2. Cookies

Cookies aren't all bad. They store your userids and passwords and help sites identify you. If you delete all of your cookies you may have to enter your userid and password again when you go back to a Web Site. Cookies don't generally store any secure information. You can view and delete cookies.

Select Tools (at the top of your screen)
then Internet Options

Or, copy and paste (or type) this location in the address bar at the top of your screen. You will see all of your cookies and can selectively delete the cookies you don't want stored on your PC.

More Cookies

More cookies may be stored in your temporary files. Copy and paste (or type) this location in the address bar.

Since we just cleaned out all of the temporary files the only files we see right now are dated today so we're not deleting these cookies.

3. Get rid of PC Junk

Delete the temporary files from your PC. Look for a directory named TEMP. It's usually in c:\temp.

You can go to "Run" and type in %temp% and it will bring up the temp files to erase.

 
Click Start
      Run
      %temp%

Hit "select all" and then delete. You can usually safely delete all of the files but don't delete any system folders. If it says "this is a system folder" don't delete it.

4. Recycle Bin

Empty your recycle bin.

The Recycle bin icon is on your desktop. 
Click on the Recycle bin. 
Select File
   Empty Recycle bin

I just emptied my Recycle Bin. There were over 1,000 files to empty. Oops, I think it's been too long since the last cleanup.

5. Get Rid of Gator and Spyware

• Kill the Gator If you have the Gator you will want to Kill the Gator. You'll know if you have it or any other Adware or Spyware. They hijack your PC and serve you popup advertisements. Removing the Gator or other Adware or Spyware will take a few minutes. You might want to Kill the Gator last.

• Yahoo free download Yahoo has a toolbar that checks for spyware and adware. Spyware gets downloaded without you knowing it and it tracks your keystrokes. Adware is attached to some programs that you download. It's the thing that gives you all of the popups. The Yahoo Toolbar with Anti-Spy is available as a Yahoo free download.

• Download Google Toolbar Prefer Google? The Google toolbar eliminates annoying pop-up ads. Download Google Toolbar

You can do this right now while you are reading.
Download free Yahoo Anti-Spy Toolbar or
Download Google Toolbar

6. Defragment

Reorganizing Your Hard Disk to Improve Speed

System running slow? Time to do a defrag. Over time as you write to your hard disk the data gets fragmented, broken into separate pieces. You can optimize your hard drive by defragmenting. It may take an hour or more to run if you haven't defragmented your drive in a while.

If the defrag takes a long time (more than an hour) that's a good thing. It means your PC needed to be defragmented. This is where you can really speed up your PC. A fragmented drive runs slow. We usually Defrag every few days. You might need it more often or less depending on how much you use your PC.

Close or quit all other programs before running the defrag.

 
Click Start
 Programs
  Accessories
    System Tools 
      Disk Defragmenter

Or...

Double-click on your desktop MyComputer.
Right-click on the C:
Right-click on Properties
Select the Tools tab

Now you can select Defragment Now....
We usually check both boxes Rearrange and Check drive for errors.

Defragment never finishes?

Hold down the Ctrl key while restarting. 
Release the Ctrl key when it says it's running in Safe Mode. 
Now try to run the Disk Defragmenter. It might work.

More?

1. How to Fix Mom's Computer
2. Curing a virus-laden PC