What performance enhancing software do you recommend?

Jaxxxom

New Member
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I'm going to contradict myself right away here. Odd way to start a thread I know, let me explain. I just started a new job this past August. It's not many hours per week and not the greatest pay. Something I need to do something about. This is where I run into a 'which to do first, the chicken or the egg?'.

Here's my goal. My laptop came pre-loaded with Office 2013 pro. I have an average typing speed of 60wpm. If I were to get MS Office certified, I could hypothetically work freelance from home while not at my "day job". The issue(s) are this. I'm currently using Windows defender as firewall and virus protection. Norton came preloaded, but I've NEVER liked it in the 20 some odd years of having computers at home. (Uses too many resources for what it does I feel).

What I need is some fairly good programs that will optimize my system, protect me better then Windows defender ever could (malware, spyware, virus, root kits...ect) The problem is, I don't have the $$$ to invest in "the best" software. I know the old saying, you get what you pay for. And I would happily pay for the best, if I had the cash to do so.

The problem with getting freeware or shareware from Cnet or Tucows, is either it works like (I think Malware bytes did this) tells you a long list of issues, but won't fix them until you pay for it. Again, I would be happy to do so, but can't right now. In the meantime you end up with a whole heck of a lot of crap on your system that sometimes is worse then getting a virus!

Once I start making a few bucks freelancing, then I'll come back and ask for a list of "the best of" the various programs I seek. As a sidebar, does anyone know of any good online schools that teach Office?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Sattelite C55D-A5372
    CPU
    AMD A4500
    Memory
    6gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon HD8330
    Sound Card
    Realtek Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Built in
    Screen Resolution
    1366x764
    Browser
    IE 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Defender is amazing at protecting you..

Also turn your UAC up to full if you want..

Malware bytes is free for scanning and deleting malware. Use it..


The other ones that you'd eventually have to pay for but are the dogs balls, are

Hitmanpro
Eset


Hitmanpro does have a trial period you can always use it to detect if you have anything..

And Eset actually has an amazing online free scan you can use anytime.. For free
 
Last edited:

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo g750
    CPU
    i5
    Motherboard
    Some Chinese Crap..
    Memory
    8
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia 755
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
I do not believe in performance enhancing software. There is little to nothing that will significantly enhance performance in a healthy OS other than a hardware upgrade. Software that attempts to do this (memory optimizers in particular) either do nothing or are harmful.

Note that I consider optimization software as distinct from system maintenance software and others designed to maintain the healthy state. I am not talking about that at all.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
Agree with Lmiller7,

The only thing you'd might look into is little tweaks like setting certain services you don't need to "manual"

And turning off or tweaking page file if you have lots of ram etc..

Look for "tweaks" not booster programs
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo g750
    CPU
    i5
    Motherboard
    Some Chinese Crap..
    Memory
    8
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia 755
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Some excellent advice here! I was going to say..but forgot, that sometimes it's a matter of changing a setting or three. Something I direly need to research on win 8/10 (haven't decided if I want to upgrade to 10 yet or not). Example, even though I haven't installed, downloaded or other wise added anything to system other then Quicken 2015, from the time I hit power on a cold comp, to the time I can actually read a Facebook post can take as long as 15 minutes! I have three days off in a row this week thankfully, gonna look into ways to fix this!.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Sattelite C55D-A5372
    CPU
    AMD A4500
    Memory
    6gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon HD8330
    Sound Card
    Realtek Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Built in
    Screen Resolution
    1366x764
    Browser
    IE 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
I wish I could upgrade my HP i5 back to windows 7 pro.
I joined the insider program and missed some updates then it wouldn't boot and I kept receiving messages that some file was out of date.
Only help from M/S was to update my bios (without web access) when that failed I was told it was my fault for downloading the software (Win 10 Beta) in the first place
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    7. 7 Pro. & 8-1
Okay...it's been 14 years since I took my A+ class....refresh my memory. What is UAC?

Never heard of Hitman Pro, or Eset. I look those up in a few minutes.

Programs I'm familiar with are:

AVG,
Malwarebytes
Avast!
CCleaner
Notepad ++
VLC
Advanced System Care Free ed.

For future reference (like when I have the $) what software would you buy to secure, protect, or other wise diagnose your comps?
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Sattelite C55D-A5372
    CPU
    AMD A4500
    Memory
    6gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon HD8330
    Sound Card
    Realtek Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Built in
    Screen Resolution
    1366x764
    Browser
    IE 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
there are websites and articles about all this..

but there is a website that's been around for awhile dealing with malware.. just read some of the articles there and have a look at the downloads section in particular and read the descriptions of some of the programs..

BleepingComputer.com - News, Reviews, and Technical Support


the other guys to look at that are really good is the majargeeks.. Apparently it was a guy who worked for Cnet and then became frustrated with how Cnet is turning into a joke of a company and went out on his own to give the people something that doesn't force them into bloatware and force you to install things you don't want and etc..

MajorGeeks.Com - MajorGeeks


and lastly,

use youtube and watch people use whatever programs you want to use and see if it's something you would like..

**EDIT

Oh and UAC is here

uacccc.JPG
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo g750
    CPU
    i5
    Motherboard
    Some Chinese Crap..
    Memory
    8
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia 755
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
"...I think Malware bytes did this) tells you a long list of issues, but won't fix them until you pay for it..." Malwarebytes Anti-Malware, free or fee, if scan picks up X, it offers you choices what to do about X -- delete, quarantee, or ignore. You might be referring to SpyHunter or other such utilities.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Pro 64bit [MS blue-disk set]
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    2 Acers & 1 Antec[?]
    CPU
    i7 in 2 Acers, i5 in desktop
    Motherboard
    Desktop w/Gigabyte
    Memory
    Two w/16GB, 1 w/8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Laptops GameWorthy; Desktop maybe GameWorthy
    Monitor(s) Displays
    flatscreens; 2 are BluRay worthy
    Screen Resolution
    1368x768; 1600x900
    Hard Drives
    1TB internals; 2 ext usb WD 1TB HDs
    PSU
    what's PSU?
    Cooling
    Regular plus external fans
    Keyboard
    desktio w/PS2
    Mouse
    desktop w/PS2
    Internet Speed
    DSL middle level [160?]
    Browser
    from Netscape 0.9 to FF 36
    Antivirus
    well-balanced, well-configured mult-layered defense is best
    Other Info
    From MS-DOS 3.3, MS-DOS 6.22, from Windows 3.1 to WFW 3.11 to Windows 95-98SE, now to Windows 7 Pro.
    Security for now: Windows 7 Firewall, Emsisoft AM, MSE [scan-only], SpywareBlaster, Ruiware/BillP combine
Please have a very good EZ-to-do but thorough backup routine using usb ext HD, and using either Macrium Reflect [free or fee] and/or any other similar backup program. Make sure to make both usb boot stick and a DVD boot -- for restore purposes.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Pro 64bit [MS blue-disk set]
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    2 Acers & 1 Antec[?]
    CPU
    i7 in 2 Acers, i5 in desktop
    Motherboard
    Desktop w/Gigabyte
    Memory
    Two w/16GB, 1 w/8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Laptops GameWorthy; Desktop maybe GameWorthy
    Monitor(s) Displays
    flatscreens; 2 are BluRay worthy
    Screen Resolution
    1368x768; 1600x900
    Hard Drives
    1TB internals; 2 ext usb WD 1TB HDs
    PSU
    what's PSU?
    Cooling
    Regular plus external fans
    Keyboard
    desktio w/PS2
    Mouse
    desktop w/PS2
    Internet Speed
    DSL middle level [160?]
    Browser
    from Netscape 0.9 to FF 36
    Antivirus
    well-balanced, well-configured mult-layered defense is best
    Other Info
    From MS-DOS 3.3, MS-DOS 6.22, from Windows 3.1 to WFW 3.11 to Windows 95-98SE, now to Windows 7 Pro.
    Security for now: Windows 7 Firewall, Emsisoft AM, MSE [scan-only], SpywareBlaster, Ruiware/BillP combine
malwarebytes doesn't ask you to pay to cleanup
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo g750
    CPU
    i5
    Motherboard
    Some Chinese Crap..
    Memory
    8
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia 755
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Ah...about back-ups. The day I purchased the laptop, I came home, booted it up. Ran Windows Update, made sure all drivers were current, then did a bootable system restore disk. That's how I was able to re-install so quickly. Just for yucks, I also have a memory stick doing the same thing. Now I really need to get my cloud storage (both ms and google) up and running for data back-up.

I also need to find either a faq, how-to or something similar that can work on my excessively long boot times. Heck I timed it, took 8 minutes from the time I hit the power button until IE loaded and I was able to logon to Facebook. Rather frustrating to say the least.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Sattelite C55D-A5372
    CPU
    AMD A4500
    Memory
    6gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon HD8330
    Sound Card
    Realtek Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Built in
    Screen Resolution
    1366x764
    Browser
    IE 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo g750
    CPU
    i5
    Motherboard
    Some Chinese Crap..
    Memory
    8
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia 755
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
8 minutes? Not too bad. My "battleship or aircraft carrier" post/boot [cold or restart] takes about that long, plus or minus two minutes, to come a full at-ready desktop.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 7 Pro 64bit [MS blue-disk set]
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    2 Acers & 1 Antec[?]
    CPU
    i7 in 2 Acers, i5 in desktop
    Motherboard
    Desktop w/Gigabyte
    Memory
    Two w/16GB, 1 w/8GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Laptops GameWorthy; Desktop maybe GameWorthy
    Monitor(s) Displays
    flatscreens; 2 are BluRay worthy
    Screen Resolution
    1368x768; 1600x900
    Hard Drives
    1TB internals; 2 ext usb WD 1TB HDs
    PSU
    what's PSU?
    Cooling
    Regular plus external fans
    Keyboard
    desktio w/PS2
    Mouse
    desktop w/PS2
    Internet Speed
    DSL middle level [160?]
    Browser
    from Netscape 0.9 to FF 36
    Antivirus
    well-balanced, well-configured mult-layered defense is best
    Other Info
    From MS-DOS 3.3, MS-DOS 6.22, from Windows 3.1 to WFW 3.11 to Windows 95-98SE, now to Windows 7 Pro.
    Security for now: Windows 7 Firewall, Emsisoft AM, MSE [scan-only], SpywareBlaster, Ruiware/BillP combine
My main tip is to use Autoruns to see what unneeded start up programs are loaded and what tasks, drivers and services are set to run on your PC. Download Autoruns from https://technet.microsoft.com/en-gb/sysinternals/bb963902.aspx Be sure you know what you are doing before disabling items particularly drivers which could make your PC unbootable.

You might also want to clear out disk space using CCleaner - I also use this to removed uneeded restore points.

You can also usually delete all files in C:\WINDOWS\TEMP and C:\Users\UserName\AppData\Local\Temp to free up disk space.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1 64 bit
    Computer type
    PC/Desktop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Home Build
    CPU
    Intel i3570K
    Motherboard
    Gigabyte GA-77X-UD5H
    Memory
    16 GB
    Graphics Card(s)
    Sapphire R9 280X Toxic
    Sound Card
    Realtek on motherboard
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Viewsonic VP2770
    Screen Resolution
    2560 x 1440
    Hard Drives
    Intel 520 180GB SSD
    Seagate 2T HDD
    Seagate external 1T USB HDD
    PSU
    XFX 850W
    Case
    Nanoxia Deep Silence 1
    Cooling
    Noctua NH-D14
    Keyboard
    Microsoft
    Mouse
    Microsoft
    Internet Speed
    50Mbps
    Browser
    Chrome
I'm about ready to head out to work, but I'll most certainly take a look at some of those suggestions. To add insult to injury, I grabbed a few of my favorite utility programs off Cnet downloads. Even though I'm very careful and check each and every program, including going through the legal document most have to make sure I'm not giving the program to install anything but that program. (Like changing browser settings, adding bars ect.) Unforitunily I wasn't careful enough as I now have that bleeping Wajam adware POS on my system. I'm sure that's also effecting my boot times as well.
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    Windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Toshiba Sattelite C55D-A5372
    CPU
    AMD A4500
    Memory
    6gb
    Graphics Card(s)
    Radeon HD8330
    Sound Card
    Realtek Audio
    Monitor(s) Displays
    Built in
    Screen Resolution
    1366x764
    Browser
    IE 11
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo g750
    CPU
    i5
    Motherboard
    Some Chinese Crap..
    Memory
    8
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia 755
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
Run Malwarebytes and Hitmanpro also .... and then run Eset Online scanner again.. you have to run them a couple or even 3 times to make sure you are clean..

just google malwarebytes and Hitman pro ..
 

My Computer

System One

  • OS
    windows 8.1
    Computer type
    Laptop
    System Manufacturer/Model
    Lenovo g750
    CPU
    i5
    Motherboard
    Some Chinese Crap..
    Memory
    8
    Graphics Card(s)
    Nvidia 755
    Antivirus
    Windows Defender
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