Get your PC to work better.

STEP 1: Loose weight!

Over time your PC will have gained excess weight in the form of Programs you have installed but never use and and every web page you've visited: all of these equal excess weight that slows your computer down. The first step in this plan concerns removing unnecessary and unwanted files, leading to improved performance.
Go to the control panel (start, settings) and select Add/Remove Programs. You will find a list of all applications saved on your PC, from which you can delete those you no longer need.
Next we lose some browser weight, the temporary internet files and cookies that mount up when you surf the web. These consume lots of disk space and can effect even the speediest of broadband connections. To get rid of them open internet options (start, control panel, internet options). On the General tab, in the temporary internet files section, click both the delete cookies and the delete files buttons. Then click the clear history button and click OK.
Day to Day use of programs also adds 'flab' to your PC in the form of temporary files. Windows allows you remove this 'flab' in one go by selecting Disk Cleanup from the system tools menu (start, programs, accessories). This compresses old files and removes unnecessary ones to reclaim disk space without removing vital system information.
You can also remove temporary files by manually deleting them from the Temp folder (start, run, TYPE: %temp%).

STEP 2: Remove Spyware/Viruses!

Anyone who uses the net regularly will have picked up spyware or viruses at some point.
The best two tools for detecting and removing spyware remain Spybot search and destroy and Ad-Aware SE. A full scan with these tools will uncover all manner of net nasties, but with a few clicks you can get rid of them. Remember to keep them updated.
I also recommend CWShredder which removes variants of the hijacking spyware CoolWebSearch.
For a free, reliable virus scanner you can do no better (In my opinion) than AVG7. This excellent program searches your whole computer for viruses. It then removes them or gives you step by step instructions on how to remove them.

STEP 3: Make your system immune!.

Viruses and Spyware won't be disappearing any time soon so you need to strengthen your systems defences to keep them at bay.
Spybot search and destroy allows you to immunise to stop spyware entering your system. For increased protection Spywareblaster and Spywareguard are two programs that are solely devoted to this task. Spywareblaster prevents the installation of ActiveX-based spyware,adware,browser hijackers,diallers and other pests, and blocks tracking cookies in Internet Explorer and Firefox. Spywareguard offers real-time protection by catching spyware before it is installed. Used in conjunction with Spybot and Ad-aware these two free programs guarantee spies are kept at bay.

Even more essential, especially for broadband users is the use of a Firewall. A Firewall filters the traffic entering and leaving your computer to stop hackers gaining access. For me Sygate Personal Firewall does a fine job although Zonealarm seems to work the best for a lot of people.
We have already covered Antiviruses earlier but more can be found in This post.

Totally Radical Super Dee Duper Advice Vidster!!!! :thumbs: \/ :goodman:

STEP 4: Keep it tidy!

Now that your PC is (hopefully) free of viruses and spyware, it's important to keep it clean and tidy. It's good to get into the habit of performing regular system maintenance. This will help prevent problems with your computer and keep it running smoothly. Windows has several tools built-in to help with this process. You can find them in the system tools (start, programs,accessories, system tools). We have already covered Disk Cleanup so we will now move on to Scandisk and Disk Defragmenter.
Scandisk searches for errors on your HD that pose a threat to stability, and fixes any problems it finds. If you use your PC every day, it is recommended you run this program every week or so.
Disk Defragmenter deals with fragmentation caused by files being broken up over several locations when installed and used. This slows the performance of your pc as it has to work harder to gather the scattered parts. Disk Defragmenter reorganises them in to neat blocks so Windows can retrieve them faster when needed. It is recommended that you run this program just 2 or 3 times a year but i like to run it every 2 weeks or so.
The other Housekeeping chore you need to consider is making regular Backups of your system. This is a safeguard against viruses and it also free's up vital HD space, as you can delete photo's etc once they have been backed up.
You can back up and restore all your documents and settings using the backup feature in the System Tools menu.