All you need, once a system is clean, is Microsoft Security Essentials) link in my sig.
MSE is free. MSE is the only av i use, the only av is install, the only av I recommend. Installation of MSE will result in Windows Firewall being installed. You do not need and can not benefit from installing ZoneAlarm.
Very recently I once again installed the pay version of ZoneAlarm. I have since, once again, removed ZoneAlarm.
I will add an additional word against installing zonealarm specifically.
I have seen it as the source of many problems during my time here on these forums.
Irfanview is a great program for viewing, browsing, resizing, croping, color adjusting, images. This is the program I use and recommend.
For a free anti virus and comprehensive firewall, I use Comodo Internet Security Premium.
For playing music and videos, I recommend VLC player.
For defragging the Hard disk, My Defrag 4.3.1.
Teracopy for bulk file copy and move (It has verify function also).
Bulk Rename Utility for file renaming in a folder.
Unlocker for stubborn files or folders which you want to delete but cannot.
CCleaner and CCEnhancer for cleaning system (use with discretion!)
xplorer lite for an alternate file explorer.
These are some of the free programs I use regularly.
Using a defragmenter other than the inbox defrag.exe will adversely affect the effectiveness of Superfetch and ReadyBoot. Unless defrag.exe doesn't do what you need (and it should, unless you're *really* heavy on the disk and keep less than 15% free space at all times), you might want to reconsider using something else.
I am not against the inbuilt Defrag utility provided by Microsoft. My Defrag 4.3.1 was a personal choice of mine due to the reasons mentioned below.
On most harddisks the beginning of the harddisk is considerably faster than the end, sometimes by as much as 200 percent! MyDefrag is therefore geared towards moving all files to the beginning of the disk.
- MyDefrag organizes files into zones, such as directories, Windows files, files used while booting, regular files, and rarely used files. The most accessed files are placed at the beginning of the harddisk, and files that are commonly used together are placed in close proximity to each other. This results in a dramatic speed increase, and is in fact more important than defragmentation. The program comes with scripts with a zone organization suitable for most users, power users can customize the zones through scripts.
- Sorting the files on your disk can give you even more speed. There are several sorting strategies to choose from. Most of them will take a lot of data shuffling, taking a lot of time for MyDefrag to complete, and therefore should only be used occasionally.
- A running computer will create and delete temporary files like there is no tomorrow. If the harddisk were completely optimized then the only place for new temporary files would be behind all the other data. Which is rather slow. MyDefrag can maintain free spaces at various locations on the disk to make temporary files faster.
- Windows reserves a percentage on NTFS disks for the MFT (Master File Table), but can place normal files there if the rest of the disk is full. The files will remain there, even when there is enough space again. MyDefrag can look for files in the NTFS reserved areas and move them to normal diskspace, making the reserved areas available again for the MFT.
I have been using My Defrag since Win XP and now in Win 7 and was never sorry to use this program.
Here's my own personal method.
1. Keep the OS as clean as possible. By this, I mean don't install anything you won't need. Only install the base apps you know you'll be using frequently, and go from there. If you want to test some programs, set up a virtual machine. Windows XP Mode is free for users of Windows 7 Professional, Ultimate, and Enterprise. Home Premium users can install something like VMWare Player or VirtualBox and virtualize an OS of their choosing.
2. Don't overdo it with "maintenance". Let the built-in defragger do its work once a week. If you feel you need something to clear away cookies, free up space, etc, then use CCleaner. There's a portable version that doesn't require installing. CCleaner - Portable
3. Install Microsoft Security Essentials for your antivirus. No other programs should be necessary. Common sense + MSE + Windows Firewall is all the protection you need.
I just want to clarify something, the drive doesn't get slower when it fills up.
As you fill up the drive with files, they end up going to the slower part of the hard drive, which is the inner portion of the platters.
Best thing to do is partition the drive into 2 or more partitions and have the OS and programs on the first partition so that they reside on the fastest part of the drive and use the other partition(s) for data.
Also makes it better for defragging the drive since you can defrag only the OS/program partition or the DATA partition.
My 1TB Black drive is partition into 2, 200GB for OS and programs, and 800GB for my drivers, backups of my program install files, and other things that I don't access too much.
Yes, but for a good long time now, you actually have had little to no control over the logical to physical layout of files on disk, especially with hard disks that have multiple platters (logical to physical layout is incredibly rarely a 1:1 mapping from what you can see in a disk layout output). This was true perhaps 15 - 20 years ago, but in recent times you'll find that this logic is no longer really applicable (look up zone bit recording).
I'm not trying to say that any defrag program isn't a good idea, I am simply stating that not using the inbox defrag means you are defragmenting the disk but hurting the caching functions of the OS. You are potentially making things slower, as you will be doing *more* disk head seeks and reads rather than from RAM due to Superfetch or ReadyBoot misses, so while the disk might be clean, the OS won't be as optimized. I do performance for a living, and I'm telling you that most 3rd party disk defragmenters aren't as good as they're cracked up to be, and simply exist to provide people with OCPD something to do and look at.
You can clean reinstall which is actually better than a new computer since most are larded with sponsors' bloatware: Reinstalling Windows 7
Until then you can clean up a factory bloatware install using these tips:
Uncheck everything in msconfig>Startup except AV and gadgets/sticky notes if you use them. Google the other listings to find out what they are. The factory utilities have better versions built into Windows 7 so they can all go except for notebook battery and hard drive monitors which can be helpful. The rest are freeloaders on CPU/RAM and Startup that can wait to start until you run them. Startup Programs - Change
Decide which programs you can do without over time, then use Revo Uninstaller in Advanced mode to uninstall them. Revo will first run the Windows uninstaller but when prompted to restart instead click "Next" to delete the bolded hidden Registry Keys and files which Revo cues up. Revo sets a System Restore point in case you delete something which needs to be restored.
Monitor whether bloatware uninstalls have corrupted System files by running SFC /SCANNOW Command - System File Checker. Irreparable system files resulting in Performance problems can sometimes be remedied without reinstall by a Repair Install.
Use a lightweight free AV like MS Security Essentials or Avast 6 with the Windows Firewall to gain back performance from more bloated AV's. MucAfee is the worst of all - uninstall it with great vengeance!
Check optional Windows Updates regularly for driver updates. You can trust Updates given by Windows 7 as they rarely malfunction and keep your Firewall fortified.
Enable automatic hardware driver updating: Automatically get recommended drivers and updates for your hardware Then periodically check optional Windows Updates for drivers.
Monitor Event Viewer>Admin View to google repeat errors text and ID# to find how others have resolved them. Check also the Performance log on Advanced Tools page accessed by clicking WEI score link at Computer>Properties. Look for cued issues at top of Tools page, Generate a System Health Report.
Type "Solutions" in Start Search box to see solutions to problems sent and not. Windows 7 is interactive so always send Problem Reports.
Clean and order the HD perfectly using free state-of-the-art CCleaner ("Run Cleaner" and Registry tabs) then Puran boot-time defrag with Intelligent Optimizer enabled on the Additional Operations tab.
CCleaner - Free software downloads and software reviews - CNET Download.com
http://download.cnet.com/Puran-Defra...-75115626.html
Save a Windows 7 backup image externally which may become preferable to the Recovery Disks and can reimage your HD or a replacement in 20 minutes:
Backup Complete Computer - Create an Image Backup
System Image Recovery
You can extract any favorite apps like Works from HP Recovery Disks using this method: HP 3rd Party Software After Clean Win 7 Install. Other apps needed like HD and battery monitor for notebook should be on the model's Support Downloads webpage.
Ty all for the info. I just uninstalled Macafee and installed MSE
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