Why Is My Computer Gunked Up
You may fall into one of three categories
A person with a Windows machine that is struggling to stay alive
A person with the relative wondering why there machine is out of hard-drive space and cannot function properly
A techie trying to show people how to save their machines from oblivion
Why Is My Computer Gunked Up
Our PCs are like houses: neglect leads to problems like leaky roofs and clogged drains
For our PCs the neglect may be (internal factors)
Forgetting to backup the hard drive
Not closely watching what gets installed
Subscribing to too many e-mail newsletters
Etc.
Why Is My Computer Gunked Up
(External factors)
Spam
Viruses
Poorly designed program software
The Registry (the place where information about your files is stored) goes south
Your hard drive can barely support what is installed
Why Is My Computer Gunked Up
After awhile, with normal wear and tear, every computer will start to slow down
Files Are Saved All over the Hard Drive
Users will have
document files
downloaded files
and other programs saved in many different places on their hard drives
Files Are Saved All over the Hard Drive
For example, the program used to open an attachment from outlook stores a copy of the file in a temporary directory in your Windows directory system. If you do not resave the file into a designated document folder the document will remain in the temporary directory--gunk
Temporary Files Are NotAlways Temporary
Users may casually save stuff to their desktop or the C: root directory
When computers crash or files are improperly saved files stay around and gunk up the system
Hundreds to thousands of files can be stuck in obscure places
Spam, Spam, Eggs, Bacon, and Spam! Spam is like weeds in our gardens-the more we
try to get rid of it, the faster it comes back
Use strategies to greatly reduce your exposure to spam
Use different e-mail addresses
Set up filters
Use different e-mail clients
Avoid activities to trigger spam
Installing Too Many Programs
Most of us are guilty of installing (or keeping
Too many neat games
5 instant messaging systems
That gardening CD-ROM in the spring (and used it once)
50 different screensavers
Installing Too Many Programs
If your idea of uninstalling a program is to drag them into the trash and forget them
Windows still thinks you have them
Programs physically change your operating system
Your Start Menu is Overrun
As you add and remove programs, they add program icons to your Start menu
Eventually you end up with tons of separate folders on the Start menu
Your Desktop is OverrunWith Icons
Program icons are often put on the Desktop when programs are installed
Users often put other junk on the desktop
Segmented Hard Drive
Big data files and large programs are stored hopscotch style
A piece here and a piece there
Result→the reader on your hard drive has to physically move back and forth multiple times to read the data in one file
• This slows down the hard drive
• Causes wear and tear
Low Hard Drive Space
Windows often uses the hard drive to keep the PC tasks running—not just for temporary files
Windows uses the hard drive as an extension of working memory
Result→If hard drive space is low it creates problems for your OS
Low Hard Drive Space
Users typically fill up their hard drive space with
Video files
Music files
Internet downloads
Digital photographs
Users are filling up there space faster
And not keeping up with cleaning and organization task
Unorganized Data Files We are not just dealing with word processing
documents and a few spreadsheets anymore
MP3 files for music
Ripping out CD collection to the hard drive
Storing hundreds of digital photos & videos
PDF’s and PowerPoint slides
JPG’s and GIF’s
Photoshop collages
Unorganized Data Files
Becoming organized has become very important
To help the PC run efficiently
To help the user operate the PC efficiently
Unorganized Web Favorites
You may have a long list of Web Favorites
This list may be useless unless the one you want is near the top
Spyware Boogieman
Spyware-a catchall name for products that installed
Report information on your web surfing habits
Bombard you with popup ads or other advertisements
Spyware Boogieman
Spyware normally does not show up in the programs directory
Makes them hard to find and deal with
The Dreaded Cookie Monster
Cookies are not programs
Basically they are tiny pieces of text that Web sites place in a special directory on your machine
The Dreaded Cookie Monster
Example
Yahoo may place “xu44$@dncsdlk3” on your machine
This is used by Yahoo to identify your computer
Unless you log into Yahoo, the text has no purpose; it is only used by Yahoo
The Dreaded Cookie MonsterOverall cookies are fairly harmless
They may serve other purposes
• Recognize your last visit to their site
After awhile you may have a few thousand
99% of them are useless
You may find cookies from gambling or porn sites
• This may be discontenting for some people
Your Gunked Up!
The problems we have discussed will only get worse over time
That is why your computer can get so bogged down
Ready For Degunking?
The most difficult part is dedicating a little time
We will present task in the order that will hopefully get you the most results in the shortest period of time
And we will discuss getting yourself on a maintenance program so your computer always runs well
The Strategy Behind Degunking
Based on how Windows XP operates
How Windows stores types of files
How Windows provides default directories
• My Music, My Pictures, etc.
How data is stored and retrieved on your hard drive
The Strategy Behind Degunking
How Windows installs and removes programs on your computer
How main programs and other utilities can be set up to automatically load with you start Windows
How Windows uses different types of memory to store and process data
The Strategy Behind Degunking
How Windows built-in tools such as System Restore can be used to repair your system
The more you understand the basics of how Windows operates, the better you get at improving your PC’s performance
Important Questions to Ask YourselfDoes it seem that my computer is running
slower and slower with each passing month?
Do I put a lot of new files on my computer but rarely remove any old ones?
How often do I look at my personal data directories to see if I am storing files I do not need or keeping my system organized
Important Questions to Ask Yourself Do I really need all of the programs on my
computer?
Do I use all of the programs that load automatically when Windows starts up?
When was the last time I went through my e-mail and deleted the messages I no longer need?
When was the last time I ran a utility such as PC Cleanup to remove the temporary files on my hard drive?
Important Questions to Ask YourselfWhen was the last time I defragmented my
hard drive
Do I have a firewall set up to keep viruses and other nasty programs off my machine?
Do I know what to do if something goes wrong with my PC because it has gotten really gunked up?
Clean Up the Default Folders
Hopefully you have been saving files to the default folders
My Documents
My Music
My Videos
My Pictures
Clean Up the Default Folders
When XP looks for a file, it searches the full hard disk drive
The more stuff on your hard disk, the more stuff it has to look through
Clean Up the Default Folders Clean Up the Default Folders
If you see something you do not need or like→delete it
1. Double-click the “My Documents” folder
2. Right-click any file and choose “Delete” from the shortcut menu
3. In the “Confirm File Delete” dialog box, click “Yes”
Do not delete files you do not know what they are used for
Clean Up the Default Folders
My Pictures
Deleting pictures from this folder is just the same as deleting from the “My Documents” folder
Clean Up the Default FoldersMy Videos
Deleting video files is a little trickier
With Movie Maker 2
• Project files are given a .MSWMM file name extension
• Then you create a movie and the files are given a .wmv extension
• Therefore, many duplicate files may exists
Delete any duplicate movie or sound files you will not need in the future
Clean Up the Default Folders
My Music
Deleting files from this folder is just the same as deleting from the “My Documents” folder
Clean Up Your Main Drive
Admit it, sometimes you save files randomly to whatever folder they open in
It is time to clean out the garage and do some organizing
Clean Up Your Main Drive
Delete files from the root directory (C:)
Right-click the Start button and choose Explore
Expand My Computer and click Local Disk (C:)
If you see any files you no longer need, right-click and choose Delete
Clean Up Your Main Drive
Better organize your root directory
Move files to more suitable locations
If you do not know what a file is—do not move it!
Clean Up Your Main Drive
To move files
1. Select a file to move by hovering the mouse over it
2. Click the View menu, point to Explorer Bar, and select Folders (this will place a check mark by it) Locate, in the left pane, the My Documents folder
3. Expand the My Documents folder
4. Drag the files and folders from the C: drive to the proper folder in My Documents
Clean Up Your Main Drive
Tip: If you have a folder named Online Services in the Program folder, delete it. It contains files to help you get set up with AOL, MSN, and similar online serves. Chances are, you are already online and you do not need to keep these files
Clean Up Your Main Drive
Delete unused files in other locations
You may have unwanted files on the rest of your hard drive
The Search option can help you locate files on your hard drive you no longer need
Clean Up Your Main Drive
For example, you may have digital photo’s stored in different places
1. Click Start and then Search
2. In the Search dialog box perform independent searches for *.jpg (digital camera files).
– Others art files are
» *.gif, *.tif, *.bmp, and *.tiff
– Music files
» *.midi, *.mp3, *.wav, *.avi, and *.wma
Clean Up Your Main Drive
1. If you find files you do not need you can delete them by right-clicking and choosing delete
2. You can move files by dragging and dropping
Clean Up Your Main DriveClean up the “Unzipped” folder
If you use WinZip, the Unzipped folder is where your unzipped files are stored so that you can open
When a file is downloaded it will have a .zip extension if the file is compressed
Once the file in uncompressed and saved you have 2 copies
Delete the file you no longer need
You may search for files with a *.zip extension
Clean Up Your Main DriveLocating duplicate files
Some duplicate files end in extensions such as .001, .002, and so on
• Using the search utility may be difficult
The best method is to install a disk cleaning software program
Enter the words Windows XP Remove Duplicate Files in a search engine in IE 6 and see what you get
Clean Up Your Main Drive
Get rid of pesky temp files
Your likely to have temp (*.tmp) files hiding in every nook and cranny
There are lots of reasons temp files are created
• When Windows crashes
• If you use Ctrl+Alt+Del to restart
• Some installation programs create them
• Many applications programs create them for backups
• When you surf the net
Clean Up Your Main Drive
There are several ways to clean up your temp files
Using Disk Cleanup is the easiest
Clean Up Your Main Drive To use Disk Cleanup
1. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and Disk Cleanup
2. Select the drive to clean up, and click OK
3. In the Disk Cleanup dialog box, select the items to delete
• Uncheck the Recycle Bin and Compress Old Files
Clean Up Your Main Drive
Cleaning up what Disk Cleanup has missed
There were no options to remove cookies, browser caches, IE history, recent documents, and similar items
Clean Up Your Main Drive
How to clean up these additional temp files
1. Use the search option and search for *.tmp files
2. Right-click Name in the Search window and verify that Date Modified is checked
3. Click Date Modified in the Search window to sort the remaining tem files by date
4. Use the Shift key to select the files that are more than a week old
5. Click Delete on the keyboard
Clean Up Your Main Drive
Internet and e-mail files
Temporary Internet files, offline content, cookies, browser caches, IE history can be cleaned from inside the Internet Options dialog box
• Open IE
• Click Tools, and click Internet Options
• From the General tab, click Delete Cookies
• Click Delete files
• Click Clear History
• Click OK
Remove Programs You Do Not Use
Windows comes with components you might not need
MSN Explorer or games
You may have programs you do not need that installed when you loaded the communication software for a
Web cam
Printer
Digital camera
Remove Programs You Do Not Use
All programs on your computer will not be listed when you click on the All Programs option, but it is a good place to look
• Open any programs you do not know what they are
• Make a list of any programs you no longer need
• Do not remove any programs you are not sure what they are used for
Remove Programs You Do Not Use
Using a program’s Uninstall Command
Always check to see if the program has an uninstall option
• The best way to uninstall
• Check the All Programs list
Remove Programs You Do Not Use
Using the Control Panel to Remove Programs
1. Open the Control Panel
2. Double-click the Add Or Remove Programs option
3. Locate the program(s) to uninstall
4. Click OK
Find Programs You Do NotKnow You Have
Check out the Program Files folder
1. Right-click the Start button
2. Click Explore, and browse to the Program Files folder
3. Click the program folders to see what files are in each one
Find Programs You Do NotKnow You Have Three ways to get rid of files you do not
want
1. Find an uninstall option in the program folder
2. Visit the manufacturer’s Web site for uninstallation instructions
3. Delete the entire folder by right-clicking and choosing Delete
Use #3 as a last resort
Find Programs You Do NotKnow You Have Remove Spyware
May be installed on your computer with or without your permission or knowledge
Advertising companies use them to track your online activities
Sometimes they add new toolbars to your Web browser, change your homepage, or cause excessive pop-up ads
They may seal our passwords, credit card numbers, or other forms of identification
Find Programs You Do NotKnow You HaveOn the Web visit
www.spywareinfo.com
www.spychecker.com
www.spychecker.com/software/freeware_antispy.html
http://www.lavasoftusa.com/ My Personal Favorite
Ad-Aware
Tweaking Programs You Do Need
Program Compatibility Mode
Older Windows 98 programs may not run so well on your XP machine
Tell Windows to run in Program Compatibility Mode
Tweaking Programs You Do Need
• Locate the program icon (this must be a program that you have installed)
• Right-click and choose Properties
• Click the Compatibility tab
• Check Run This Program in Compatibility Mode For
– Choose a mode for the program from the drop-down list
Tweaking Programs You Do Need
Make multimedia and games run better
Multimedia and games use DirectX which enhances these programs
Tweak DirectX with the DirectX Diagnostic Tool
• Click Start
• Click Run
• Type dxdiag
• Click OK
If the diagnostic finds problems it will guide you through possible fixes
Tweaking Programs You Do NeedSystem Restore
A hard disk space hog
By default it is enabled on all drives when you first get your PC unless you have less than 200 MB of free hard disk space
Saves data on the hard drive in case you have a computer problem
System restore should not be turned off but can be “tweaked”
Tweaking Programs You Do Need
How much hard space is being used by Systems Restore
1. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to Systems Tools, and click System Restore
2. In the Welcome To System Restore dialog box, click System Restore Settings
3. In the System Properties dialog box notice that the available drives are listed and System Restore is monitoring drives
Tweaking Programs You Do Need
4. Select a drive, click Settings
5. You can reduce the amount of disk space used by moving the slider to the left
1 GB is sufficient
6. Reconfigure any additional drives and click OK. Close the System Restore dialog box
Organizing Your Remaining Files & FoldersOrganize the default folders
Create personal folders inside the default folders
• My Documents
• My Pictures
• My Music
• My Videos
Organizing Your Remaining Files & FoldersOpen the My Documents folder and
categorize the documents in there
You might organize by
• Projects
• Document types
Repeat this practice for each of the default folders
Organizing Your Remaining Files & FoldersRename, Copy, and Delete Folders
Right-click the folders and select the task
Move data into the new folders
Deleting files and folders does not actually remove them but marks them for deletion and moves them into the Recycle Bin
Restart the computer
Empty the Recycle Bin
Use Disk Defragmenter
If you have deleted a lot of files, moved files, deleted programs, and emptied the Recycle Bin, your hard drive is a mess
Files on the hard drive are fragmented (disorganized)
Use Disk Defragmenter How the hard drive works
At first data is written sequentially to the hard disk using the first open space it finds
As you delete files, move files, delete programs, and empty the Recycle Bin, you will have gaps on the hard drive
Parts of programs can be written in different parts of the hard drive
Windows has to search the entire drive to put the pieces together which slows the computer down
Use Disk Defragmenter Disk Defragmenter is a Windows utility designed
to clean up the fragments in your hard drive
Make sure it is near bedtime and
1. Close all open programs
2. Turn off screensavers
3. Turn off anti-virus software
4. Disconnect from the Internet
5. Click Start, point to All Programs, point to Accessories, point to System Tools, and click Disk Defragmenter
6. Highlight a drive to defragment and click or Defragment
Clean Up & Personalize The TaskbarManaging the Taskbar’s System Tray
Programs (especially those downloaded from the Internet) like to place their icons there without permission
• Napster
• Instant Messaging
• RealPlayer
• Jukebox
Be very selective about what you place in the System Tray
Clean Up & Personalize The TaskbarRemove program icons from the System
Tray
Some programs offer a choice so you can remove their program icons from the System Tray
• Right-click the program’s icon and choose Properties, Preferences, or other appropriate choice
Clean Up & Personalize The Taskbar To tell Windows you do not want programs to
automatically start and their icons to appear in the Systems Tray
1. Click Start and click Run
2. In the Run dialog box type msconfig.exe and click OK
3. Click the Startup tab
4. Uncheck the items you recognize and do not want to start automatically
Clean Up & Personalize The Taskbar5. Click OK and restart your computer
6. On reboot, read the information and click OK in the System Configuration Utility dialog box
Personalize the Start Menu
So the things you need are readily available and the things you do not need or no longer have installed are not taking up space
Personalize the Start Menu
1. Right-click the Taskbar
2. Choose Properties
3. Click the Start Menu tab
Look at the Start Menu Properties
Personalize the Start Menu
Adding items to the Start Menu
1. Locate the item using Windows Explorer, right-click and drag the executable file to the Start menu
2. Drop the file in the All Programs menu or the left pane of the Start Menu
Clean Up and Personalize the Desktop
There is nothing worse as a productivity zapper than a really messy Desktop
Be very picky for what you allow to be displayed on the Desktop
Clean Up and Personalize the Desktop
Inventory all of the icons currently on your Desktop and divide them into the following groups
1. Applications you can not live without
2. Applications you never or rarely use
3. Applications you do not recognize
The applications in your second group can likely be taken off
Clean Up and Personalize the Desktop Add or Remove Default Icons
1. Right-click an empty area of the Desktop and choose Properties
2. In the Properties dialog box, choose the Desktop tab
3. Choose Customize Desktop to open the Desktop Item dialog box
4. In the Desktop Items dialog box, check or uncheck My Documents, My Computer, My Network Places, and Internet Explorer
5. Click OK
Clean Up and Personalize the Desktop Create folders and program shortcuts
To create a shortcut to an existing folder that contains documents you access often
1. Browse to the folder using Windows Explorer
2. Right-click, point to Send To, and click Desktop
Clean Up and Personalize the Desktop
To create a new folder on the Desktop
1. Right-click an empty area of the Desktop
2. Point to New, and click Folder
3. Name the folder, and then drag and drop files in there or add them as they are created
Removing Folders and Shortcuts
As easy as right-clicking and choosing Delete
The icon is removed but their contents not deleted
• However, if they are programs saved on the Desktop (not shortcuts) the contents will be removed—be careful
Removing Folders and Shortcuts
Run the Desktop Cleanup Wizard
Configure the Desktop Cleanup Wizard to run every 60 days
• It scans the shortcuts on your Desktop and determines if they have been used in the past 60 days
• If they have not you will be prompted to allow Windows to safely remove them
Removing Folders and Shortcuts
1. Right-click an empty area of the Desktop and click Properties
2. Click the Desktop tab and click Customize Desktop
3. Verify that Run Desktop Cleanup Wizard Ever 60 Days is checked
4. To run the wizard now, click Clean Desktop Now
Choose Non-System-Intensive ScreensaversYour system must offer resources to run a
screen saver
To save resources, switch to a non-system-intensive or a default Windows XP screensaver
It is more efficient to not run a screensaver
Choose Non-System-Intensive Screensavers
1. Right-click an empty area of the Desktop, and click Properties
2. From the Screensaver tab, select the new screensaver
Windows XP screensaver or the Star field
3. Click OK
Preventing Spam Gunk
Only a little carelessness attracts an almost unimaginable amount of gunk
Spam is unwanted commercial email
Much spam is fraudulent
Choose the Best Email Address
Have more than one account
Three categories
• Primary email address
• Backup email address
• Disposable email address
Choose the Best Email Address
Your primary email address is the one on your business card
Give it to friends and associates
You will fight spam the most in this address
Your back-up address (2nd account) should be obtained from a second hosting company
If your primary account is down you can use the secondary
Choose the Best Email Address
Your disposable address are those you can cancel at any point
Often obtained from free web servers
Use them for online commerce and circumstances where you do not trust the other party
Avoid Spammer Dictionary Attacks
Many people who register their own personal or business names create an associated email address by using their first name and the domain name
The problem lies with something called a dictionary attack
Avoid Spammer Dictionary Attacks
Spammers use custom mailer utilities that choose a domain like semo.edu and start grinding out email addresses in a sequence that might look like
Avoid Spammer Dictionary Attacks
The names come from a dictionary of names and common words compiled by spammers from online dictionaries and email addresses they find on web pages
This is legal and cost nothing per address
Avoid Spammer Dictionary Attacks
Avoid dictionary attacks by
Choose an email address not in a dictionary
• No: [email protected]
• Yes: [email protected] (used the first initial and last name)
Do not use ordinary dictionary words
String words together
Avoid Spammer Dictionary Attacks
Do not use random strings of letter
• No – [email protected]
Do not use a middle initial
• No – [email protected]
Choose Your Email Client Carefully
Be careful with Outlook
Outlook is vulnerable to “spam beacons” (web bugs) executed with HTML images
Protect yourself with a third-party filtering package
Choose Your Email Client Carefully
Spam Beacons
They send out messages indiscriminately to millions of addresses
When an address is verified it becomes a part of the spammer’s databases
• They are sold for high prices
Choose Your Email Client Carefully Do not verify your address to a spammer
Never reply to a spam message
A spam beacon verifies the address when you simply open it or preview it in Outlook
• Nearly all spam is formatted in HTML which allows embedding of images
• This image (which may only be a single white pixel) has a name uniquely coded to your address
• When you open or preview the message the image is requested and downloaded from the spammer’s image server
• The address is verified
Choose Your Email Client Carefully
The key to avoiding spam beacons is to avoid downloading embedded images
• Never open a spam image
• This is very difficult with Outlook – there is no good way to inspect a message without downloading the images
Choose Your Email Client Carefully
Use alternative email clients
Look for features that circumvent spam beacons – 2 ways
• Simple clients do not render HTML tags and display whatever text is in the message
– This also prevents you from seeing the images
Choose Your Email Client Carefully
More sophisticated clients provide features for you to turn image downloads on and off on a per-message basis
• Poco Mail 2.6 and later
• Pegasus mail V4.1
• Eudora V6
Use Your Email Address Carefully
What NOT to do
Never “unsubscribe” from a spammer mailing list
• This verifies your address
Never post your email address on the web
Use a Separate Spam Filtering Utility The only way to deal with spam once it happens
is to use a spam filtering utility
This program inspects incoming email messages and decides wither it is legitimate or spam
Make certain your utility
Supports your email client
You understand the costs and installation limitations
Avoid Triggering Other People’s Spam Filters Avoid putting certain
words in the subject header
Free
Insurance
Mortgage
Penis
enlargement
XXX
Names of popular drugs
• Viagra
• Xanaxx
• Vicodin
Avoid Triggering Other People’s Spam FiltersAvoid using certain words in the body of
your message
Unsubscribe
Avoid phrases that sound like sales pitches
• Limited time
• Great deals
Avoid including images
Avoid Triggering Other People’s Spam FiltersSend your email as plain text
Make certain your PC’s clock is correct
Much spam is sent with incorrect dates and times in the “time sent” field