MSCONFIGMSCONFIG is a cool little program that you have on your computer that very few people know about. It controls all of the programs that run every time your computer boots up. The more programs that run, the slower your machine goes. Let's see what you've got. To get started, click on [start] and then [run] and type in: msconfig It should look like this: |
Click [ok] and msconfig will start running. From here, choose the [startup] tab on the far top right. That will bring up this window: |
This window shows everything that your computer runs when it starts up. You can be pretty free about unchecking items, because if you uncheck something that you needed you can always come back in here, re-check it and then reboot again. My advice is to uncheck almost everything. Remember that unchecking an item does not remove it - it just makes it so it doesn't come up right away. The fewer things that you leave checked, the faster your computer will run. If you can decipher the items, try to leave your virus protection running, maybe your printer controls (if you have a printer/scanner combo), palm pilot software and things like that. Other stuff, like "Microsoft Office", instant messaging programs and things of that nature can be safely disabled. Once you're done, click [ok] and the system will encourage you to reboot. Go ahead and reboot and go back in there and uncheck more (or re-check some) as needed. |