to put it right. Woe betide anyone who takes up the offer and more often than not you’ll end up with a infected PC, or a bill for a piece of useless software. The other problems is that maintenance software often makes little or no difference, and don’t be misled into thinking they will somehow restore the performance on a terminally sluggish or cluttered machine, that just doesn’t happen in the real world. On the other hand, running a decent cleaner every so often can help to avoid problems later down the line, by removing redundant files and Registry entries, and one freeware utility I have been trialling recently seems to do a pretty good job. It’s called nCleaner Second and it covers a lot of ground, from scanning the Registry, to tweaking Windows settings and scanning Startup files. I’m still playing around with it but so far so good and the promise of it being able to free up an average of 2Gb of hard disc space certainly seems to be true. It’s small the download is on 875kB and remarkably fast, so see what you think, and I would be interested to hear your views, good or bad.

Tags:Cleaner, Computer, download, freeware, freeware utility, help, Maintenance, nCleaner, Performance, registry, registry cleaning, Software, startup, startup files, tweak, utility, Windows

Five Ways To Improve Your Computer’s Speed

Slow computer getting you down? Wish you could speed up your system so that games won’t crawl by like a slide show permanently set to slow? Well look no further! I shall share five easy steps that you can take to improve your system’s speed! Most of them are free of charge, and all of them should have some effect on your system. So without further ado, we begin with:

1. Remove spyware and adware from your system. Have you noticed recently that ads seem to pop up whenever you go to a Web page? Or that Internet speeds are about that of diseased livestock? Your

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