optimize

Regular cleaning helps keep your PC running like new, but it's not enough: you need speed. UniBlue's SpeedUpMyPC 2013 with Registry Booster not only purges junk files and defragments your PC's registry, on demand or on schedule, but its Active Speed Tools can tweak nearly any PC's performance. For example, its CPU Manager keeps runaway processes from using up available system resources, while the Start Menu Software Accelerator launches your apps quicker. Of course, you can also deselect any tool you don't want to run or any item you don't want to clean, as … Read more

MacFixIt Answers is a feature in which I answer Mac-related questions e-mailed in by our readers.

This week, readers wrote in with questions about cleaning up a Mac to keep it optimized, external drive permission errors, increasing the number of recent documents stored in the system, and options for triple-booting OS X with Linux and other operating systems. I welcome views from readers, so if you have any suggestions or alternative approaches to these problems, please post them in the comments!

Question: How to clean up a Mac to keep it optimized MacFixIt reader Angel asks:

When your PC is misbehaving wouldn't it be easier to press just one button instead of hitting Ctrl-Alt-Del to close programs? Wise Memory Optimizer will optimize your computer's memory on demand, as often as you like. You won't even have to close any programs.

This program's interface is very simple and neat. It graphs your system's memory on a pie chart so you know how much memory you're using and how much free memory you have. There is a large green button you need to click to optimize your memory usage. There are also … Read more

There are so many easy ways to download streaming media these days that we find absolutely no reason to bother with a program that's the least bit complicated. For that reason, we recommend that users who want to download video and music from streaming sites (where that's permitted, of course) look for something other than Faster Downloader to do it with. This unintuitive program left us scratching our head and wondering why the creators had so needlessly complicated what should be a simple process.

Faster Downloader boasts that it's "fully integrated" with Firefox and Internet … Read more

Now that you have your iPhone 5, you've probably noticed that not all apps take advantage of the wider screen. I've been noticing that the updates have been pouring in fairly quickly, but unfortunately, I still have a lot of pillarboxed apps and games that show black spaces on each side.

For this week's collection I put together three games that look absolutely fantastic on the iPhone 5's larger display. The first is the latest in a popular arcade-style racing franchise and gives you more viewing area as you blaze around the track. The second is an action RPG that pits you against demonic beasts as you hack and slash your way to saving a kidnapped queen. The last is the newest version of a popular soccer series that might be the best sports game available on iOS.… Read more

ARO 2012 is the latest version of a longstanding Registry cleaner and optimizer. The look is familiar, but ARO 2012 offers several upgrades over previous versions, such as improved browser cleaning and user-friendlier settings as well as new tweaks that can yield better NTFS performance, faster startups, and improved CPU utilization. ARO 2012 also backs up and optimizes the Registry. You can schedule automatic cleanings, too.

ARO 2012's installer informed us that it would scan our PC as soon as it closed. The first scan is always important with software like ARO since it establishes a baseline, and ours … Read more

DiskTune is a simple, free disk defragmentation and optimization utility from DIY Datarecovery. It's a fast, on-demand tool built upon the Windows defrag API, so it's safe but thorough. But DiskTune is no mere clone; its VSS safe-mode minimizes the tool's interaction with stored shadow copies, and its thermal monitor detects when your hard drive gets too hot and shuts down the defragmentation process. It can defragment FAT, FAT32, and NTFS volumes, so it works with a wide range of disks, too.

DiskTune's installer lets you include the program on context menus in Windows. We selected … Read more

Lots of tools claim to be useful for your PC. Whether an application cleans out junk files, duplicates, or other nasties, a lot of the time it wants to take a spot in your right-click menu. Supposedly, this is for "your convenience," but most of us know what's convenient and what's just more bloat for Windows.

CCleaner released a recent update that added a feature that allows you to clean out random application shortcuts from the right-click menu. This is useful for those apps that either didn't give you a choice in the matter, or … Read more

A decent system cleaner and optimizer can make a big difference in your PC's performance by tossing out junk files and tightening the Registry. A really good tool would also help you tune and tweak your system by disabling unnecessary features and settings. Ashampoo's WinOptimizer Free is one of the best such tools we've tried.

We started WinOptimizer with a Full Scan, which completed quickly. WinOptimizer made 15 recommendations over five categories, including three unnecessary startup entries in the StartUp-Tuner, seven superfluous system settings in the Tweaking tool, and 97MB of junk files flagged by the Drive … Read more