CompuClever Blog

Improve computer performance by disabling some features

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Every time you buy a new Windows computer, it comes with a lot of software programs that you may not want or need, and this can really slow down your PC.

You can optimize your system, making it faster and saving hard drive space, by disabling the applications that just aren’t useful. Here’s how:

Using Windows 7:

1. Click the circular Windows button at the bottom left and then select the Control Panel.
2. Select “Programs and Features”.
3. Click on the link “Enable or disable Windows features”.
4. You should see a list of system features. De-select or uncheck the boxes of the software applications you want to disable. For instance, you can uncheck the box in front of optional components for Tablet PC if you do not have a Tablet PC, or Windows Gadget Platform if you don’t use or plan on using gadgets on your desktop.
6. Finally, click on the OK button at any time you can re-checking features and return them in their previous state.

Using other versions of Windows:

1. Click on the Start button and then Settings > Control Panel.
2. Click on the Add/Remove Programs icon.
3. Now click Add/Remove Windows Components.
4. Continue reading...

Core i3, Core i5, Core i7: what’s the difference? And which is right for you?

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We’ve come a long since an Intel 386 processor chip was considered the defacto standard for home computer CPUs (you’ll recall that the CPU is a “processor” or “chip” that acts as your computer’s engine).

Since the 386 days, PCs have moved on to be powered by Pentiums, Atoms, Celerons and everything in between.
However, if you go computer shopping these days, you’ll most likely encounter 3 different names: Core i3, Core i5, and Core i7. What’s the difference, and which one is right for you?

Generally speaking, Intel’s Core series of CPU microprocessors are faster, more powerful variations of the earlier Celeron and Pentium chips. They actually started out as “Core 2” “Core Duo” and other confusing names, but the Core i3, i5, and i7 are yet another generation of this chip.
As you might expect, the higher the number of the chip, the more powerful it is. So, the Core i3 is an entry-level chip, while the Core i7 is considered to be quite powerful.

But which one is right for you?

The answer, of course, depends on what you want to use your computer for. If you do any kind of video processing at all, you’ll probably want a more powerful chip. Continue reading...

How to speed up Windows startup

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If you’ve owned your computer for more than six months, it’s more than likely that it’s taking longer and longer to start up every time you press the “On” button. With the newer Windows 7 operating system, it generally takes between 30 and 50 seconds from bootup until the login screen (where you enter your username and password) appears. Once you’ve entered your credentials, it may take another minute or so for your computer to be ready to use. That’s a total of at least 90 seconds! That may not seem like long, but the seconds can drag on.

And remember, as a rule, the older it is, the longer it takes your computer  longer to start up.

So, what causes slow Windows startup times?

One cause of slower startup times is the number of new programs you’ve installed in your computer since you bought it. Every time you add a new program, new files are added to the system registry. The more registry files there are, the slower it can take for a computer to start up. Registry files also become “fragmented” or dispersed inefficiently throughout the system, and this can also slow computer startup speeds.

So regularly maintaining your registry may help speed things up at startup. Continue reading...