So, it’s Clean Out Your Computer Day today, 8th Feb. Or, so I’m told. 
Before this day arrived, the folks at iolo Technologies contacted me a few months ago to tell me about their product, System Mechanic. Although my main machine is a Mac, our mixed household still has two PC machines – a 5-year-old desktop and a 4-year-old laptop. Both machines have just been sooooooo slow. It’s ridiculous. I really don’t use them anymore, unless I absolutely have to. They’re primarily used by my hubby when he works from home, and occasionally by the kiddos when they do games and homework.
That’s why when iolo’s spokesperson asked me if I want to give System Mechanic a whirl, I thought, why not? Besides, I really wanted to help hubby and the kids with their home computing needs by speeding up their computer a bit.
In a nutshell, System Mechanic is an app for PC users who need to get their computers in tip-top shape. Once installed, you can let it analyse your computer and find the necessary fixes, then let it fix your machine. The general idea is that it will free up some space for your computer – and allow it to function better.
From my experience with System Mechanic, I was impressed with the quick download and installation process. All very intuitive. Of course, once installed, I needed to reboot my system. Then, I let the new app run. From the initial run, I believe it freed up at least 30MB’s worth of space from our desktop PC. And, according to my husband (the desktop’s main user), he said he thought the clean-up got rid of some annoying pop-ups and sped up the reboot/startup process a little bit (not much, but still…).
I don’t think it’s possible to get back to its “brand new state” unless we uninstall a bunch of stuff. But, I do think using the desktop PC has become a bit more bearable. And, combined with Google Chrome, internet browsing has definitely become faster in our old PC.
So, what about you? What are you planning to do today – for Clean Out Your Computer Day? When was the last time you tried to tune your computer?
Anyway, if you decide to try iolo’s System Mechanic, they’re running a special from today (8th Feb) until the 25th Feb. They’re giving out a 50% discount during this promo period. And, if you’re keen, do read their 10 Clean Out Tips for some ideas on how to clean your computer.
Full Disclosure: This is not a sponsored post, but I have been provided with a review copy of the app.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
Nicola 02.08.10 at 5:24 pm
I jumped the gun on this one, I did a little spring cleaning last night, got rid of a few programmes, ran spyware detectors and used a (different) cleaner. However, what slows down my computer it the external HDD, I need to unplug it when it’s not in use. It fires up from standby at the most inopportune and unnecessary times and slows everything down for a good 30 seconds. Very frustrating!
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Shai Coggins reply on March 1st, 2010:
Good on you, Nicola! For doing a bit of spring cleaning on your computer. Always a good thing, methinks. And yes, I tend not to keep my external HDD plugged in at all times. Just gets all slow and clunky!
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Richard Pascoe 02.08.10 at 7:32 pm
Hi Shai, want to speed up your computer ,then format and reinstall , this should really be done every 12- 18 months for high volume users and unfortunately no piece of software will achieve this result or get anywhere near it . Your comment”I don’t think it’s possible to get back to its “brand new state” unless we uninstall a bunch of stuff. ” is incorrect as again you need to format , reinstall , run all updates and it will be back to the brand new state. It’s a little bit of work for a world of happy computer using.
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Shai Coggins reply on March 1st, 2010:
Thanks for the feedback, Richard! Not so sure if I know how to do a full reformat and reinstall. I’ve never done it, so it’s a bit daunting.
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David 02.08.10 at 11:02 pm
Reformat and reinstall every 12-18 months is insane. There are little – QUICK – things you can do to speed yourself up – http://www.cleanoutyourcomputerday.com/ . After that you probably should just add more memory for a speed boost.
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Shai Coggins reply on March 1st, 2010:
Thanks, David. Will give that a thought!
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Dawn Pace 02.09.10 at 12:09 pm
Clean out your computer day? I had no idea this existed. Good idea though – I think I’m overdue for a defrag. Cleaning the registry is also a good idea, like you say. Not only does it improve performance, but start speed too.
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Shai Coggins reply on March 1st, 2010:
Dawn Pace: Hope you got to do a bit computer cleaning too.
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Pokagon Indian 02.09.10 at 12:40 pm
bohzo (hello) Shai
I loved your post, i wounder if someone can leave a auto follow tag link when a person joins or follows, a strange person joined my site and left a strange tag auto follow referance and it changed many of my links.
I ran a update and checked for bugs but showed none.
Megwetch (Thank You) for the great post.
David
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Shai Coggins reply on March 1st, 2010:
Thanks for letting me know, Pokagon Indian. Not sure about that auto follow tag and such. I wonder for what is that?
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