... Ten Ways To Improve Windows 98 ...
As he teaches, so he learns.

You do it. I do it. We all do it -- tweak our operating systems, that is. We invariably change some of Windows' default settings when we first set up/reinstall Windows. Sometimes, it's because the defaults aren't much good. Other times, it's because of a particular need or circumstance that warrants deviating from the Microsoft-dictated norms. And sometimes -- let's be honest -- it's, well, just because.

  1. LIGHTEN THE LOAD
    You probably have more applications running than you think: Press Ctrl+Alt+Del to bring up the Close Program box. Even with all the obvious top-level apps shut down, chances are you'll still see a bunch of invisible background applications running.

    Each running app eats a little of your CPU time, with a net result of slowing things down. Some apps are worse than others. Microsoft Office's Find Fast is a notorious CPU hog, as are many anti-virus and "disk doctor" apps that run constantly in the background. For programs like these, use the Custom option in each program's Setup applet to control what runs in the background.

    To launch System Configuration Utility, press the Start button and choose Run. Type "msconfig" without the quotation marks and press Enter. Go to Startup tab and from here you remove on check at a time and see how it affects your system (do NOT remove Systray).

  2. PICK UP THE PIECES
    Defragging is always a good idea, but it's triply beneficial in Win98. You'll find the defragmenter icon in this Start submenu: Start > Programs > Accessories > System tools. (The program file is Defrag.exe and it's found in the C:\Windows folder.) Defrag performs three tasks to enhance performance: It places the pieces of all your files into fast-loading contiguous areas of your hard disk, moves your most frequently used files to the front of the disk where they'll load fastest, and groups your applications' separate pieces into the most efficient load-order. How often you defrag depends upon how you use your computer.

  3. BE A SOFTWARE CHIROPRACTOR
    Win98's WAlign utility can restructure the way programs are stored on your hard drive for the fastest-possible access once they're loaded into RAM and your CPU's cache. You could see load times improve by 20 precent or more. But on its own, WAlign (which you'll find at C:\Windows\System\Walign.exe) only works on MSOffice programs.

  4. TAKE OUT THE TRASH
    Win98 is a packrat. As you work, it collects a prodigious number of temporary files, and it does so for a good reason: The C:\Windows\Temp, C:\Windows\Temporary Internet Files, and Recycle Bin files all exist to give you fast access to items you might need again. But there's a point of diminishing returns. And you can end up with hundreds of megabytes of these files, wasting space and decreasing performance as the operating system tries to wade through the rubbish. To keep the trash to a manageable minimum, you should periodically run Disk Cleanup. You'll find this utility on this Start Menu submenu: Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools.

  5. HOW'S YOUR MEMORY?
    Win98 wants to manage your swap file (virtual memory) on its own. Windows is good at doing that for routine use: The swap file can grow or shrink as needed, and it doesn't have to be all in one place. But Win98 will work faster if the file is all in one place, and if the operating system doesn't have to constantly take time to enlarge or reduce the swap file area as you work.

    To take control of your swap file, right-click My Computer and choose Properties. Click the Performance tab and the Virtual Memory button. Choose "Let me specify my own virtual memory settings." If you have more than one hard drive, place the swap file on the fastest drive you have. Now choose a minimum size for the swap file; a good starting point is to specify at least 2.5 times your system's RAM. Setting a large minimum size means the swap file will usually be large enough for your needs. Reboot when asked, and run Defrag to ensure the swap file's all in one piece. After you're done, you should experience noticeably less disk-thrashing.

  6. TRY A HIGH-FAT DIET
    Many systems that came with Win98 or were upgraded from Win95 still run the old-style 16-bit File Allocation Table, or FAT16. Win98 also supports FAT32, which is better for several reasons. It makes far more efficient use of large hard drives, so it can span larger partition sizes. It also stores files more efficiently, which can mean an effective 10 to 30 percent increase in free disk space. And it allows Defrag to relocate portions of your applications and their supporting files in the actual order they're called, for the fastest possible loading. If you're still running FAT16, select Start > Programs > Accessories > System Tools > Drive Converter (FAT32) and follow the on-screen directions.

  7. ARE YOU BEING SERVED?
    Windows retains some internal performance settings carried over from the days when RAM was expensive. Today they're obsolete and even counterproductive. For example, right-click My Computer and choose Properties > Performance > File System. There you'll find that the Typical role is usually "Desktop Computer." If your PC has more than 32MB of RAM it'll operate slightly faster if you select "Network Server," even if it isn't really a server. (The Network Server setting uses a little more RAM for various disk buffers and caches to speed disk operations.) For most systems with abundant RAM, it makes sense to choose this server setting.

  8. REDO DUN
    By default, Windows' networking protocols are optimized for LAN-based communication. However if you connect to the Web via a LAN, you're probably fine. But you're not fine if you use Dial-Up Networking. LAN and the internet use different packet sizes, so the resulting packet fragmentation slows you down. Other default settings may slow you down as well, but all can be fixed by changing several Registry settings. The application EasyMTU is available at most download sites. It can do it all for you in seconds, and get your dial-up sessions operating at top speed.

  9. TWEAK YOU MUST
    Tweak UI lets you improve your PC's responsiveness by: removing Network Neighborhood icon, removing "Shortcut to" from shortcuts, displaying or removing splash screen while rebooting, adjusting mouse's menu speed and sensitivity, and much more. You might or might not have Tweak UI in your system. If you don't, you can usually find in at most download sites.

  10. WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS ...
    Sometimes, subtle problems can put the brakes on Windows. If nothing works, it might be time for a reinstall. This means your procedures fail to correct your problem, then the only alternative that I know of is to run your recovery CD, probably with a full format. In Hewlett-Packard its called a "System Recovery" and in Compaq it's called a "Quick Restore" (I suppose each brand computer has its own hard-drive format name). Remember: it's safer and easier to start fresh than to try to fix a "mess."

    NOTE: Make sure that you have backups for all of your data, programs, favorites, cookies, address book etc. before running the recovery CD with a format, because you will lose everything. Restoring your computer to the state it was in before you bought it means (obviously) that everything you did to the computer after you got it, all your data, user-installed software and customizations, will be wiped out. (This is another reason why making frequent backups, and storing them outside your PC (not on the hard drive, with everything else) is so important. Good luck.

    All right, we will return to the ... Main Links ... and to the rest of this section.

    Here we just return to our … Navigator … you thought you were done?

    1