Lutchen PC Clean Up Recommendations;
First download & install Revo Uninstaller http://revouninstaller.com A great and more effective alternative to the Windows Add/Remove program. With a sophisticated algorithim, Revo removes unnecessary files and registry entries left behind by incomplete program uninstallation routines. Make sure you read & follow instructions for removing programs. Especially when (NOT) to reboot. Otherwise Revo cannot work properly for you. Use Revo to uninstall and completely remove any and all unwanted software.
If you have Norton, McAfee or similar Anti-Virus, they require a special removal program due to the registry entries, contact us for further direction.
Once all the fat is trimmed and the programs/applications are successfully removed, we recommend you download Piriform’s Ccleaner http://www.piriform.com/ccleaner to tidy things up and clean your computer for a new slate. “CCleaner is the number-one tool for cleaning your Windows PC. It protects your privacy online and makes your computer faster and more secure. Easy to use and a small, fast download” Use this tool to completely clean your system, deleting bloated temporary memory and fixing registry errors.
There are many quality Anti Virus programs on the market both free and paid that do the job and do the job effectively. Many users have their favorites and preferences for what their use to and their specific needs. One free, strong rated, and powerful program out there is Microsoft Security Essentials http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/ . They’re a newer program, a much better upgrade to the precursor Microsoft OneCare and provide very good protection against Malware and Viruses. If you’re not a big fan of Microsoft we recommend two other free and just as good Anti Virus programs AVG or Avira.
Free software is just that, free.. No strings attached but when installing be careful not to install the toolbars or other programs. These additional programs are mostly harmless but are just cross business to business promotions the vendors use and have no real benefit to you. As the old saying goes, “You get what you pay for’ is true but with software development, there is whats called “Open Source” where programmers from all over come together and develop programs for the public for the benefit of producing something THEY can build and be a part of at no cost but valuable donations. This practice has even made the big companies like Microsoft take notice. These free programs like the Anti Virus apps above are more than enough for the casual user and even for the at home power user. For geeks and professionals who know what their doing and expect the best, Kaspersky has been rated #1 for a while now for good reason. Both McAfee and Norton are old players and have came down from their time at the top, BitDefender and ESET NOD32 are among the leading Anti Virus tools for the money.
The rule of thumb here is; NEVER run multiple Anti Virus and or Anti Spyware software in “resident memory”. You can have several of these programs installed on your hard drive but you should only be “RUNNING ONE AT A TIME”!
Then get Advanced System Care (direct download) Install and run. Take some time to fully discover all this software will do. We don’t usually like to recommend an ‘all-in-one” but this powerful and free application is a handy and very easy to use one-stop-shop for routine maintenance..
Spybot Search & Destroy http://safer-networking.org & Malwarebytes (http://malwarebytes.org)
Spybot – Search & Destroy has been in the antispyware game for a long time offering features we’ve come to expect in the best apps in the category. The program checks your system against a comprehensive database of adware and other system invaders. The Immunize feature blocks a plethora of uninvited Web-borne flotsam before it reaches your computer. Other useful tools, including Secure Shredder, complement the program’s basic functionality for completely destroying files
When installing/running Spybot S&D be sure to run the update, then “Immunize”, then run a full scan in that order.
Malwarebytes’ Anti-Malware is a high performance anti-malware application that thoroughly removes even the most advanced malware and spyware including sophisticated Trojan Horses and Worms. With one of the fastest, most effective quick scans and malware removal capabilities on the market, this program is the perfect addition to your PC’s defenses.
Its strongly recommended, if at all possible when using these applications, restart your computer and when it comes back on press the f8 key to enter the Windows “Safe Mode” where all processes are turned off and you will be able to use these tools effectively with no conflicts. *note – some programs do not have a safe mode capability and can only be used in “regular mode”
Once you have all the programs and applications installed, updated and running properly, it’s a good idea to defrag your hard drive to physically organize the contents of the disk to store the pieces of each file close together and contiguously for more efficient use. Windows has a built in defrag tool but has shown to be moderately effective at best. We recommend you visit Auslogics http://www.auslogics.com/en/software/disk-defrag/download/ and download their top rated and free disk defrag and for maximum performance.
Last but not least its nice for the user to have a profile of their computer in a simple to read html website format where you can print for your records which shows all your computer information. There are many great programs that do just this that are called PC audit programs. One PC Audit program has been a well known industry performer that’s user friendly, detailed and FREE. Belarc Advisor http://www.belarc.com/free_download.html builds a detailed profile of your installed software and hardware, missing Microsoft hotfixes, anti-virus status, and CIS (Center for Internet Security) benchmarks. For power users, company’s or field techs who have a complex system and know what their looking at, we say check out System Information for Windows or just SIW starting at $69.99.
There’s several more optimizing methods / techniques / procedures that can be done but all are OS specific and I would need to know more about your overall configuration to proceed further and look forward to hearing from you.
P.S. For just a little extra added measure there are two fun little browser add ons I forgot to mention..
Web Of Trust or WOT http://www.mywot.com/ is the world’s leading community-based, free safe surfing tool that helps all web users stay safe as they search, surf and shop online. The WOT add-on tells you which sites you can trust when using Google, Yahoo!, Bing, Wikipedia and other popular sites. Its an unintrusive little add on to both Firefox and Internet Explorer which adds a little colored circle at each search engine result. Depending on the colors red, orange or green tells you if that site has been reported as a dangerous site. Keep in mind, this app isn’t perfect and what’s safe to you, someone else may find harmful.
The other fun and very useful add on is a embedded spellsheck on your browser. I’m a horrible speller and sometimes forget punctuation as you already may have found here. Both Internet Explorer and Firefox have their own add ons. IE has IeSpell http://www.iespell.com/ and Firefox has many but we recommend the built-in spell checker which lets you enter text directly into Web pages—like blog posts and Web-based email—without worrying about typos and misspellings. Work directly with the Web and save yourself a step.
