Top 9 Ways To Speed Up Your Surfing & Computing

It seems like fast never quite rates fast enough.

No matter how quickly something moves, especially on the Internet, it could always move faster.

Email, web surfing, downloading files (legally of course), none of them ever go as quickly as we want or expect.

Well, let me do my part to perpetuate this microwave oven mentality (why must popcorn take 3 ½ minutes instead of 2?) by giving you some tips and hints for making your online experiences and overall computing as fast as possible (even on a dial up connection).

** Hit The Accelerator **

Sensing a need for faster Internet access in markets where broadband cable or DSL can't or won't go, Internet Service Providers (ISP's) like NetZero offer Internet "accelerators."

Using a system of caches, compression schemes, and other technology to double or even triple your dial-up connection speeds, Internet accelerators can save you hours spent waiting for simple web pages to appear in your browser.

Though they won't work for everyone in every single situation, check out www.netzero.com, www.propel.com and www.slipstreamdata.com for more information.

** Clean Up Your Hard Drive ** Often a messy hard drive can contribute to slow online experiences. Perform a "Disk Cleanup" and a "Defrag" (available by clicking , , then ) to clean out the garbage files on your hard drive that slow your system down considerably.

This will help when running offline applications too.

** Get More RAM **

RAM (Random Access Memory) allows your computer to process data more quickly without writing and reading from the hard drive.

Ask any nerd and they'll tell you straight out, "You can NEVER have too much RAM!" RAM costs so little now that virtually anyone can afford to add more memory without a big hit to their wallet.

** Avoid Time Wasters **

Speeding up your surfing doesn't just mean pulling the maximum amount of data through your phone line until it melts!

It also means avoiding things that suck your time up and leave you sitting twiddling your thumbs instead of getting things done.

Make the most of your time online with these time-saving tips:

Use Google - Search giant, Google.com, consistently returns relevant search results in minimum time.

Sure, big search engines like Dogpile.com and AskJeeves.com query multiple search engines, but the time spent waiting for and then wading through those results rarely makes it worth the occasional extra result.

Avoid Instant Messenger - "Heresy! I must have my instant messenger" you cry! Keep a log of how much time gets spent mindlessly chatting on the IM instead of doing something important. If you must IM, do it in moderation.

Filter Spam - Use a program to filter your spam instead of wading through it by hand. Even if you only get 25 spam messages a day (I'd love to be you) and only spend 10 seconds on each message, at the end of a year that comes out to over 30 hours wasted on spam!

Filter your email messages before you take the time to download them to your machine and you'll love the spare time that magically comes your way.

** Slow Mouse? **

When I flick my wrist I expect that mouse to hop from one side of the screen to the other like the house was on fire!

A slow mouse can steal seconds of precious time that add up to hours of frustration over weeks and months.

If you suffer from a "slow mouse," click then "Control Panel" then "Mouse".

Then you'll see a tab that says "Pointer Options" or "Motion" (or something similar) and you can adjust the slider left or right to increase or decrease the speed of your mouse's movement across the screen.

** Use Windows Keyboard Shortcuts **

Windows has a number of nifty keyboard combinations that most people don't know about, but can save you incredible amounts of time, energy, effort and frustration. +Z - I call this the "panic button."

Hold down the "Ctrl" key and hit the letter Z and you can often undo the last action you took in Windows.

This comes in especially handy when you've deleted something (like a term paper or 500 word article) and want it back.

If you accidentally do something wrong, STOP hitting keys immediately and do +Z to undo what you just did.

+D - Ever wonder what the little "flag" key is on the keyboard next to "Alt?" (I sure have wondered.)

Well, it turns out that little key has some cool uses.

Hold down +D and you can minimize all the open windows on your desktop.

Very handy when you keep many programs running and need to hit your desktop in a hurry. +F - allows you to search for any file on your computer immediately.

It will amaze you how much faster you can get things done just by understanding how to save little bits of time here and there using shortcuts, tools and better ways of doing things.

(c) Jim Edwards - All Rights reserved
http://www.thenetreporter.com

About The Author:

Jim Edwards is a syndicated newspaper columnist and the co-author of an amazing new ebook that will teach you how to use fr-e articles to quickly drive thousands of targeted visitors to your website or affiliate links...

Simple "Traffic Machine" brings Thousands of NEW visitors to your website for weeks, even months... without spending a dime on advertising! ==> "Turn Words Into Traffic"

---

Occupational Therapy and PDAs

Occupational Therapy Made EasierMedical downloads for the pda have improved... Read More

SOBIG.F Virus Promises Ill Be Back

On 21 August 2003 Symantec Security Response upgraded the W32.SOBIG.F... Read More

10 Tips to SPEED Up Your PC

1. Let your PC boot up completely before opening any... Read More

Computer Consulting 101 PC Troubleshooting Advice

While most small businesses really do need to find a... Read More

Cisco CCNA Certification: Five Things To Do DURING The Exam

There are plenty of articles out there about how to... Read More

Put Order and Information into File Names

Unless you place your faith in internal search engine software... Read More

Uninstall Windows Media Player 10 and Start Enjoying Your Media Again

Windows Media Player 10 has been full of bugs from... Read More

Basic Computer Thermodynamics

That desk in front of you and everything else around... Read More

Cisco Certification: The Most Important Cisco Study Youll Ever Do

All of us are familiar with the pyramids of Egypt.... Read More

Why Build Your Own Computer System

Have you ever thought about building your own computer system?... Read More

Some Thoughts on Choosing a Flash MP3 Player

Flash mp3 players come with an exciting array of features,... Read More

Build Your Own Computer

I'm eighty-one years old and I bought my first computer... Read More

4 Easy Ways to Speed Up A Sluggish PC

Computers are supposed to speed up our productivity?to help us... Read More

Use Your Computer For Your Entertainment Needs

By using your computer today you can find a lot... Read More

10 Tips to Stay Safe and Secure Online

The Internet can be a dangerous place.While you're enjoying the... Read More

Freezing - Time To Warm Up Your PC

Freezing is also known as crashing or hanging. It's frustrating.... Read More

404 Error Pages: What Are They And How Do You Create One?

We've all seen them, you've been browsing a website and... Read More

Be Prepared in the Event Computer Disaster Strikes

ComputersBusinesses and individuals alike have all grown to rely on... Read More

Help, I Need a New HDTV! (Part 2 of 5)

Feeling overwhelmed in selecting a new TV? With all the... Read More

USB Drives - What to Look For in a USB Device

Those small USB drives have so many names, pocket drives,... Read More

EDTV vs HDTV

Confused by EDTV vs HDTV? We don't blame you. The... Read More

Cisco Certification: A Survival Guide To The Cisco Cable Jungle

One of the most confusing parts of beginning your Cisco... Read More

How to Set Up Simple File Sharing WinXP

The first step is: Start > My DocumentsSo you have... Read More

Learn the Lost Art of Touch Typing

Computers have replaced typewriters, but two-finger, hunt-and-peck typing can never... Read More

Image Conversion In Computers

JPEG, GIFF/JIFF, BMP, and TIFF are the most commonly used... Read More

Smart Apple iPod Tips and Techniques

Are you thinking of buying an Apple iPod? Or have... Read More

Faster Browsing Tips

IF WE say that it was mainly because of the... Read More

Computer Geeks and Garden Gnomes

First and foremost before I begin my ranting it is... Read More

The Ipod Mini: Why Its Not that Hot

I got my eyes set on a iPod mini, as... Read More

Nephrology and Dialysis For a PDA

Saving Lives With A Pocket PCFree medical downloads can be... Read More

Protect Your PC from Viruses, Worms & Trojans

Each of the items in the checklist below is part... Read More

Linux Power Tools - Great Tools to Make System Administration Easy

World War II - Germany decided to attack Poland. Poland... Read More

Troubleshooting Computer Freeze (Lockup) Problems

How familiar does the following sound? Your computer was working... Read More