Spring Cleaning

I apologize for the apparent lack of proper punctuation. I should proof read... lol.

well what im about to say might be an annoying way but go around looking for whatever is useless to you and deleting it? or use add and remove program and remove things that are not needed that take alot of memery.

Have you tried Window washer? The first time I ran it, it removed 500 mb of junk.

1. Go to Control Panel> Add/Remove Programs and remove any software that you do not use.

2. Browse through all user's Documents and Settings deleting anything that is not needed (cookies, history, temp files, etc.)

3. Start> Programs> Accessories> System Tools> Disk Cleanup.

4. Right click HD> Select Properties> Select Tools. Run both Error checking and Defrag.

Beyond cleaning out mal-ware and old unused programs, don't forget your cache files and temp folders.

Recent Documents is another good folder to clean out that will speed things up.

Review both the applications that load at startup and place icons in the system tray, and any quick launch links you have.

Clean up the desktop. If you don't use a link at least once a week, you can survive if the link is only in the start menu.

In a similar vein, check your list of favorites for your browser, and your address book.

Personally, I find it even more beneficial to clean out the registry.

CAUTION: Changes to the registry can cause problems and may even make your system not boot.
Proceed with due care and caution.

Of the major software packages for cleaning the registry, I like System Suite from V-Com software.
www.v-com.com

Norton SystemWorks also does a decent job.

System Mechanic from Ilio Systems also has a registry cleaner.

Another decent registry cleaner is Registry First Aid from Rose City Software.
http://www.rosecitysoftware.com/Reg1Aid/

General advice on items that the software packages find but do not mark as safe to remove / change, leave these entries alone unless you know they are bad.

Chas

All of my software loaded onto any machine is kept in one of those CD binders, including the OS. In the event of serious problems and a complete cleanup is needed, I will wipe it clean by deleting the partition, reinstalling a new partition and reformat and reload everything. Normally during a system build up, I have to do this several times in order to get everything to play nice together, so I also have an install order to follow also.

Check this out !

http://www.tune-up.com/

Tune-Up Utilities 2006.

You might try a programme called Ashampoo WinOptimizer. Not expensive and it offers a One Click cleaning process for defrag, registery clean etc., if you don't want to customize a specific part of the software. I've used it for a while now and it does keep Widows running well without the danger of loosing essential stuff. If you're confident enough, it does provide for a more selective cleaning process. Good luck

You may want to try using Optimize 1.5 from PCPitStop.com. I have good results in using it, along with the use of Adaware and SpyBot Search & Destroy. Of course you still need to do the Disk Clean-up and Defrag, but these aforementioned items have been working well for me.

I also use two free programs called Cleanup! and Easycleaner. Both do a good job but Cleanup! is a bit more aggresive and won't save deleted files to the recycle bin. I ran Cleanup! on my neighbours PC and it deleted over 21000 temporary files!

there are all sorts of cleaners etc out there but the best way is still to check trough your data, get rid of what you dont want and back the rest up to disk or a drive just used for data.
give it a scan witha good antivirus and antispyawre to check it's clean.
then format your main drive and reinstall your os and sofwtare.

I use Pest Patrol for spyware and adware. I alsoo use Norton System Works for windows and registry problems. Clean out build up in the windows files as decribed earlier by clearing everything under each user in the Documents and Settings folders. Just open each folder, making sure that hidden files are shown by opening a winowand selecting from the top bar, TOOLS, Folder Options, and selecting Show Hidden Files and Folders, and clean out everything inn the Recent Docs, Local Settings: each folder in there, Cookies, and Temp.
Also navigate to C: Windows\Prefetch and delete everything in there EXCEPT the desktop.ini file. Then go to C: Windows\Temp and delete all that it will let you delete out of there. Then Right click on IE and go to the properties. Select to clear cookies, delete chafiles and check the box for clear all offline cache files, and history.
This should give you a good clean and then you should disable Systen Restore by Right clicking on My Computer and going to Properties. Click the Sytem Restore tab and turn off System Restore. This will clear all restore Points and not put spyware and other things back on your computer when you reboot. Reboot, and turn on System Restore, then defrag your hard drive.

The cheapest, most effective and possibly even the fastest is to re-install everything from scratch. It doesn't cost anything, will certainly remove everything you don't want and saves all the time you would spend trying different cleaners or trying to decide what to delete.

gunner

I read through all the answers to your cleanup inquiry and didn't see a mention of the best little free cleaner I ever came across. It's called CCLEANER (short for crap cleaner) and it does an amazing job on a huge range of unnecessary files plus checks the registry for problems and asks if you'd like to clean that up too. Go to http://www.ccleaner.com/ and get it before anything else.

My favorite tools are Ccleaner (www.ccleaner.com) and Diskeeper (www.diskeeper.com). Ccleaner is available as a free trial and provides a good combo of disk and registry cleanup with special customization available for cleaning up excess files for applications like IE, Firefox, Adobe, SAV, Quicktime, RealPlayer, etc.
Diskeeper is a more sophisticated disk defragmenter.

We run a checklist with adaware, spybot, update virus defs, disk cleanup, defrag, do windows security updates. I agree with cleaning up junk no longer used and running msconfig to stop unneccessary start up programs. I would also cleanup the desktop of large files that hog ram, just leave shortcuts on desktop. I have seen desktops that are larger than the amount of ram in the PC.

Backup the stuff you want to keep on your system. Including installation files for the programs you use. Then reformat and reinstall Windows and reinstall your programs. Keep old data on CDs or DVDs for reference.

Add up the cost of all of those utilities and you'll soon realize - it's probably cheaper to destroy the hard drive and buy a new one. It's also the most secure method for preventing critical data from being compromised. The U.S. military have been doing it for years.

EagleUK

From the answers you've no doubt read by now, you must realize that you need to do some serious planning if you truely want to clean house - and that's just the software. Wait 'til you get around to opening up your machine and giving that a cleaning too (does the phrase "dust bunnies with teeth" ring a bell?). Either method of cleaning your system - backup, reformat & reload everything or software cleaners - may well take a full day to do; possibly more. It will depend upon your finances and your setup and maybe even your stamina. Whichever you choose, plan ahead before you do anything!

Just wanted to add my 2cents. I have written some pages that might be of use to you.
Virus Removal Instructions
http://home.neo.rr.com/manna4u/
Keeping Windows Clean
http://home.neo.rr.com/manna4u/keepingclean.html
Various Help Sites and Tools
http://home.neo.rr.com/manna4u/tools.html

max

try to use spybut to fix your problum. I'm alway you it in my offic.

Delete any files you do not wish to keep and write the ones you wish to keep to cds. Also go through and compress document files, not program files.