PJCNET

Introduction:

Later in this section we will be talking about Internet speeds and how to improve them, but firstly one of the main causes of PC slowdowns is the number of unneeded applications and services that load every time when your PC is started up. This in itself increases the load time of Windows significantly, but many of these applications stay resident in memory permanently and use other system resources when many of these them aren’t even required. Some might be visible as Tray Icons to the right of the task bar, while others run in the background silently without most people even realising. Many tray applications can be removed, but can still be loaded on demand which is sensible if they’re hardly used.

When one installs an application, sometimes one of these start-up programmes is added to the system start-up so that it loads every time you start your PC. The problem is usually these tasks are added without the knowledge or consent of the user. These hidden changes also often occur when a virus installs on your PC silently.

Introducing WinPatrol and WinPatrol Plus:

There’s an excellent Freeware application named WinPatrol which monitors all your start-up items, services, ActiveX controls, file associations, scheduled tasks and more so that you are informed of any changes so you can decide whether or not you want to allow them. This puts you back in complete control of what runs on your own computer. Also often if a virus gets past your Antivirus protection, Winpatrol will start informing you of unwanted changes to your PC which you can then deny, this is another very useful purpose of having Winpatrol. Winpatrol also shows information about all your active tasks, cookies and hidden files and it even allows you to put a delay on loading chosen start-up applications for a smoother start-up experience.

The 100% Freeware version of Winpatrol is excellent and monitors all changes as quick as once every minute without any nag screens, but if you would like to upgrade to Winpatrol Plus for a one time fee of $29.95, you can monitor in real time meaning you’re informed of changes instantly instead of in up to one minutes time. You also get access to a massive on-line database that can identify virtually any start-up application, service or process running on your computer in detail by simply right clicking on it and selecting “PLUS info”. The $29.95 pays for all future updates for life and you can install Winpatrol Plus on all your personal PCs. Winpatrol is very well supported and is improved and updated regularly.

PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO DOWNLOAD WINPATROL!

More Freeware To Speed Up Your PC:

I also have details of 2 more extremely good freeware applications that will help speed your PC up without spending a penny. They are named Defraggler and CCleaner by Piriform Software. These applications are always totally free to everyone and there’s no pro or paid version. Please click here for more details and scroll down the opinion.

A very good all in one utility to speed up your PC is named Advanced System Care by IOBit.com although unfortunately as a free user you don’t get some of the enhanced optimisation available in the pro version which costs $19.99 at the time of writing. The software will automatically optimize your PC in various ways using numerous stages with little or no interaction so even people without much PC knowledge can keep their PC running in top condition. Please click here for more details.

Ways to Speed Up Internet & Browsing:

Speed tests:

Firstly, please visit http://www.speedtest.net/ to check your actual Internet Speed quite accurately, but please ensure you’re not downloading anything. Many people will be unfortunately unpleasantly surprised by their real speed compared to the maximum speed advertised by their Internet Service Provider. You might want to check your speed at different times as your speed may be significantly reduced at peak times. Alternatively, please visit http://www.speed.io/ for another good speed checker.

Advise about how to increase your Internet speed:

There’s various ways that you can increase the speed of your Internet connection just by using Windows software alone. There’s numerous windows network settings that aren’t usually configured for optimum performance as default with the exception of Windows 7 which is much more efficient. There’s a number of packages that automatically optimize and tweak those settings automatically for you, here is one that does the job well and is totally free for Windows XP, 2000 and 9X users along with a patch for Windows Vista users, see read the information below for instructions.

PLEASE CLICK HERE TO DOWNLOAD THE SPEED GUIDE TCP OPTIMIZER or THE WINDOWS VISTA TCP/IP PATCH & for MORE INFORMATION

(WINDOWS XP, 2000, 9X – To set automatically using the TCP Optimizer, set your connection by the download speed calculated by running a speed test and click optimal settings, then click apply, if you’re lucky enough to get speeds faster than 20,000, set the bar to the maximum! WINDOWS VISTA – There is a SG Vista TCP/IP Patch for Windows Vista users on the same page with full instructions. WINDOWS 7 – Windows 7 doesn’t require any further TCP/IP optimization as it’s all done automatically!)

If you’re using Mozilla Firefox, there’s various hidden settings that will further increase your browsing experience. To adjust these settings for optimal efficiency automatically, please download and run FireTune.

Please remember that there are many other factors that also effect your Internet speed when using a standard phone line (Not Mobile Broadband):

1…Type of connection technology your ISP uses, Eg. ADSL Max (Up to 8Mb/S), ADSL2 (Less used, but up to 12Mb/S), ADSL2+ (Up to 20Mb/S or 24Mb/S – most BT Exchanges are upgraded for ADSL2+ or will be soon), VDSL (Up to 50Mb/S – currently available on fibre optic cable only at the time of writing in the UK apart from a few test locations although this will be the connection of the future in the UK using newer fibre optic lines).

2…Your distance from your local telephone exchange and the quality of your telephone line. You have to be extremely close to your local exchange to get near the maximum speed for your connection technology and most people don’t get anywhere near the maximum speed, especially with faster technologies like ADSL2+ or VDSL. The closer you are to the Exchange, the greater the benefit of upgrading to faster ADSL2+ or VDSL technologies, unfortunately if your line quality is poor, upgrading may not make much of an improvement if any. (Cable including Virgin Media works differently as the only copper wiring is from the home to much closer street level boxes, not to the local telephone exchange like non-cable services, so for cable broadband including Virgin Media the distance from the telephone exchange doesn’t apply.)

3…Internal wiring. The quality of your line and speed can be reduced by long extension cables or poor quality extension cables. It can also be reduced by other internal extensions in the property (try to plug your router into the master socket if possible) and if other devices are plugged in sharing your phone socket before your ADSL filter is connected. Another common speed problem is caused by faulty ADSL filters which can absolutely kill your speed. You can sometimes improve the quality of your line by quickly and easily installing an I-Plate at £7.99 from BT (NOT SUITABLE FOR CABLE LINES), as this disconnects the unused bell wire that often causes extra interference. Some people notice no improvement using an I-Plate, while others get enjoy speed increases of up to 2Mb/S. Please click here for more details on the I-Plate. Please note that it can take up to 4 days for your line speed to adjust accordingly if you do manage to improve the quality of your line.

4…Your chosen Internet Service Provider and package. Obviously your speed and package is important and your maximum speed can be capped with some cheaper tariffs, but some ISP’s offer better speeds than others even if you think you’re buying the same speed. Some ISPs choose to throttle (slow down) your speeds during peak times, mainly peer to peer applications (E.g. Torrent down-loaders) and many ISPs become over-loaded at busy times reducing your speed significantly, but some ISPs are much worse than others. All ISPs have what’s called a contention ratio which is how many people share each physical line, the lower the contention the better and the less chance you’ll notice slowdowns during busy times. The way this works is that every ISP assumes that only a certain percentage of users will be using the Internet at once as if everyone was using it at the same time the speed would be so slow it would be virtually unusable. Sharing lines in this way is how ISP keeps the costs down to the user, it can be avoided only by buying a dedicate line, but this is very expensive and is therefore usually only brought by businesses. Business broadband packages in general usually have a better contention ratio than home broadband packages and don’t always cost a fortune and you may want to consider this even if you’re a home user with a heavy demand. ISPs always set your maximum line speed to a bit less than your line is capable of so to ensure you don’t have any problems, but what’s sneaky is that some ISPs seem to reduce this by more than others making this in my opinion another hidden way of throttling your connection. To check for throttling policies for ISPs, check the Terms & Conditions + the Fair Usage Policy. Ask your ISP about their contention ratio policy if it’s not advertised to compare. If considering an ISP, look for good reviews first as it’s harder to find out which ISPs are more overloaded than others, especially when this can vary depending on your location. If you notice your speeds are usually slow during busier times, then the chances are your ISP is over-loaded, but please ensure you run a speed test as some people wrongfully think their speed is slow when it’s in fact the website you’re connected to that’s overloaded. Please remember that your Internet speed can only be as fast as the website server your connected to. I use Sky Broadband and for months I’ve been getting very fast consistent speeds even during peak times, unfortunately you have to be a Sky TV customer first to have Sky Broadband, but please click here to see my ongoing test and review of Sky Broadband.

Please note that using a wireless connection can also reduce your speed unless you have a good signal.

If you’re not satisfied with your Internet speed, please don’t be afraid to ask advice from your ISP or if necessary complain.

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