There are quite a few steps to keeping your computer (laptop/desktop) running trim fit and fast.

The more you do the longer the computer will behave and stave off the dreaded upgrades.

Step 1

Security

It is imperative in this day and age to run good security on computers.

Macs and Linux based machines are inherently more secure but can also be a little overwhelming to run on a day to day basis for some people.

There are quite a few steps to having a secure environment but mostly it comes down to common sense, if emails tell you cheap Viagra….then you should be getting red flags.

If a bank says your security or password is off and simply *click this link* to put in a new one…red flags.

If you search for things that can be construed different ways like big Betties hot fenders…red flags.

First step in staying safe is antivirus/antispyware.

Antivirus

There are a number of products available a lot of them free here is a quick list.

Avast home for private use

http://www.avast.com/eng/avast_4_home.html

MS security essentials (free for anyone with a valid copy of windows)

http://www.microsoft.com/Security_Essentials/

Avira personal (free for home use)

http://www.free-av.com/

Next antispyware

Malware bytes personal (free for home use)

http://www.malwarebytes.org/

Spybot search and destroy (free)

http://www.safer-networking.org/en/spybotsd/index.html

now as with anything research is key so if you want to pay for AV then have a look over this site and make an informed decision, just remember a lot of companies offer bulk discounts like buying 5 or 10 copies for 3 years can save a bundle and you can share it out with the family or friends.

http://www.av-comparatives.org/comparativesreviews/main-tests

• A very important point to make is to be sure your security is up to date. An antivirus program that is out of date is pretty much useless.
• Also be sure to run an actual *scan* of your hard drive at regular intervals as the resident protection (one that runs in the background) may miss some sneaky Trojans.

Next in security are updates.

Updates

First step is make sure Microsoft updates are scheduled to run, but that isn’t all you really should run windows update/Microsoft update form the computer.

Start/all programs/windows-Microsoft updates.

This can give you updates like Internet explorer 8 for example, a much stable and secure browser than the older ones.

Software updates for your programs.

This is easy enough, most programs will come with a check for updates function; if not just go to the vendor site for example:

http://get.adobe.com/reader/

Cyberlink (powerdvd etc)

http://www.cyberlink.com/downloads/support/index_en_AU.html

Doing these steps should keep you relatively safe and up to date.

Next will be Step 2 hardware maintenance.

Hardware 

Hardware maintenance is a bit of a tricky subject.

What do you maintain and how often should it be done.

Let’s look at environmental things first that can affect the smooth running of the pc.

Heat

Dust

Animals and fur

Water or too much humidity

Next there I general running conditions that can slow down a computer such as.

Too many files on the computer

Too many open applications in the start-up

Fragmented files

Now although these may not seem to be hardware related they will have an effect on the hardware itself and may make the computer seem slower than it is.

Let’s start with step one

Heat/dust/animals and fur

Computers hate heat, all electrical devices do as it robs it of its power and efficiency, basically the cooler it is (to a degree) the better and longer it will run.

There are many ways to keep the computer cool such as.

• Don’t have it sitting next to a heater.
• Don’t have the case crammed packed with devices and not have adequate fans or airflow.
• Dust out/vacuum the air holes and fans regularly.
• dust out inside the computer at regular intervals
• Don’t have the computer sitting on a shag rug as it will just suck that dust / fur up.
• Don’t let the cat sleep on it
• Put the computer on a plastic mat/tile floor or piece of cardboard.
• When dusting using anti static materials and plastic vacuum attachments and do NOT touch actual components as all vacuums will produce electrical charges that can be harmful to computers.
• Replace the thermal interface material (TIM) between the CPU and the CPU heat sink yearly. (This is generally not the easiest of tasks o you may need to seek help from a nerd )
• Make sure there are enough fans in the computer to allow air in and out; no airflow means a hot spot computer.

Water or humidity.

Not often thought of but also dangerous to computers, some simple steps are.

• Don’t use the computer in the bath
• don’t have the computer next to a window
• if you use gas or other heating make sure the room is ventilated otherwise moisture can form (like on windows)
• Don’t use water to wash the computer use a dry cloth with some cleaning fluid on it and never wash inside the computer.

Other things to look at include

• Cleaning the mouse and keyboard (grab the keyboard turn it over and bang the edges on the desk and see what comes out…gross…
• Make sure the computer is off when cleaning the keyboard you don’t want to accidently delete things.
• use again cleaning fluid on a cloth to clean these things
• Clean the monitor, if it is a led is very careful as you can damage it by touching it too roughly; use a proper led cleaning fluid and a wood pulp free cloth like vileda blue ones. And use big flat handed strokes not stabbing gestures
• Pull cables out from the computer every now and again and put them back in after checking for any corrosion.

Other maintenance for the computer includes cleaning up the hard drives and starts up menus.

A few tips here are.

• uninstall any applications you do not use (programs and features in windows 7 and vista and add remove programs in windows up)
• Make sure the hard drive has at least 25% free space otherwise it will start to get cranky.
• Make sure the computer has enough RAM (physical memory in the computer) to do this give the three fingered salute CTRL ALT DEL and open up task manager / performance and see how much it is using vs. how much physical ram you have. If it uses more than you have consider getting more or using less applications.
• Run disk cleanup every week (all programs/accessories/system tools/) and clean out temp files etc.
• Defragment the hard drive monthly or so (unless you use vista or windows 7 then it is automatic and generally not needed)
• make sure you have antivirus and anti malware installed and kept up to date same for windows update.(there are plenty of free ones like AVAST and malware bytes)
• If you have more than one person using the computers make different accounts, that way they won’t clog up your profile with their useless stuff
• copy and paste things like photos and music to external hard drives or burn to cads(backups are essential unless you don’t mind loosing things)
• to backup files usegood quality dvd’s and a good quality external device (not usb sticks as they are too fragile)

Lastly, make up a schedule for yourself in a table that you can keep close by and just follow it.

Do these few things and you should have a bit less hassle in life and the computer will last longer.

Windows 7 shortcuts ()as from MS)

Ease of Access keyboard shortcuts

• Right Shift for eight seconds: Turn Filter Keys on and off
• Left Alt + Left Shift + PrtScn (or PrtScn): Turn High Contrast on or off
• Left Alt + Left Shift + Num Lock: Turn Mouse Keys on or off
• Shift five times: Turn Sticky Keys on or off
• Num Lock for five seconds: Turn Toggle Keys on or off
• Windows logo key + U: Open the Ease of Access centre

General keyboard shortcuts

• F1: Display Help
• Ctrl + C (or Ctrl + Insert): Copy the selected item
• Ctrl + X: Cut the selected item
• Ctrl + V (or Shift + Insert): Paste the selected item
• Ctrl + Z: Undo an action
• Ctrl + Y: Redo an action
• Delete (or Ctrl + D): Delete the selected item and move it to the Recycle Bin
• Shift + Delete: Delete the selected item without moving it to the Recycle Bin first
• F2: Rename the selected item
• Ctrl + Right Arrow: Move the cursor to the beginning of the next word
• Ctrl + Left Arrow: Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous word
• Ctrl + Down Arrow: Move the cursor to the beginning of the next paragraph
• Ctrl + Up Arrow: Move the cursor to the beginning of the previous paragraph
• Ctrl + Shift with an arrow key: Select a block of text
• Shift + any arrow key: Select more than one item in a window or on the desktop, or select text within a document
• Ctrl + any arrow key + Spacebar: Select multiple individual items in a window or on the desktop
• Ctrl + A: Select all items in a document or window
• F3: Search for a file or folder
• Alt + Enter: Display properties for the selected item
• Alt + F4: Close the active item, or exit the active program
• Alt + Spacebar: Open the shortcut menu for the active window
• Ctrl + F4: Close the active document (in programs that allow you to have multiple documents open simultaneously)
• Alt + Tab: Switch between open items
• Ctrl + Alt + Tab: Use the arrow keys to switch between open items
• Ctrl + Mouse scroll wheel: Change the size of icons on the desktop
• Windows logo key + Tab: Cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Aero Flip 3-D
• Ctrl+ Windows logo key + Tab: Use the arrow keys to cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Aero Flip 3-D
• Alt + Esc: Cycle through items in the order in which they were opened
• F6: Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop
• F4: Display the address bar list in Windows Explorer
• Shift + F10: Display the shortcut menu for the selected item
• Ctrl + Esc: Open the Start menu
• Alt + underlined letter: Display the corresponding menu
• Alt + underlined letter: Perform the menu command (or other underlined command)
• F10: Activate the menu bar in the active program
• Right Arrow: Open the next menu to the right, or open a submenu
• Left Arrow: Open the next menu to the left, or close a submenu
• F5 (or Ctrl + R): Refresh the active window
• Alt + Up Arrow: View the folder one level up in Windows Explorer
• Esc: Cancel the current task
• Ctrl + Shift + Esc: Open Task Manager
• Shift when you insert a CD: Prevent the CD from automatically playing
• Left Alt + Shift: Switch the input language when multiple input languages are enabled
• Ctrl + ShiftL: Switch the keyboard layout when multiple keyboard layouts are enabled
• Right or Left Ctrl + Shift: Change the reading direction of text in right-to-left reading languages

Dialog box keyboard shortcuts

• Ctrl + Tab: Move forward through tabs
• Ctrl + Shift + Tab: Move back through tabs
• Tab: Move forward through options
• Shift + Tab: Move back through options
• Alt + underlined letter: Perform the command (or select the option) that goes with that letter
• Enter: Replaces clicking the mouse for many selected commands
• Spacebar: Select or clear the check box if the active option is a check box
• Arrow keys: Select a button if the active option is a group of option buttons
• F1: Display Help
• F4: Display the items in the active list
• Backspace: Open a folder one level up if a folder is selected in the Save As or Open dialog box

Windows logo key keyboard shortcuts

• Windows logo key: Open or close the Start menu.
• Windows logo key + Pause: Display the System Properties dialog box.
• Windows logo key + D: Display the desktop.
• Windows logo key + M: Minimize all windows.
• Windows logo key + Shift + M: Restore minimized windows to the desktop.
• Windows logo key + E: Open Computer.
• Windows logo key + F: Search for a file or folder.
• Ctrl + Windows logo key + F: Search for computers (network).
• Windows logo key + L: Lock your computer or switch users.
• Windows logo key + R: Open the Run dialog box.
• Windows logo key + T: Cycle through programs on the taskbar.
• Windows logo key + number: Start the program pinned to the taskbar in the position indicated by the number. If the program is already running, switch to that program.
• Shift + Windows logo key + number: Start a new instance of the program pinned to the taskbar in the position indicated by the number.
• Ctrl + Windows logo key + number: Switch to the last active window of the program pinned to the taskbar in the position indicated by the number.
• Alt + Windows logo key + number: Open the Jump List for the program pinned to the taskbar in the position indicated by the number.
• Windows logo key + Tab: Cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Aero Flip 3-D.
• Ctrl+Windows logo key + Tab: Use the arrow keys to cycle through programs on the taskbar by using Aero Flip 3-D.
• Ctrl+Windows logo key + B: Switch to the program that displayed a message in the notification area.
• Windows logo key + Spacebar: Preview the desktop.
• Windows logo key + Up Arrow: Maximize the window.
• Windows logo key + Left Arrow: Maximize the window to the left side of the screen.
• Windows logo key + Right Arrow: Maximize the window to the right side of the screen.
• Windows logo key + Down Arrow: Minimize the window.
• Windows logo key + Home: Minimize all but the active window.
• Windows logo key + Shift + Up Arrow: Stretch the window to the top and bottom of the screen.
• Windows logo key + Shift+ Left Arrow or Right Arrow: Move a window from one monitor to another.
• Windows logo key + P: Choose a presentation display mode.
• Windows logo key + G: Cycle through gadgets.
• Windows logo key + U: Open Ease of Access Centre.
• Windows logo key + X: Open Windows Mobility Centre.

Windows Explorer keyboard shortcuts

• Ctrl + N: Open a new window
• Ctrl + W: Close the current window
• Ctrl + Shift + N: Create a new folder
• End: Display the bottom of the active window
• Home: Display the top of the active window
• F11: Maximize or minimize the active window
• Ctrl + Period (.): Rotate a picture clockwise
• Ctrl + Comma (,): Rotate a picture counter-clockwise
• Num Lock + Asterisk (*) on numeric keypad: Display all subfolders under the selected folder
• Num Lock + Plus Sign (+) on numeric keypad: Display the contents of the selected folder
• Num Lock + Minus Sign (-) on numeric keypad: Collapse the selected folder
• Left Arrow: Collapse the current selection (if it’s expanded), or select the parent folder
• Alt + Enter: Open the Properties dialog box for the selected item
• Alt + P: Display the preview pane
• Alt + Left Arrow: View the previous folder
• Backspace: View the previous folder
• Right Arrow: Display the current selection (if it’s collapsed), or select the first subfolder
• Alt + Right Arrow: View the next folder
• Alt + Up Arrow: View the parent folder
• Ctrl + Shift + E: Display all folders above the selected folder
• Ctrl + Mouse scroll wheel: Change the size and appearance of file and folder icons
• Alt + D: Select the address bar
• Ctrl + E: Select the search box
• Ctrl + F: Select the search box

Taskbar keyboard shortcuts

• Shift + Click on a taskbar button: Open a program or quickly open another instance of a program
• Ctrl + Shift + Click on a taskbar button: Open a program as an administrator
• Shift + Right-click on a taskbar button: Show the window menu for the program
• Shift + Right-click on a grouped taskbar button: Show the window menu for the group
• Ctrl + Click on a grouped taskbar button: Cycle through the windows of the group

Magnifier keyboard shortcuts

• Windows logo key + Plus Sign or Minus Sign: Zoom in or out
• Ctrl + Alt + Spacebar: Preview the desktop in full-screen mode
• Ctrl + Alt + F: Switch to full-screen mode
• Ctrl + Alt + L: Switch to lens mode
• Ctrl + Alt + D: Switch to docked mode
• Ctrl + Alt + I: Invert colours
• Ctrl + Alt + arrow keys: Pan in the direction of the arrow keys
• Ctrl + Alt + R: Resize the lens
• Windows logo key + Esc: Exit Magnifier

Remote Desktop Connection keyboard shortcuts

• Alt + Page Up: Move between programs from left to right.
• Alt + Page Down: Move between programs from right to left.
• Alt + Insert: Cycle through programs in the order that they were started in.
• Alt + Home: Display the Start menu.
• Ctrl + Alt + Break: Switch between a window and full screen.
• Ctrl + Alt + End: Display the Windows Security dialog box.
• Alt + Delete: Display the system menu.
• Ctrl + Alt + Minus Sign (-) on the numeric keypad: Place a copy of the active window, within the client, on the Terminal server clipboard (provides the same functionality as pressing Alt + PrtScn on a local computer).
• Ctrl + Alt + Plus Sign (+) on the numeric keypad: Place a copy of the entire client window area on the Terminal server clipboard (provides the same functionality as pressing PrtScn on a local computer).
• Ctrl + Alt + Right Arrow: “Tab” out of the Remote Desktop controls to a control in the host program (for example, a button or a text box). Useful when the Remote Desktop controls are embedded in another (host) program.
• Ctrl + Alt + Left Arrow: “Tab” out of the Remote Desktop controls to a control in the host program (for example, a button or a text box). Useful when the Remote Desktop controls are embedded in another (host) program.

Paint keyboard shortcuts

• Ctrl + N: Create a new picture
• Ctrl + O: Open an existing picture
• Ctrl + S: Save changes to a picture
• F12: Save the picture as a new file
• Ctrl + P: Print a picture
• Alt + F4: Close a picture and its Paint window
• Ctrl + Z: Undo a change
• Ctrl + Y: Redo a change
• Ctrl + A: Select the entire picture
• Ctrl + X: Cut a selection
• Ctrl + C: Copy a selection to the Clipboard
• Ctrl + V: Paste a selection from the Clipboard
• Right Arrow: Move the selection or active shape right by one pixel
• Left Arrow: Move the selection or active shape left by one pixel
• Down Arrow: Move the selection or active shape down by one pixel
• Up Arrow: Move the selection or active shape up by one pixel
• Esc: Cancel a selection
• Delete: Delete a selection
• Ctrl + B: Bold selected text
• Ctrl + +: Increase the width of a brush, line, or shape outline by one pixel
• Ctrl + -: Decrease the width of a brush, line, or shape outline by one pixel
• Ctrl + I: Italicize selected text
• Ctrl + U: Underline selected text
• Ctrl + E: Open the Properties dialog box
• Ctrl + W: Open the Resize and Skew dialog box
• Ctrl + Page Up: Zoom in
• Ctrl + Page Down: Zoom out
• F11: View a picture in full-screen mode
• Ctrl + R: Show or hide the ruler
• Ctrl + G: Show or hide gridlines
• F10 or Alt: Display key tips
• Shift + F10: Show the current shortcut menu
• F1: Open Paint Help

WordPad keyboard shortcuts

• Ctrl + N: Create a new document
• Ctrl + O: Open an existing document
• Ctrl + S: Save changes to a document
• F12: Save the document as a new file
• Ctrl + P: Print a document
• Alt + F4: Close WordPad
• Ctrl + Z: Undo a change
• Ctrl + Y: Redo a change
• Ctrl + A: Select the entire document
• Ctrl + X: Cut a selection
• Ctrl + C: Copy a selection to the Clipboard
• Ctrl + V: Paste a selection from the Clipboard
• Ctrl + B: Make selected text bold
• Ctrl + I: Italicize selected text
• Ctrl + U: Underline selected text
• Ctrl + =: Make selected text subscript
• Ctrl + Shift + =: Make selected text superscript
• Ctrl + L: Align text left
• Ctrl + E Align text centre
• Ctrl + R:: Align text right
• Ctrl + J: Justify text
• Ctrl + 1: Set single line spacing
• Ctrl + 2: Set double line spacing
• Ctrl + 5: Set line spacing to 1.5
• Ctrl + Shift + >: Increase the font size
• Ctrl + Shift + <: Decrease the font size
• Ctrl + Shift + A: Change characters to all capitals
• Ctrl + Shift + L: Change the bullet style
• Ctrl + D: Insert a Microsoft Paint drawing
• Ctrl + F: Find text in a document
• F3: Find the next instance of the text in the Find dialog box
• Ctrl + H: Replace text in a document
• Ctrl + Left Arrow: Move the cursor one word to the left
• Ctrl + Right Arrow: Move the cursor one word to the right
• Ctrl + Up Arrow: Move the cursor to the line above
• Ctrl + Down Arrow: Move the cursor to the line below
• Ctrl + Home: Move to the beginning of the document
• Ctrl + End: Move to the end of the document
• Ctrl + Page Up: Move up one page
• Ctrl + Page Down: Move down one page
• Ctrl + Delete: Delete the next word
• F10: Display key tips
• Shift + F10: Show the current shortcut menu
• F1: Open WordPad Help

Calculator keyboard shortcuts

• Alt + 1: Switch to Standard mode
• Alt + 2: Switch to Scientific mode
• Alt + 3: Switch to Programmer mode
• Alt + 4: Switch to Statistics mode
• Ctrl + E: Open date calculations
• Ctrl + H: Turn calculation history on or off
• Ctrl + U: Open unit conversion
• Alt + C: Calculate or solve date calculations and worksheets
• F1: Open Calculator Help
• Ctrl + Q: Press the M- button
• Ctrl + P: Press the M+ button
• Ctrl + M: Press the MS button
• Ctrl + R: Press the MR button
• Ctrl + L: Press the MC button
• %: Press the % button
• F9: Press the +/– button
• /: Press the / button
• *: Press the * button
• +: Press the + button
• -: Press the – button
• R: Press the 1/× button
• @: Press the square root button
• 0-9: Press the number buttons (0-9)
• =: Press the = button
• .Press the. (Decimal point) button
• Backspace: Press the backspace button
• Esc: Press the C button
• Del: Press the CE button
• Ctrl + Shift + D: Clear the calculation history
• F2: Edit the calculation history
• Up Arrow key: Navigate up in the calculation history
• Down Arrow key: Navigate down in the calculation history
• Esc: Cancel editing the calculation history
• Enter: Recalculate the calculation history after editing
• F3: Select Degrees in Scientific mode
• F4: Select Radians in Scientific mode
• F5: Select Grads in Scientific mode
• I: Press the Inv button in Scientific mode
• D: Press the Mod button in Scientific mode
• Ctrl + S: Press the sinh button in Scientific mode
• Ctrl + O: Press the cosh button in Scientific mode
• Ctrl + T: Press the tanh button in Scientific mode
• (: Press the ( button in Scientific mode
• ): Press the ) button in Scientific mode
• N: Press the ln button in Scientific mode
• ;: Press the Int button in Scientific mode
• S: Press the sin button in Scientific mode
• O: Press the cos button in Scientific mode
• T: Press the tan button in Scientific mode
• M: Press the dms button in Scientific mode
• P: Press the pi button in Scientific mode
• V: Press the F-E button in Scientific mode
• X: Press the Exp button in Scientific mode
• Q: Press the x^2 button in Scientific mode
• Y: Press the x^y button in Scientific mode
• #: Press the x^3 button in Scientific mode
• L: Press the log button in Scientific mode
• !: Press the n! button in Scientific mode
• Ctrl + Y: Press the y?x button in Scientific mode
• Ctrl + B: Press the 3?x button in Scientific mode
• Ctrl + G: Press the 10x button in Scientific mode
• F5: Select Hex in Programmer mode
• F6: Select Dec in Programmer mode
• F7: Select Oct in Programmer mode
• F8: Select Bin in Programmer mode
• F12: Select Qword in Programmer mode
• F2: Select Dword in Programmer mode
• F3: Select Word in Programmer mode
• F4: Select Byte in Programmer mode
• K: Press the RoR button in Programmer mode
• J: Press the RoL button in Programmer mode
• <: Press the Lsh button in Programmer mode
• >: Press the Rsh button in Programmer mode
• %: Press the Mod button in Programmer mode
• (: Press the ( button in Programmer mode
• ): Press the ) button in Programmer mode
• |: Press the Or button in Programmer mode
• ^: Press the Xor button in Programmer mode
• ~: Press the Not button in Programmer mode
• &: Press the And button in Programmer mode
• A-F: Press the A-F buttons in Programmer mode
• Spacebar: Toggles the bit value in Programmer mode
• A: Press the Average button in Statistics mode
• Ctrl + A: Press the Average Sq button in Statistics mode
• S: Press the Sum button in Statistics mode
• Ctrl + S: Press the Sum Sq button in Statistics mode
• T: Press the S.D. button in Statistics mode
• Ctrl + T: Press the Inv S.D. button in Statistics mode
• D: Press the CAD button in Statistics mode

Windows Journal keyboard shortcuts

• Ctrl + N: Start a new note
• Ctrl + O: Open a recently used note
• Ctrl + S: Save changes to a note
• Ctrl + Shift + V: Move a note to a specific folder
• Ctrl + P: Print a note
• Alt + F4: Close a note and its Journal window
• Ctrl + Z: Undo a change
• Ctrl + Y: Redo a change
• Ctrl + A: Select all items on a page
• Ctrl + X: Cut a selection
• Ctrl + C: Copy a selection to the Clipboard
• Ctrl + V: Paste a selection from the Clipboard
• Esc: Cancel a selection
• Delete: Delete a selection
• Ctrl + F: Start a basic find
• Ctrl + G: Go to a page
• F5: Refresh find results
• F5: Refresh the note list
• F6: Toggle between a note list and a note
• Ctrl + Shift + C: Display a shortcut menu for column headings in a note list
• F11: View a note in full-screen mode
• F1: Open Journal Help

Windows Help viewer keyboard shortcuts

• Alt + C: Display the Table of Contents
• Alt + N: Display the Connection Settings menu
• F10: Display the Options menu
• Alt + Left Arrow: Move back to the previously viewed topic
• Alt + Right Arrow: Move forward to the next (previously viewed) topic
• Alt + A: Display the customer support page
• Alt + Home: Display the Help and Support home page
• Home: Move to the beginning of a topic
• End: Move to the end of a topic
• Ctrl + F: Search the current topic
• Ctrl + P: Print a topic
• F3: Move the cursor to the search box