How to Tease Top Performance Out of Your Windows Laptop

Much like cars, Windows PCs need an occasional servicing to keep running at their best. That can mean replacing the battery, freeing up disk space, defragmenting and more. For example, older, nickel cadmium laptop batteries were never designed to be left endlessly plugged in -- as we all do with our laptops -- and often die before the laptop does.

If you're noticing that your Windows laptop runs slower and crankier the older it gets -- I'm talking about your laptop here, not you or me -- it's probably because it needs a bit of maintenance.

Some tender loving care will take care of most old-laptop lethargy in much the same way a routine service visit can extend the life of your car and let it operate with more vroom.

Here's how to fix your laptop. 

Step 1:

Buy a new battery if your laptop is no longer portable and needs to be tethered to the wall.

Older, nickel cadmium laptop batteries were never designed to be left endlessly plugged in -- as we all do with our laptops -- and often die before the laptop does.

Tip: Remove the battery pack from the under side of the laptop and perform a search for the model number on the Internet.

Choose newer Lithium Ion, or Li-ion, battery chemistry, if you can find that option, for the least weight and limited memory effect.

Step 2:

Run Windows Maintenance Tasks by opening the Control Panel in Windows 7 (older Microsoft operating systems are similar), and browsing to System & Security and then Find and Fix Problems.

Select Run Maintenance Tasks and allow the troubleshooter to run.

Tip: Run Maintenance Tasks will correct maintenance issues like excessive unused files and shortcuts.

Step 3:

Free up disk space by returning to the Control Panel home page and browsing to System & Security again. Choose Free Up Disk Space from the Administrative Tools area. The cleanup will run and prompt you to delete redundant files.

Tip: Freeing up disk space provides more elbow room within the hard drive.

Step 4:

Remove programs that you don't use by selecting Free Up Disk Space again. This time, choose Clean Up System Files and then the More Options tab.

Allow the list to populate and uninstall programs you don't use by double-clicking on the program label.

Tip: Programs take up space on the hard drive. As with the previous step, making space helps the laptop. Plus, fewer programs loading on laptop startup frees RAM.

Step 5:

Defragment the hard drive by choosing the Defragment your Hard Drive option label adjacent to the Free Up Disk Space label.

Click on Analyze and the tool will analyze the disk and advise you if defragmentation is necessary. Follow the prompt to perform the defragmentation.

Tip: Defragmenting physically organizes file clusters on the hard drive, making the day-to-day file reading faster.

Step 6:

Turn on Windows Update by clicking on Automatic Updating On or Off within the same System & Security section of the Control Panel, and choosing Install Updates Automatically.

Tip: Windows Update is a Microsoft service that pushes bug fixes and enhancements to the laptop.

Ensure the computer is running and online at the scheduled check time. Follow any prompts.

Step 7:

Install antivirus software. Browse to the Microsoft Windows Consumer Security Software Providers Web page and choose an antivirus application. I've had success with the free AVG product, but others are available too.

Follow the prompts to install the product and allow a scan to take place. Follow any prompts to repair virus damage.

Tip: You may have to delve deep into some of the antivirus websites to find the free version of the product.

Step 8:

Install maintenance software. I've used IObit's free Advanced SystemCare, which has corrected issues for me.

Browse to the IObit website for the download. Install the application and allow it to perform a Smart Scan. Smart Scan will identify and remove malware, fix registry issues and scan the disk for errors, among other optimizations.

Tip: The paid version of Advanced SystemCare provides more in-depth fixes.

Developers force Microsoft to release Windows 8.1 early

An outcry by programmers has forced Microsoft to give them early access to Windows 8.1.

An outcry by programmers has forced Microsoft to give them early access to Windows 8.1.

The furore came after Microsoft announced that developers would get the new release at the same time as everyone else.

That marked a change from established practice which saw certified developers get early access to new versions.

Microsoft has now given coders access to 8.1 so they can start testing and developing before the public release.

Programmers who subscribed to Microsoft's TechNet and MSDN developer services historically got early access so they could ensure code for their own applications was not broken by the new versions of Windows.

Microsoft's strong developer community were unhappy with the change Microsoft made with 8.1, particularly as the new version made changes to its appearance and the way programs can work with it.

Windows 8.1 is due to be released to the public on 18 October. The version that will ship to customers has been ready since late August.

One of the more visible changes in Windows 8.1 will be to make the start button more obvious.

As Windows 8 was largely created to serve touchscreen devices such as tablets, the start button was far less prominent in the original release of the software.

Windows 8.1 will see the button partially restored and allow users to choose whether to stick with a touchscreen display or revert to the more familiar control system seen in desktop and laptop computers. A mouse click on the lower left corner of the screen will let them switch between the two interface styles.

In addition, the start button will always be visible when working with the desktop version of Windows 8.1.