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Keep It Clean! 

Routine Maintenance on Your Computer

May 2017


Anti-malware programs

  • Always keep your firewall, anti-virus, and anti-spyware products up to date!

  • There are many good commercial products available, such as:

    • Norton

    • McAfee

    • Kaspersky

    • Vipre

  • There are several free options as well, including:

    • Avast!

    • AVG

    • Microsoft Security Essentials (Win 7) and Windows Defender (Win 8 – 10)

  • Make sure to run a full scan of your computer on a regular basis. Automatic scans usually can be set up.

  • Pick your scheduled scan time when you do not usually perform “computing-intensive’ tasks.

  • Set your security software to download and install updates automatically. Choose how often update checks should be made.

  • Firewall software also is a good idea, especially if you use your computer on the road a lot. 

    • Firewall software prevents unwanted access to/from a network.

  • Beware of insecurity software – you’re browsing along, and suddenly you see something like this:

anti-malware, figure one, computer cleaning

  • Clicking on buttons such as OK or Click here to fix the problems may load malware onto your computer; some of this malware may force purchase of the infiltrator’s product before it can be removed. (“Ransomware”)


Automatic updates

  • Set your computer to download and install operating system updates automatically.

  • This will assure that you have the latest security and performance fixes as soon as Microsoft or Apple releases them.


Disk space

  • When your internal disk reaches 70% - 75% full, you may see performance begin to drop.

  • One answer to this problem: Create more space!

    • Install a 2nd (or 3rd?) internal drive, and move your data files from your system drive to the new drive.

    • Installing a solid-state drive (SSD) will have the further advantage of speeding up your system.

 

  • An easier solution: clear the clutter!

    • Uninstall programs that you no longer use.

      • This is done from the control panel in Windows. (Never just delete the app’s folder.)

      • You can simply delete the app’s folder in MacOS, for the most part.

    • Copy data files to an external drive, and then delete them from your internal disk. (See Mayfield’s law #1.)

    • If you are using Outlook or some other non-Web email client, delete unneeded emails.


Disk Fragmentation

  • Over time, hard disks become fragmented, which means that files are broken up into small pieces that are stored across the disk rather than being stored as a single unit.

  • You can perform a defrag operation to get a little more speed.

  • Be sure to back up your system before defragmenting!

  • Defragmenting an external drive takes a lot of time.

  • DO NOT defrag a SSD! They work differently than a hard drive.


Disk Organization

  • Keep your files well-organized into folders and subfolders to make it easier to find what you want.

  • Name your files in such a way that it is apparent what the file is, and so that you can search folders or drives using the tools built into your Windows or MacOS.


The Desktop 

  • Windows and Mac OS run faster with uncluttered desktops.

  • Have you ever spent too much time looking for a particular shortcut or file on a crowded desktop?

  • Suggestions:

    • Move documents to the Documents folder or another logical location.

    • Pin frequently used apps to the Start menu, Start page, or put them on the taskbar.

    • Use the Windows search box or MacOS Spotlight to find apps and other files.


Web browsers

  • There are a number of good browsers available:

    • Microsoft Edge

    • Mozilla Firefox

    • Google Chrome

    • Apple Safari

    • Opera

  • You may find that you can navigate better/faster using a different browser than you currently are using.

  • You can have multiple browsers installed on your computer simultaneously.

  • Occasionally clearing out certain data from browsers may also improve browser performance. For example, in Edge:

    • Select the three dots at the upper-right corner of the browser.

    • Click on Settings.

    • Under Clear Browsing Data, click on Choose what to clear.

    • Choose the items you wish to clear; cached data and files is a good choice.

    • Click on the Clear button.

  • Use a product such as Delicious or Pinboard to manage your bookmarks.

    • These products store your bookmarks in the cloud and permit you to access those bookmarks from any browser on any computer.


Startup programs

  • Sometimes when you install an app, it puts items into the Startup folder.

  • The apps that are located in that folder are executed automatically when Windows or MacOS starts.

  • Check the folder from time to time to see if there are any items you can safely remove. • When some apps are installed, they install other, “hidden” apps. These don’t appear in the Startup folder, but they also are run when Windows starts.

    • These apps tend to continue running once started, using up time and other resources on your computer.

    • Some of these programs are useful, but others are not, and they could even include spyware or other forms of malware.

  • There is a utility named msconfig that can be run to look at and remove such apps. DO NOT RUN MSCONFIG UNLESS YOU ARE SURE OF ITS USE!


Power issues

  • Always use a surge protector with your computer and related equipment.

  • If you are concerned about power losses, consider purchasing an uninterruptable power supply (UPS).

    • Purchase a UPS with enough capacity to power your computer &monitor for a few minutes.

    • A UPS is not needed when using a laptop, unless your battery is bad.

  • Change the power options (from the control panel) to put the monitor, hard disk, and computer into low-power modes during extended periods of inactivity.


Other suggestions

  • Don’t start too many applications at the same time.

  • Don’t just switch off your computer’s power (unless it’s really frozen). Shut it down instead.

  • Occasionally use a registry cleaning app.


Some of Mayfield’s Laws

1. If your data is important, keep a current backup.

  • Corollaries:

    • Keep your current backup current.

    • If your data is really important, keep two current backups.

    • If you keep multiple backups, keep them in different locations.

    • Rotate between at least two sets of backup media.

2. It’s seldom a good idea to purchase leading-edge computer technology. Going back even one generation can save you big dollars.

  • Besides, in three to six months, the leading-edge technology for which you paid extra no longer will be leading edge.

 

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