FIVE Safe Ways to Clean Up Your PC!

1. The first, most LOGICAL thing you can do to clean up your PC is to delete all the files you don´t need.
   Don´t be such a hard drive packrat! If you can´t bear to part with files or photos, burn them onto a disk. Or upload them to a website – several if you wish, including an e-mail inbox if you´re worried about losing them. Any place other than your valuable hard drive space is fine. And don´t forget to remove old PDF or EXE e–books from your hard drive as well.
   
   
2. Streamline your hard drive.
   Your hard drive is a catchall for all the files left over from the many hours you spend on the Internet. The minute you experience a slow down, take it as a sign that you need to clean up your computer Internet files. Go to: My Computer > Control Panel > Internet Options. In the Temporary Internet Files box, hit Delete Files. Hit the Settings button, and consider changing “Amount of disk space to use.”
   
   If you want to clean up your PC more thoroughly, do the following: Run Disk Cleanup by going to: Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools, then selecting the drive you want to clean. If you haven´t already, you can clear all Temporary Internet Files from here, as well as Downloaded Program Files, Recycle Bin, and all Temporary files found on that drive. Then use the More Options tab to delete optional components and programs.
   
   
3. Clean your CPU case.
   As you clean up your computer, it´s easy to forget that your system is more than just drives and software. Many lagging problems (and even crashes!) are caused by dirty CPU components that have caused heat inside the case to build up to damaging levels. If your cables are covered with dust, your fan webbed with dust, and your air holes restricted by dust, and you do nothing about it, then it´s only a matter of time before your hardware becomes irreparably damaged.
   
   Tip:When you do decide clean up your PC case, remove all connections and use a vacuum especially made for the purpose. A less expensive alternative would be to use both soft and hard paintbrushes, as well as soft rags. But paintbrushes and rags only work with regular light dusting. NEVER try to rub the connections, motherboard, or cards free off dirt.
   
   
4. Uninstall all programs you no longer use, including their orphaned files and folders.
   Are you in the habit of bumming free programs off the Internet? Having tons of useless EXE files on your hard drive can clutter you up and slow you down. What´s more, frequent installing and uninstalling can leave you with file fragments and old data from applications after they're long gone. Right click on your hard drive, click Explore, and expand Program Files. Delete all empty folders from uninstalled programs. Then run a powerful registry cleaner like RegCure to efficiently clean up your PC. Registry cleaners are 100% safe. They only delete the files that your system will no longer use.
   
   Tip:: Hit CTRL+ALT+DEL to uncover applications running in the background. Some applications automatically download into your PC when you visit certain websites. Most of these are ads and spyware. Run a spyware tool the run RegCure to rid your PC of all leftover fragments.
   
   
5. Finally, go to the Microsoft technical support website and download the free password update tool.
   It's a small EXE file, only a little over 300kB. This tool updates and replaces old passwords in case all the cleaning you did affected your password cookies.
   
   

Back >>>