About Software Maintenance

 

"My computer is slow" or "some things arent working right" - DONT ignore this.

They are common complaints, and likely a sign of a problem. Possibly your hard drive is failing, in which case you could lose all your files and data. However it may just be that the software needs maintenance. You can do this yourself, but it will take time, and to be effective should be done correctly. The WORST thing to do is search for and install a utility to "speed up" your PC. Mostly they are junk, often they will introduce viruses into your PC or even destroy your files.

It may seem strange that your software needs maintenance - what can go wrong?

Well..

• Every time windows updates it makes changes to the installed software - and each time there is the possibility that important system files will get broken; particularly if the drive is short of space.
• As you use your computer - getting and reading emails, preparing documents, surfing the web, etc - large amounts of data are stored on your hard drive. This all adds to the work your computer must do in filing and finding data. It starts to become slow.
• This activity will also expose your computer to all forms of malware.
• Whenever you install a program or an update changes are made to the "registry". This is a "log" of all the events that happen on the computer. Like a diary - it keeps getting bigger. Errors arise in the registry, and this makes the computer slower and less reliable.