Do Computers Get Slow?
In an article on Yahoo! Tech, titled Speed Up Your PC, the author suggests that computers dont actually “get slow over time”… but that our expectations change, and we think our computers are running slower than usual.
Speed up your PC
Our tech expert has some advice to give your tired computer a little extra oomph. » Take eight simple steps
He does go on to give 8 basic steps to increase the speed and efficiency of your computer system… but the point he made caused me to pause and think.
DO computers slow down on you over time, or is it all in our heads?
I would be inclined to think that the slow-down is a direct result of software that we install, software conflicts, lack of basic hardware maintenance, etc. I dont think it’s a figment of our imagination…
Do you?
Tags: computers, hardware, software, pc maintenance
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I recently posted about this in a topic on the Warrior Forums – http://www.warriorforum.com/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=111000&SearchTerms=,
I encounter people almost daily who believe computers need replacement after about 2 years because they ‘slow down’.
The reality is most computers have been ‘fast’ enough to perform everyday tasks with ease for years (in terms of processing power).
Instead, perceived slowness is usually caused by one of the following:
Lack of ram (causing windows to use the much slower hard drive instead), Spyware or Malware (very common), an overloaded registry (with unused entries from old programs), or disk fragmentation.
All of these things cause excessive use of the hard drive, which slows the computer down even more when Windows ‘pages’ to the hard drive swap file for more memory.
Speeding up the hard drive by defragmenting, cleaning unused registry entries/misc files, and removing malware reduces seek time.
Adding more ram often makes a very dramatic difference, as Windows will then page for virtual memory less often.
Thank you for the additional tips, Kevin! I agree with you that routine maintenance helps systems to continue to run smooth. Personally, I’ve been known to run a system for *years*, until it stops running altogether – lol.
But I have to admit I get the “two year itch” just like everybody else. I think its less about speed or power, and usually more about something new I want to install or run that requires a newer system.
Keeping up with changing technology, you know
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I’m pretty good about not replacing my computer too often. My old one was about 4 years old and showing signs of trouble beyond merely slowing down.
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I’m the same way, Stephanie. In fact, I was on the phone with Dell this morning for upgrade parts – specifically two flatpanels, a dual video card and a ram upgrade. They kept telling me that I needed a new system instead, but I insisted mine worked fine as-is
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I’ve definitely noticed some significant slowdown on one of my PCs. Since I don’t use it very much, I haven’t taken the time to do any real maintenance on it, but at some point I may try some of these suggestions.
At least I’ll do the following:
1) Defragment the drive and swap file
2) Clean the registry
I’ll see if any of these things help
Oh man, this is too great!
I’m always cleaning up my disk space, defragging and running scans, but I’d totally forgotten about cleaning out the registry and stuff.
I wouldn’t be surprised if it was overloaded. Gotta love those downloads!
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