PC World Recommendations

jsquareg

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This article by David Miller, PC World, appears on Google News. It is about improving the performance of Windows 7.

Optimize Your Windows 7 PC - PC World

I wonder if those of you who have used Windows 7 for a long time think the things Miller suggests will make any noticeable improvement in an already snappy system?

Thank you.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell XPS-8500
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium (Retail) Full version - With SP1
CPU
3.10 Gig Intel Core i5-3350P
Motherboard
Dell 0NW73C A00
Memory
8192 Megabytes Usable Installed Memory
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung SyncMaster [Monitor] (19.1"vis, s/n HVELA10194, Octo
Screen Resolution
1024 X 768
Hard Drives
INTEL SSDSA2CW120G3 ATA Device [Hard drive] (120.03 GB)
INTEL SSDSA2CW080G3 ATA Device [Hard drive] (80.02 GB)
Keyboard
HID Keyboard Device (HP)
Mouse
Dell (came with computer)
Internet Speed
cox high speed
Other Info
The above taken with Bel Arc Advisor
Most of those tips and tricks will work with previous Windows versions as well.

While they do have a noticeable impact, this is simply an article by a lazy writer ;)
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Systems by SmartEyeball
OS
8 Pro x64
CPU
i7 3770K 4.6GHz
Motherboard
ASUS P8Z77 WS
Memory
16GB G.Skill Trident X 2666mhz
Graphics Card(s)
x2 EVGA 780 Ti Superclocked SLI
Sound Card
SB X-FI Surround 5.1 PRO USB / ATH-AD900 Headphones
Monitor(s) Displays
x3 Dell U2410 / 58" Samsung
Screen Resolution
5760*1200/ 1920*1200
Hard Drives
2x Intel 520 240GB (RAID 0) * 2x WD Caviar Blacks 2TB (RAID 0) * 2TB WD Caviar Black * Sony Optirac DVD
PSU
Silverstone Strider Evolution 1200W
Case
Thermaltake Level 10 GT Snow Edition
Cooling
Noctua NH-D14
Keyboard
Topre Realforce // Ducky Shine MX Black // Filco Ninja TKL
Mouse
Thermaltake Theron (Highly Recommended) + Razer Imperator
Antivirus
MSE
Browser
IE, FF, WaterFox
Other Info
GT Extreme V2 Sim Racing Cockpit + 40" LCD and K/B Mouse stand ▼
Fanatec CSR Elite Wheel + Clubsport V1 Pedals + CSR shifter/7G-H ▼Saitek X52 Pro ▼ TrackIR 5 Pro
Buttkicker v2 Seat Rumbler with Dedicated 5.1 and Sub Woofer attached to frame ▼
=
Bloody Big Grin

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Dell XPS-8500
OS
Windows 7 Home Premium (Retail) Full version - With SP1
CPU
3.10 Gig Intel Core i5-3350P
Motherboard
Dell 0NW73C A00
Memory
8192 Megabytes Usable Installed Memory
Monitor(s) Displays
Samsung SyncMaster [Monitor] (19.1"vis, s/n HVELA10194, Octo
Screen Resolution
1024 X 768
Hard Drives
INTEL SSDSA2CW120G3 ATA Device [Hard drive] (120.03 GB)
INTEL SSDSA2CW080G3 ATA Device [Hard drive] (80.02 GB)
Keyboard
HID Keyboard Device (HP)
Mouse
Dell (came with computer)
Internet Speed
cox high speed
Other Info
The above taken with Bel Arc Advisor
You're welcome. :)
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Self built custom
OS
64-bit Windows 11 Pro for Workstations
CPU
Intel i7-8700K OC'd to 5 GHz
Motherboard
ASUS ROG Maximus XI Formula Z390
Memory
64 GB (4x16GB) G.SKILL TridentZ RGB DDR4 3600 MHz
Graphics Card(s)
ASUS ROG-STRIX-GTX1080TI-O11G-GAMING
Sound Card
Integrated
Monitor(s) Displays
2 x Samsung Odyssey G7 27"
Screen Resolution
2560x1440
Hard Drives
1TB Samsung 990 PRO M.2,
4TB Samsung 990 PRO PRO M.2,
TerraMaster F8 SSD Plus NAS
PSU
Seasonic Prime Titanium 850W
Case
Thermaltake Core P3
Cooling
Corsair Hydro H115i
Keyboard
Logitech wireless K800
Mouse
Logitech MX Master 4
Internet Speed
2 Gb/s Download and 100 Mb/s Upload
Antivirus
Malwarebyte Anti-Malware Premium
Browser
Google Chrome
Other Info
Logitech Z625 speaker system,
Logitech BRIO 4K Pro webcam,
HP Color LaserJet Pro MFP M477fdn,
APC SMART-UPS RT 1000 XL - SURT1000XLI,
Galaxy S23 Plus phone
The PC World article is what I would call a "conservative view". Most of those are known tweaks. I don't know whether I would play around with the MenuShowDelay. What amazes me is that he left out the deletion of the hibernation file.
But all of those tweaks yield relatively little at the end. If you want to make a quantum jump in performance, you'll have to go with an SSD. Then your pages will show up faster than you can lift the finger from the mouse.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops
OS
Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
CPU
from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Monitor(s) Displays
2x HP w2207
Hard Drives
5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals
Keyboard
with trackball - no mices
Mouse
Trackball mice
Internet Speed
DSL 6000
It will be nice eventually when good size versions of those get really affordable.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP DV8t quad
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64 (Retail)
CPU
i7-Q 720
Motherboard
Motherboard Chipset Intel Ibex Peak-M PM55, Intel Lynnfield
Memory
6 GB
Graphics Card(s)
nVidia GeForce GT 230M (1GB)
Sound Card
IDT High Definition Audio CODEC
Monitor(s) Displays
18.4 inch HP Infinity FHD (Samsung 184HT03-001)
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
Hitachi 500GB 7200 rpm (x2)
Seagate FreeAgent 1.5 TB External USB (x2)
Thermaltake BlacX eSATA/USB 2.0 3.5/2.5 HD dock
Cooling
Zalman NC-2000 notebook cooling pad
Keyboard
laptop
Mouse
Logitech VX Revolution
Other Info
Backup Unit: Lenovo T61p
It will be nice eventually when good size versions of those get really affordable.


Well, $250 for 80GBs may not be cheap. But I think it is worth every penny. There is nothing you can do to your system for the same money that would yield a similar performance improvement. And for desktops, 80GBs are sufficient to house the OS. The user data can go on a HDD. For laptops that is a different story.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP, Dell, Gateway, Toshiba - 4 laptops and 2 desktops
OS
Vista, Windows7, Mint Mate, Zorin, Windows 8
CPU
from 1.6GHz Duo to i7
Monitor(s) Displays
2x HP w2207
Hard Drives
5x HDD, 7x SSD, 12x Externals
Keyboard
with trackball - no mices
Mouse
Trackball mice
Internet Speed
DSL 6000
This article by David Miller, PC World, appears on Google News. It is about improving the performance of Windows 7.

Optimize Your Windows 7 PC - PC World

I wonder if those of you who have used Windows 7 for a long time think the things Miller suggests will make any noticeable improvement in an already snappy system?

Thank you.

Such articles are a good example of why it ought to require a license to practise "PC Journalism". Virtually every one of his recommendations is either misguided or downright dumb.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Multiple machines in various stages of decomposition.
OS
Win7x64
As anyone actually done extensive testing and verifying that disabling Windows built-in services actually improves performance? And I do not mean just a placebo effect, but cold hard numbers. Those who think it helps performance have no understanding on the Memory Manger or any of the Resource Managers nor the priority systems. And I can assure you, other then boot times, it will have no effect on performance.
 

My Computer

Computer type
PC/Desktop
Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
Alienware Aurora ALX R4
OS
Windows 10 Pro (x64)
CPU
Intel Core i7-3930K (3.2GHz - 4.5GHz)
Motherboard
Alienware Aurora-R4 x79
Memory
4x Samsung 4GB PC3-12800 DDR3 (16GB 1600MHz)
Graphics Card(s)
Nvidia Geforce GTX 690
Sound Card
SteelSeries Siberia Elite
Monitor(s) Displays
Dell UltraSharp U3011
Screen Resolution
2560x1600
Hard Drives
Samsung 850 Pro 256 GB, Seagate 1TB Desktop Hybrid HDD, 2x Western Digital 4TB Green HDD
PSU
875W Some Dell PSU <.<
Case
Alienware Aurora ALX
Cooling
Custom Liquid Cooling (EK CPU & GPU blocks) dual EK 480RAD
Keyboard
Logitech G710+ Mechanical
Mouse
Logitech G700s
Internet Speed
Verizon Fios (50 mbps average)
Other Info
Server: Intel NUC D54250WYK: i5-4250U, 16GB, 256 GB mSATA, Windows Server 2012 R2
I'm pretty happy with the way W7 performs OOTB with just a few usability and customization (not performance) tweaks.
 

My Computer

Computer Manufacturer/Model Number
HP DV8t quad
OS
Windows 7 Ultimate x64 (Retail)
CPU
i7-Q 720
Motherboard
Motherboard Chipset Intel Ibex Peak-M PM55, Intel Lynnfield
Memory
6 GB
Graphics Card(s)
nVidia GeForce GT 230M (1GB)
Sound Card
IDT High Definition Audio CODEC
Monitor(s) Displays
18.4 inch HP Infinity FHD (Samsung 184HT03-001)
Screen Resolution
1920 x 1080
Hard Drives
Hitachi 500GB 7200 rpm (x2)
Seagate FreeAgent 1.5 TB External USB (x2)
Thermaltake BlacX eSATA/USB 2.0 3.5/2.5 HD dock
Cooling
Zalman NC-2000 notebook cooling pad
Keyboard
laptop
Mouse
Logitech VX Revolution
Other Info
Backup Unit: Lenovo T61p
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