Can you speed up your Computer by tidying up Pictures and E-mail?
byMark Townsend
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06 Apr, 2020
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There are many different factors that affect speed
I often visit Customers that are having problems with a slow Computer and suggest a range of things that can be tried to speed it up. Customers tend to focus on what they can do and suggest they think their Computer is too cluttered and therefore they will delete some pictures and e-mails and get back to me if this hasn't worked. I think it's fair to say that in 99% of cases this won't work and unless you were planning to spend many hours having a tidy up anyway you will just spend a lot of time and your Computer will run at the same speed.
So when would this work? If the C: Drive on your Computer is more than 90% full then carrying out the above task will make a difference. The remaining 10% of disk space is used as a working area and the smaller this area gets the more your Computer will struggle and could even crash if you run out of space altogether. You can check your percentage of free space by clicking on File Explorer and then This PC. You will see how many Gigabytes you have free and if the bar is coloured Blue then all is okay, if it is Red then a tidy up will help you.
Focusing briefly on E-mail if you are using webmail you will see no benefit from a tidy up unless your service provider has advised you that your mail box is full and needs tidying. If you are using a Mail Program like Microsoft Outlook or Windows Live Mail to store e-mail on your Computer then you are creating quite a large database of e-mail locally so in this instance a tidy up may make that program run a little faster but it won't improve any other area of operation. At this point it is worth noting that Windows Live Mail is no longer supported by Microsoft and as such is deemed a security risk by many e-mail providers.
With pictures I recommend backing up before you start so that you can't lose anything; otherwise you may be denying yourself the opportunity to show a family photo at a reunion several years later and this is a shame when you still haven't speeded up the Computer. On the other hand if you just want to be better organised you may be interested in an article I wrote back in September 2018 with some suggestions for organising photographs.
So what do you need to do to speed up your PC? If the Computer takes a very long time to boot up and then 5 minutes to respond every time you click the mouse then the likelihood is that your Hard Disk has seen better days. They are consumable items and gradually slow over time but can just suddenly fail. Most people are aware of the importance of backups because the Hard Disk can suddenly fail but don't really imagine it just slowing down. If this is the problem then I recommend upgrading to a Solid State Drive which is 10x faster even when the original disk is working correctly; so if it is faulty then it will be more than 10x faster. Alternatively you can go like for like and just have a new Hard Disk installed.
If your Computer starts normally but then seems to go a bit slow you could be suffering from Malware or Potentially Unwanted Programs. Even if you have an up to date Antivirus Program other problems tend to slip through the net while you are carrying out legitimate downloads. Malware, Spyware, Greyware, Adware, Ransomware and Potentially Unwanted Programs are just a few things that can get bundled in with downloads and subsequently cause you problems. If you experience unwanted pop-ups or unexpected crashes this can also be an indication that you have been infected by something that your Antivirus Program hasn't spotted. A simple clean up will usually return you to full speed and get rid of the annoying side effects of these types of programs.
As always Churchdown Computers are here to help and can carry out a diagnosis of your Computer and then recommend the appropriate course of action to get the best results. Just call Mark on 07557 483438, e-mail mark@churchdowncomputers.co.uk or fill out the form at the bottom of theContact page.
