We’re finding we’re doing an increasing amount of digital decluttering and organising work with our clients. The performance of your computer is vital for your efficiency and productivity at work or home tasks. It is also important to limit stress and frustration. Unfortunately, it is an inevitable part of the computer life cycle for it to eventually become slow. For example, you may be running it on old components. Or an old operating system when software is constantly being updated and becoming more demanding. However, there are ways for improving your computer’s performance.
As consumer behaviour changes, and software updates, computers are also built to handle the new demands. If you are using an older laptop, it may be a struggle as these changes will impact its performance. The longer you have your laptop or computer, it’s more likely to become cluttered with downloads and other items accumulated over time.
In some cases, you may find yourself in a situation where you have downloaded a new operating system, and it has caused your problems. If it happens, seek support to improve your laptop or computer’s performance.
Fortunately, there are some things that you can do to help your laptop or computer to increase performance. You may choose to get a new laptop or computer altogether and donate or recycling your old one. This is a quick solution but will require you to have the budget to do so (ways to declutter your electrical goods safely).
A much more eco-friendly and budget-friendly option would be to invest a little time and effort into your current hardware and improve it. Depending on what make and model you have, what problems you are experiencing or how much time you have, these can be small and straightforward adjustments. It is a good idea to do this first, before buying a new one. You may save yourself a lot of money, as many laptops and computers can be updated with just a few simple tasks.
To help you get started, here are some of the top things you can do to improve your computer’s performance.
#1 Declutter your laptop
First, declutter your laptop. It is likely that over the years, you have accumulated many personal files including pictures, videos and downloads. Go through these and get rid of anything unnecessary. If there are things you would prefer to keep, back up your computer or laptop. Then save the images on a hard drive, or cloud-based software.
This way the files are safe, and you can clear your laptop of clutter. If there are some items you wish to keep, then check out our previous post on how to organise your computer.
#2 Uninstall software
Many computers and laptops come with software and apps already installed on them that you likely don’t use. You may have also installed apps over the years that are no longer necessary to the work that you do. Go through all the software and apps that are installed on your device, so that you can free up disk space.
This should be as simple as locating them on your computer, right-clicking on the button, and selecting uninstall. Make sure you only remove the unnecessary ones. There are some that your computer needs to run properly.
#3 Turn off automatic start up
Many applications are programmed to automatically start up when you turn on your computer or laptop. This means that it can take much longer to load and function, as there are always applications running in the background. Head to your settings and make sure that any application that you do not need, is turned off to load automatically.
#4 Check for viruses
Viruses and spyware are becoming more and more common. And if your computer’s performance has changed over the years, there is a chance that it has a virus. Find a reputable anti-virus software that you trust, and install it on your computer or laptop and set up auto reminders to renew. This will check for any spyware or virus and help you remove them. It will also alert you if anything happens in the future.
#5 Increase the RAM
The RAM is important to the performance of your laptop as it is used when you are running applications by providing a short-term memory where data can be easily accessed. Sufficient RAM will stop applications from storing items in the long-term storage to complete a task. This will make it slow and inefficient. You might also want to check out our post – Organising In The Digital Age.
Computers and laptops have formed an important part of your day and your work life. Follow these top tips to improve the performance of your device.