The Hassle: I use XP on a fast, dual-core system with a SATA II drive and lots of RAM. Yet Windows' My Computer sometimes takes a full two minutes to open.
The Fix: Ah, the pain. I'll bet you're on a network, and XP is merrily monitoring shared resources -- a printer, for instance, or a networked folder -- to make connecting to those resources easier. But you can turn off the monitoring and still access shared stuff.
Open Windows Explorer, go to Tools, Folder Options, click on the View tab and uncheck Automatically search for network folders and printers-and you'll feel the speed again.
Back Up -- But Validate, Too
I made a terrible discovery. My old, reliable backup image wasn't any good. I had backed up to a drive with a bad sector, so my Acronis True Image backup was corrupt. Lesson learned: Always, always find and use your backup program's validate feature. It's the only way to be sure of having a reliable backup. (Click here to download Acronis True Image.)
Tool of the Month
Revo Uninstaller
I never use Windows' brain-dead uninstaller. It's slow, supplies scant info, and often leaves remnants of the app I want to uninstall. My replacement is Revo Uninstaller, a free tool so useful, it's on my Start menu. It tells me the unwanted program's version and location, when I installed it, and the vendor URL. I highlight an entry to uninstall, and a click brings me to the program's folder or Registry entry. After Revo uses the app's uninstall routine, it scans my PC and finds the left-behind odds and ends: files, folders, and Registry entries. A dialogue box gives me options to delete them or remove them from the Registry. (Click here to download Revo Uninstaller.)
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