Every computer owner hopes that their computer will work as efficiently as it did when it was purchased.
However, you notice that your computer becomes slower as it gets older. Not only this, but your computer may also encounter occasional errors or system crashes. This could cost you a lot of valuable time and data, especially if you use your computer for important work.
Simply depending upon a good operating system may not be enough to deal with these problems. While it is true that newer operating systems such as Windows XP and Windows Vista are less prone to errors, many computer users still continue to face problems. Saving your data every few minutes may not help in the case of receiving many errors, as this will reduce your productivity and may still render you helpless in case your system crashes.

Would you like to be able to fix a slow computer and avoid PC problems without spending a lot of time and money? All you need to do in order to have a healthy computer is to follow a few simple guidelines to take care of your computer:

1. Ensure clean and uncluttered hard disk:
   
   One of the main reasons your computer has become slow could be that your hard disk is unclean and cluttered. You need to clean your hard disk on a regular basis. This will allow your computer to access and process information faster. Make regular use of the two Hard Disk utilities provided in the System tools of your Windows operating system. These utilities are:
   
   
   • Disk Cleanup
   • Disk Defragmenter
   
   These utilities will clean and make your hard disk contiguous so that your computer becomes more efficient and prevents PC problems.
   
   
2. Ensure a clean Windows Registry:
   
   The Windows registry is a database that stores critical setting information that your system requires for day to day functioning. Every time a software or hardware is installed or uninstalled on your PC, its configuration information is added or deleted to your Windows registry. Many PC errors can trace their root to an unclean and bloated windows registry. Although it is possible to manually clean your Windows registry, it is not recommended as it carries important information.
   
   A regular registry scan and repair through a reliable registry scan tool will make your computer faster and less vulnerable to PC errors. A good registry repair software will automatically scan and repair your registry at scheduled times in addition to taking a complete backup of your registry. This facility could prove very useful in case your computer crashes.

3. Remove unnecessary Programs
   
   Some of the programs or applications which were used by us earlier but now have become obsolete should be removed completely from the system as they continue to occupy and use valuable computer resources. Similarly, some of the new programs like add-on browser tool bars may make internet surfing slower because these toolbars have a tendency to use a lot of space and make computers slower. So, to enhance the performance of your PC and to improve your Web browsing experience, it is advised that you uninstall toolbars that you no longer use by using a uninstall toolbar utility.