11 Ways to a Faster More Lean Vista (In Black and White)

Is vista slow? Does your new computer putter along while Microsoft execs swim in money and laugh maniacally while you suffer from a "bricked" computer? Vista's slowness is more due to bloated, cpu sucking features (that can be turned off), than actual problems with the OS. If your Vista computer is slow, this is the guide for you.

1. Add RAM/Memory

   RAM adds a significant performance boost.

   • For Vista to run optimally, 4 gigs (or more) of RAM is where its at! And it's a relatively inexpensive(but with the greatest potential to benefit) way of speeding up a Vista computer. When I first installed Vista I only had 1 gig of RAM on my laptop and Vista was laggy. After dropping $70 on 4gigs of ram, EVERYTHING moved faster from opening programs and swapping windows to startup/shutdown. Adding RAM is probably the Number #1 way to speed up Vista.

2. Disable/Turn Off User Access Control(UAC)

   What is UAC?

   • Ever wonder why you have to click to accept, then click again to confirm, then click again and again and again??? This is the UAC at work. It is by far the most annoying feature ever built into any program ever. This is Microsoft compensating for a lack of ability to tighten security on its own OS by making us make sure what we are doing isn't going to tank our computer. Security threats are real but... COME-ON! ARE YOU KIDDING ME MICROSOFT?
     
     I can't put into words the stupidity of Microsoft executives coming up with this scheme to slow people down(because that IS all it does). The fact is, the more you click on annoying popups, the less you're going to be paying attention. ...So the UAC isn't going to work anyway. I want you to tally in your head an extra 10-30 clicks per day due to this "default feature". Now multiply 10-30 times 400 million people.(HINT: that's 4-12 billion clicks) How much wasted time is that at an average of 1 second per click?(4 billion seconds is 666,666.6 minutes or 111,111 wasted hours or 46,296 wasted days by the populace in general.) Thank goodness there is the possiblity to disable it(or continue to use XP).
     
     Lifehackers Gina Trapani says it best: "Roast me over the hot, user-specific coals if you want for this one, but Vista's annoying "Windows needs your permission to continue" dialogs are nothing short of a total nuisance."
   
   To remove:
   • Click on Windows
   • Control Panel
   • User Accounts
   • Select your account
   • Click on "Turn User Account Control on or off
   • Uncheck UAC
   
   This will now create an annoying warning telling you your computer is at risk.
   
   To turn off the warning or red X in the bottom right corner of your screen:
   • Click on Windows
   • Click Control Panel
   • Click Security Center
   • Click on "Change the way security center alerts me"
   • Click on "Don't Notify Me and Don't Display the Icon"

3. Disable/Turn Off Superfetch (*Faster Startup!)

   What is superfetch?

   • Superfetch is a feature included in Vista designed to make opening programs faster by analyzing your computing behavior and "prefetching program data."

   What it really does:

   • Have you ever noticed your hard drive whirring away for 20+ minutes for no apparent reason right after startup?
   • Superfetch works by slowing you down at the beginning, only to NOT help much in the end when you are opening a program. There's not really a point to this feature in todays high-powered processing world.
   • Have you ever noticed that "ituneshelper" process running in the background? That small startup program operates on the same principle. Basically it creates a longer startup time in the beginning only to help so very little at the end...all the while sucking resources...EVEN IF YOU'RE NOT USING ITUNES! Huzzah for Apple!(not) The basic premise for prefetch has to do with opening large bloated programs. Vista allows companies like adobe, microsoft, etc to create immensly bloated programs that take upwards of 30 seconds to open(on slower computers). So they created Prefetch with the idea to have these bloated programs open faster by analyzing your computer use habits. Ituneshelper comes preinstalled without your input(along with a half dozen other useless programs apple wants us to have(without our input))
   • Coffee drinkers will love this one because they have an excuse for the boss. "My computer is really sluggish so I went for some coffee." If you feel like being productive Disable it!.
   • Hard drive life is reduced due to all the time spent in useless prefetching.

   How to Disable/Turn Off Superfetch

   • Click on Windows
   • Type msconfig into the Start Search box
   • A new window will have opened.
   • Click the Services tab
   • Scroll down until you find Superfetch.
   • Uncheck Superfetch
   • Press OK
   The next time your computer restarts it will pop up a dialog telling you that some start-up items are disabled. Check the box that says don't notify me next time windows starts.

Vista Speed Secrets...The ones we don't cover here.

4. Disable/Turn Off Windows Defender

   What is Windows Defender?

   • Microsoft says this about Defender: "Windows Defender is software that helps protect your computer against pop-ups, slow performance, and security threats caused by spyware and other unwanted software by detecting and removing known spyware from your computer. Windows Defender features Real-Time Protection, a monitoring system that recommends actions against spyware when it's detected, minimizes interruptions, and helps you stay productive."

   What it is supposed to do:

   • Checks your computer for spyware and malware in "real-time"

   What it really does:

   • Unfortunately this "Real-Time Protection" has trade-offs. This actually slows down your computer while it checks and rechecks your system. A lot of processing time is used to run through your system looking for possible threats. Ever wonder why your computer acts sluggish at times. Windows Defender is another program to blame. Disable it!

   Disabling Windows Defender

   • Click on Windows
   • Type msconfig into the Start Search box
   • Click on Startup tab
   • Uncheck Windows Defender
   The next time your computer restarts it will pop up a dialog telling you that some start-up items are disabled. Check the box that says don't notify me next time windows starts.

5. Disable/Turn Off Un-needed Startup Items (*Faster Startup!)

   What will disabling start-up items do for me?

   • Doing so will create a faster startup time for you.

   What startup items don't I need? This is a quick list of what I have unchecked:

   • AppleSyncNotifier(itunes)
   • iTunes
   • Google Update
   • Logitech Setpoint
   • Quicktime
   • Windows Defender
   • Logitech Setpoint(another instance of the same program)
   • Java Platform SE 6...
   There is no way I could come up with a comprehensive list of all the programs that are inserted into the startup area. Because vendors have free reign over this area, it is prone to abuse. Apple, Adobe, and Microsoft are the three largest abusers. Suffice it to say, disable it if you are sure you know what the program is and you are sure you don't need it to startup when the computer starts up.

6. Uninstall or disable un-needed programs (*Possible Faster Startup!)

   What this will do for you

   • Programs suck resources. Even if it's not listed in the startup items under msconfig, there's a chance that it will be running nevertheless in the background. MS Office is one of the "worst" as to running things in the background. Programs that you don't need reside on the computer and only serve to slow you down in the long run.

   Uninstalling Programs

   • Click on Windows
   • Click on Control Panel
   • Click on Programs and Features
   • Uninstall programs you don't need
   If you uninstalled a lot of programs the next time your computer restarts you'll see a marked performance improvement.

7. Disable Windows Components

   Disable Windows Sidebar

   • This is a program that runs at startup that really has no practical use. I actually do use it to display my local temperature and some stocks. The problem is it sucks up a lot of resources and minimally effects Vista startup time. It's just another Vista component that is running in the backround sucking up resources.

   To disable Vista Sidebar:

   • Find and right-click on the sidebar icon in the bottom right corner.
   • Click Properties
   • A dialog opens
   • Uncheck Start Sidebar When Windows Starts

   Disable Windows Preview(thumbnails)

   These are the popups when you hover over a task or program in the taskbar.
   • This is another feature of Vista that can slow you down and suck up needed resources.

To disable Windows Preview(thumbnails)

• Right click anywhere in the taskbar
• Click Properties
• A dialog opens
• Uncheck Show windows previews(thumbnails)

Disable Graphical Features

What this will do for you?

• Honestly, very little. There actually is one thing that may speed up window transitioning if you have an older computer or an old graphics card: Disable Transparency. In my opinion, this is the whole reason for having Vista in the first place. Vista is not much of an upgrade from XP unless you really like the "glass" aero look. Disabling transparency removes that look.

Disabling Transparency(Per User)

• Click on Windows
• Click on Control Panel
• Click on Personalization(or right click on the Desktop and select Personalization
• Click on Windows Color and Appearance
• Uncheck Enable Transparency

Disabling Transparency(All Users)

• Click on Windows
• Click on Control Panel
• Click on System
• Click on Advanced System Settings[left menu item]
• Uncheck Advanced[tab]
• Uncheck Settings in [PERFORMANCE]
• Uncheck Enable Transparency

8. Defragment the C: partition on your Hard Drive

   What is Defragmenting?

   • Wikipedia.com states: "In the context of administering computer systems, defragmentation is a process that reduces the amount of fragmentation in file systems. It does this by physically organizing the contents of the disk to store the pieces of each file close together and contiguously."

   What it really does:

   • Actual performance enhancement varies. In my tests Vista performance is very minimally enhanced.
     
     Deframenting slightly speeds up the computer. Computer speed is determined by a number of factors including seek time on the HD.
     
     Defragmenting can improve the seek time by removing the fragmented files and placing them contigously on the hard drive, physically placing them closer together which translates into fractions of a second quicker seek times and thus a performance gain.

   Running Defrag

   • Click on Windows
   • Type defrag into the search field
   • Let it Run.
   Run this once a month and you'll keep your hard disk in tip-top shape. I've never really seen much performance boost from defragmenting. But the feeling you get after defragmenting makes it worth it(your hard drives files are squeeky-clean and organized! Huzzah!).

9. DO NOT INSTALL MICROSOFT OFFICE

   Why Not?

   • You may laugh that I recommend this. Why? MS Office is the definition of bloatware. For years, I too used this product because I had to. There were no viable alternatives. Office was considered the industry standard. That is not the case today. There is no faster way to jack up a nice clean install of Windows than by installing Office. There are at least 3 faster, smarter, better alternatives). Office usually takes more than 20 minutes to install. You have to wonder--what is it doing? Why do no other programs take as long as ms office to install? (except some games and adobe products). When you're done, you may notice your computer starting up slower, and you may notice that overall performance has been slowed slightly. There are reasons...because it installs programs that run in the background that take longer to start up.
     • Adds thousands of lines to the registry slowing down your computer and adding to startup time. It installs more programs, subprograms, sub-sub-sub programs than you are not aware of.
     • Installs a half dozen startup programs that run in the background supporting their incredibly slow bloated product. (hint: Openoffice doesn't as it's still snappy and quick about opening)
   • Now think about this: The average user of Word/Excel/Outlook/Powerpoint is only going to use about 5%-10% of the features that these programs offer. These features are the exact same features that can be found using google docs(online), Openoffice, and zoho.com...completely free products that function similarly or the exact same way as MS Office products but are much faster!. I personally use them. You can save Google Docs and OpenOffice documents as .xls and .doc. Openoffice is fast and quickly opens documents. Google docs stores documents I want permantly stored--online, where I can retrieve them anywhere there is a computer and an internet connection. Furthermore, you can bookmark Google documents so you can quickly access and edit them.

10. DO NOT INSTALL ADOBE PRODUCTS

    Why Not?

    • The above paragraphs apply in general to all adobe products. Adobe and Microsoft opperate much like manufacturers of computers do: Instead of just installing the program you want on your brand spankin new computer, your brand spanking new computer comes with dozens of extra programs you will never use. Right from the start your computer is NOT running optimally!!!
      
      Microsoft and Adobe Installation programs love to suggest(and have checked by default) for the common user to install upwords of a dozen extra programs you'll never use!
      
      If you haven't gotten it yet, adding programs causes your computer to slow down. Why, because installation of any product adds lines to the registry as well as installing startup programs, and background programs.

    What is the Registry?

    • Think of the registry as an ENORMOUS database. That is what it is--a database. Vendors (makers of programs) have free reign on installing anything and everything they want into this database(registry)(think Spy-ware and Malware) So how is it STILL possible for virus' and malware to take over your computer? THE ANSWER...EMBED themselves in the registry!
      
      As the registry gets bigger and more lines and more programs are added, it becomes impossible to keep track of what has been installed.(hence making it near impossible for it to be removed)--Meaning when you uninstall a program(office) it's going to leave behind hundreds (if not thousands) of registry entries. Eventually, sometimes after only months, your copy of windows becomes a slow moving slug partially because of registry bloat. If you dont absolutely need a program dont install it.

11. DO NOT INSTALL ANTI-VIRUS PROGRAMS

    Why Not?

    • There is NO FASTER WAY...are you listening....there is NO faster way to brick a computer than installing antivirus software.
      
      Anti-virus software doesn't work. Invariably you end up getting a virus that ruins your windows installation and you just have to reformat anyway. Long story short, if you plan for windows failure, you're going to be a hundred times better off. Vista, XP and all the other flavors before it are ticking timebombs. The more you use it, the quicker Vista slows down. That's just the way it is. Some things haven't changed. When you're a company trying to create a product to be all things to all things, it's a nearly impossible task. (Even Macs slow down).
    • I've seriously considered(fantasized) about suing Norton for time spent, anguish incurred, and general suffering they have caused due to their POS software bricking my computer, and the computers of family and friends who invariable ask for my assistance in fixing their bricked computers. I haven't had any better luck with free antivirus programs(AVG, Avast, etc).

    Antivirus's are NECESSARY you say?

    • If you buy into the fear and the deceit perpetrated by the media about insidious virus' that wipe out everything and steal your data and your cc numbers, you're living in a world of anxiety, and non-productivity. Your chances of hitting the million doller jackpot are better than someone stealing your identity and your credit card numbers. (I do however recommend monitoring your credit. By law, the 3 main credit companies have to provide a credit report to you.)