Perhaps you've noticed your computer running a tad slower lately. There are no signs of a virus, or other mischief. It just seems to lumber along. Maybe it is only a matter of perception, because you can compare it to your buddy's pc, and it goes like lightning.

Buying a new computer isn't the only answer. Actually, there are three things you can do to speed up your machine, that are low cost solutions, and you can do them yourself.

First, when was the last time you defragmented your hard drive? As your hard drive becomes crowded with data, it has to search for space to put things, sometimes putting part of a file here, part over there. When you want to work with a file, time is wasted getting it all together.

Defragmenting overcomes this. It organizes things, like a librarian would a bookshelf. All the fragmented files are brought together, so your hard drive can quickly serve up what you need.

In Windows XP, go to Accessories, select System Tools, then click on Disk Defragmenter. Click on Defragment, and let the program run. It may take several minutes to do its work, but be patient. The results will be worth it.

Second, if you have an older computer, did you know your hard drive and CD-ROM may be sharing the same ribbon cable? Think of that. Two of the buziest devices in your machine sharing the same highway to the motherboard. Now, what happens when you get a lot of traffic on a highway? It slows down, doesn't it? Why not give each of them their own road?

Get another ribbon cable, which will cost about $5. Plug it in to the back of the CD-ROM, and the secondary IDE port on your motherboard. On the back of the CD-ROM, you'll notice a jumper that can be set as "slave", "master", or "cable select". Move the jumper to "master".

Third, get more RAM, if you have extra slots for it. You can double the effective speed of your computer, particularly for working with large files, things like photos, video, and 3-D. It can be easily installed. You just plug it in with your fingers.

Find out what kind you need by reading the label on the RAM that is already in place. If it's an older computer, your local store may not stock it, but don't worry. Plenty is available on the internet, and the older types are dirt cheap.

If you need help with any of these steps, you may want to consult my book Building a PC for Beginners. It has a full description of each step, along with plenty of photos.

Michael Quarles invites you to check out his website at http://www.monkeyseemonkeydobooks.com/index.html
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