There are many easy ways to speed up your PC that won't cost you a sent. First, ask yourself these questions:

1. Is the hard drive full?
2. Uninstall programs you don't use.
3. Disable rarely used startup programs.
4. Turn off the visual effects.
5. Run an antivirus/spyware program.
6. Clean up the hard drive.
7. Defragmenting your hard drive.
8. Check for hardware driver updates.
9. Do you have enough RAM?

Is the hard drive full?

Windows needs at minimum 1GB of free space to run. Experts recommend having 10% free space. You need this free space for the OS page file, most programs use temporary space when running, and your web browser needs space to store temporary internet files that speed up browsing.

Uninstall programs you don't use.

In general the more space your computer has the better. Hard drives tend to write to the faster areas first. The fuller your memory is the slower.

1. Left-click start
2. Left-click control panel
3. Under the "program button" left-click uninstall programs.

Disable rarely used startup programs.

Having too many startup programs enabled will dramatically slow down windows boot up. Try disabling startup programs that you rarely use.

1. Left-click start
2. Left-click control panel
3. Under the "program button" left-click change startup programs.

Turn off visual effects.

Having the latest and greatest visual effects running will slow down your computer. For example Vista's Aero features like transparent glass, smooth edges of screen fonts, etc.

1. Left-click start
2. Right click on computer
3. Left click on properties
4. Back left click on advanced system settings
5. Under performance left-click on settings
6. Click on adjust for best performance
7. Click apply

Your screen won't look as pretty, but it will be faster.

Run an antivirus/spyware program.

Every computer should have some type of antivirus software installed. Get one if you don't have one. Make sure it also includes spyware removal. You should run your virus scanner at least once a week to remove unwanted adware and viruses. Expect your computer to slow down as it is scanning, so you might want to schedule your scans for late at night.

Clean up your hard drive.

This procedure will remove temporary files and files that you no longer use. These files continually build up over time and should be removed once a month. This procedure is similar to defragmenting your hard drive. Left-click on start, left-click on control panel, left-click on system and maintenance, under administrative tools left-click on free up disk space.

Defragment your hard drive.

Defragmenting your hard drive will move your fragmented files and rewrite them in an organized fashion. Having a lot of fragmented files will dramatically slow down your computer. To defragment your computer,

1. Left-click on start
2. Left-click on control panel
3. Left-click on system and maintenance
4. Under administrative tools left-click on defragment your hard drive

Check for hardware driver updates.

Updated drivers can improve the performance and speed of your computer. New programs allow for new enhancements that often need updated driver software to run at their best. First try updating your drivers using Windows device manager.

1. Left-click start
2. Right-click on computer
3. Left-click on properties
4. Left-click device manager
5. Click the + beside display adapters
6. Right click on your video card
7. Left-click on update driver software

Windows will then search online for a better driver for your device. Repeat this step for your other hardware devices listed in the device manager. You can also find updated drivers at the website of the manufacturer of your device.

Do you have enough RAM?

If you have tried all of the above suggestions and your computer still runs slowly, you may want to upgrade your RAM. For today's applications and games, experts suggest that you have a minimum of 3GB of RAM. If you are big gamer or like to run many applications at once, you will want to have at least 4GB of RAM.