HOW TO MAKE YOUR LAPTOP PERFORM FASTER

If you're noticing that your Windows
laptop runs slower and crankier the
older it gets.

Here's how to fix your laptop.
Step 1:
Buy a new battery if your laptop is
no longer portable and needs to be
tethered to the wall.
Older, nickel cadmium laptop
batteries were never designed to be
left endlessly plugged in -- as we all
do with our laptops -- and often die
before the laptop does.
Tip: Remove the battery pack from
the under side of the laptop and
perform a search for the model
number on the Internet.
Choose newer Lithium Ion, or Li-ion,
battery chemistry, if you can find
that option, for the least weight and
limited memory effect.
Step 2:
Run Windows Maintenance Tasks by
opening the Control Panel in
Windows 7 (older Microsoft operating
systems are similar), and browsing to
System & Security and then Find and
Fix Problems.
Select Run Maintenance Tasks and
allow the troubleshooter to run.
Tip: Run Maintenance Tasks will
correct maintenance issues like
excessive unused files and shortcuts.
Step 3:
Free up disk space by returning to
the Control Panel home page and
browsing to System & Security again.
Choose Free Up Disk Space from the
Administrative Tools area. The
cleanup will run and prompt you to
delete redundant files.
Tip: Freeing up disk space provides
more elbow room within the hard
drive.
Step 4:
Remove programs that you don't use
by selecting Free Up Disk Space
again. This time, choose Clean Up
System Files and then the More
Options tab.
Allow the list to populate and
uninstall programs you don't use by
double-clicking on the program
label.
Tip: Programs take up space on the
hard drive. As with the previous
step, making space helps the laptop.
Plus, fewer programs loading on
laptop startup frees RAM.
Step 5:
Defragment the hard drive by
choosing the Defragment your Hard
Drive option label adjacent to the
Free Up Disk Space label.
Click on Analyze and the tool will
analyze the disk and advise you if
defragmentation is necessary. Follow
the prompt to perform the
defragmentation.
Tip: Defragmenting physically
organizes file clusters on the hard
drive, making the day-to-day file
reading faster.
Step 6:
Turn on Windows Update by clicking
on Automatic Updating On or Off
within the same System & Security
section of the Control Panel, and
choosing Install Updates
Automatically.
Tip: Windows Update is a Microsoft
service that pushes bug fixes and
enhancements to the laptop.
Ensure the computer is running and
online at the scheduled check time.
Follow any prompts.
Step 7:
Install antivirus software. Browse to
the Microsoft Windows Consumer
Security Software Providers Web page
and choose an antivirus application.
I suggest you try the free AVG
product, but others are available
too.
Follow the prompts to install the
product and allow a scan to take
place. Follow any prompts to repair
virus damage.
Tip: You may have to delve deep
into some of the antivirus websites
to find the free version of the
product.
Step 8:
Install maintenance software. I've
used IObit's free Advanced
SystemCare, which has corrected
issues for me.
Browse to the IObit website for the
download. Install the application
and allow it to perform a Smart
Scan. Smart Scan will identify and
remove malware, fix registry issues
and scan the disk for errors, among
other optimizations.
Tip: The paid version of Advanced
SystemCare provides more in-depth
fixes.
#Enjoy