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How well is your computer running?  Perhaps it is a little bit sluggish in carrying out tasks or not performing as well as it you would expect.  The reason for this slowing down is probably due to the amount of extra baggage that gets dumped on it from time to time.  In situations such as this, you really need to instigate a policy of regularly tackling housekeeping tasks to help restore your computer’s performance to the optimum level.

If this scenario feels familiar then Phoenix Global Software believes it can offer a solution with WinSpeedUp, a product developed by the German developer Script Soft.  Described as being an “invaluable tool that makes your PC run faster and more efficiently”, WinSpeedUp hardly gets off to the greatest start when as part of its installation routine requests the user to make a selection from a list of one.  This Hobson’s choice relates to the language to be used and English is the only option available.

See also: Utility software

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Starting the program for the first gives the opportunity to choose either a Beginner/Intermediate mode, where dangerous functions are hidden, or Advanced/Experienced user which shows all the various features.  Whatever your choice it can be changed later. 

As a first time user you are also given the opportunity to have a configuration file, which shows the current state of the computer, created.  This file can be used to restore a system that might develop problems later.  Further restore points can be created to take account of any alterations to the computer set up.  This feature is called SettingFreeze.  While later versions of Windows have a similar feature, it could prove useful for those sticking with Windows 95 or 98.

WinSpeedUp categorises its features as Cleanup, Tuning, Optimise, Info, Wizard and SettingFreeze.  In each case the various tools are sub-divided according to the various elements that make up the computer system.  As you make your selection so the main area of the program’s interface displays the appropriate information and various options.

By default you start in Cleanup which has sections for hard drive, registry and memory.  Among the hard disk options are those to empty history lists, delete cookies and clean out the Internet Explorer cache.  The Registry section lets you run Regedit plus opt for a fast or slow cleanup of the Registry.  Be aware that if you select slow cleanup then the task will take several hours.  On the test system, admittedly a 350MHz machine running a recently installed operating system, it took 7 hours 28 minutes.  It definitely made me think that a “t” should be inserted into the “purifying” description of this process.  Physical Memory lets you view available memory and set up a schedule for cleaning out RAM.

Moving on to Tuning provides the means to implement settings that include optimising the swap file, file system and hard drive cache; disable task manager; plus show hidden and system files.  You can opt to have DLLs unloading when an application terminates and select your own choice of wallpaper for Internet Explorer.

Customisation divides its features into groups designated as Windows, Auto Start, Transparency and Other.  While some of these options are already part of Windows XP, WinSetUp attempts to improve on ease-of-use plus adds some tools of its own.  Repair options are provided for various Windows components and you can adjust the alignment of Context lists, appearing following a right mouse click, to be either left or right justified.

The Info section deals with topics relating to DirectX, tips and system information.  There is also an option to select from a list of servers that provide a system clock synchronise facility.

WinSpeedUp also includes a wizard.  This searches the PC and produces a list of items that could benefit from some tweaking.  The user can then decide which item should be automatically customised by the wizard.

Apart from the mind-numbing slowness of the Registry clean up, WinSpeedUp carried out its various tasks quickly and in an efficient manner.  However there are several other established products that provide similar facilities.  WinSpeedUp does not stand out from the pack although its price point of around £17 could prove attractive to the budget conscious.

http://www.phoenixsoftwareuk.co.uk/axelab/winspeedup/index.asp