Can Your PC Run like New?

Get Your PC to Run like a Dream

I'm sure you've all noticed that when you buy a new PC it works like a dream and that over time, the performance degrades and it gets slower and slower. I have a cynical viewpoint that I have to reinstall my PC every 6 to 8 months to make it run better. Whilst that's not entirely true, there are some maintenance tasks that can be conducted on a regular basis and tools that can be used to help improve a PC's performance.

Here are some of the tasks and tools you can use:

1. Internet Accelerator

Many windows settings work in harmony in order to get the best out of an available internet connection. Unfortunately, the factory design of these settings means that they are often not optimised for a particular connection type, or they are adjusted by a newly installed software product unasked. As a result, the computer can't get the best out of your internet connection. As a user, this means you have to wait longer until web pages have loaded in your browser or until internet downloads are finished. A slow internet connection costs time and gets on your nerves. For this reason, taking the time to optimise the settings can have some major benefits.

I have been testing the Ashampoo Internet Accelerator 2 on my ADSL Broadband connection and it have noticed an improvement. The program allows a fully automatic setting of the most important parameters. To use the program, you will need to know your connection type:

Analogue modem
ISDN
DSL via LAN cable or cable modem
DSL via wireless LAN
Other LAN connections (no DSL)

This system means that the program gets the very last drop of performance out of the internet connection. When using a modem and an ISDL connection, the improvements in performance are particularly noticeable - a reason for celebration. With a DSL connection, the tuning result isn't quite as impressive, as there are fewer things which need adjusting in order to provide an optimisation. Nonetheless, it is still the case here that every percentage of extra performance means better internet surfing.