Windows 8 Bests Windows 7 in Most Performance Benchmarks

By sophiesummers on 9:58 PM

comments (0)

Filed Under:

New drivers for Windows 8 may mean a world of differenceMetro fan or not, Windows 8 is a performer
The computer geeks over at PC World run a few benchmarks on the consumer preview for Windows 8, comparing it to Windows 7. The findings indicate that Windows 8 offers improved performance on almost every test. PC World reports that the consumer preview of Windows 8 was generally faster, and often much faster, than Windows 7.

PC World used a test machine running an Intel Core i5-2500K at 3.3 GHz, 8 GB of RAM, 1 TB hard drive, and an NVIDIA GTX 560 Ti video card. The same machine had previously been subjected to an identical battery of tests running Windows 7. The machine was benchmark using WorldBench 7 tests. WorldBench results showed that Windows 8 was 14% faster than Windows 7. The publication reports that a difference of 5% or more on WorldBench is noticeable performance wise, so 14% is significantly faster.

Using the same computer benchmark and PC, Windows 7 scored 100 while the system running Windows 8 scored 114. Start up time for the Windows 8 machine was 36.8 seconds compared to 56.2 seconds for the same system running Windows 7.

Web performance for the Windows 8 machine using WebVizBench gives a score of 28.6 frames per second compared to 18.9 frames per second for a Windows 7 machine. Interestingly, when running Windows 7 the test machine was faster for content creation compared to running Windows 8. The difference was slight though and new drivers for Windows 8 machines can significantly improve performance.

It's also worth noting that Futuremark is working on updating the PCMark benchmark suite for Windows 8. The office productivity tests were performed using PC Mark from Futuremark and an upgrade to the software for Windows 8 could mean significantly improved performance. As it stands now Windows 7 was quicker in both content creation and office productivity on PCMark. In Office productivity the Windows 7 system scored 2280 compared to the 2099 of the Windows 8 system.

Windows 8 could be significantly faster than Windows 7 on the same computer once drivers and benchmarks are optimized. That, however, isn't likely to happen until Windows 8 launches or is close to launch.


View the original article here

What is Master Boot Record (MBR)

By sophiesummers on 8:04 PM

comments (0)

Filed Under:

When you turn on your PC, the processor attempts to begin the process of processing data. But, since the system memory is empty, the processor doesn’t really have anything to execute, or even begin to know where to look for it. To ensure that the PC will always boot regardless of the BIOS code, both chip and BIOS manufacturers developed their code so that the processor once turned on, always starts executing at the same place, FFFF0h.  Every hard disk must have a consistent “starting point” where key information is stored about the disk, such as the number of partitions and what type they are. There also must be someplace where the BIOS can load the initial boot program that starts the process of loading the operating system. The place where this information is stored is called the master boot record (MBR).

When a computer starts and the BIOS boots the machine, it will always look at this first sector for instructions and information on how to proceed with the boot process and load the operating system. The master boot record contains the following structures:


Master Partition Table: This small table contains the descriptions of the partitions that are contained on the hard disk. There is only room in the master partition table for the information describing four partitions. Therefore, a hard disk can have only four true partitions, also called primary partitions. Any additional partitions are logical partitions that are linked to one of the primary partitions. One of the partitions is marked as active, indicating that it is the one that the computer should use for booting up.


Master Boot Code: The master boot record contains the small initial boot program that the BIOS loads and executes to start the boot process. This program eventually transfers control to the boot program stored on whichever partition is used for booting the PC

Now days most people I have seen going for windows 7. So no wonder I am going to talk about fixing MBR in widows 7. Follow these following steps to fix your PC problem.

First of fall If you do have a Windows 7 Installation DVD its will be easier or if you don’t have you can alternatively use a Windows 7 System Recovery Disc. Now turn your computer on, booting from either your Windows 7 Installation DVD or Windows 7 System Recovery Disc.  After the installation or recovery disc loads, if prompted, select your language settings and then continue.  If you are using the installation DVD, when prompted by the following screen select Repair your computer.

Now after pressing repair button the computer will take a moment now to scan itself for any Windows installations, after which you will probably, be given a choice to select which installation you wish to repair.  Continue by selecting the suitable Windows installation from the list. Now you will see system recovery option screen. Here you will see some list of choices that can help you in repairing your operating system. Select the Startup Repair to let the pc fix the problem automatically. Now all those problems related to startup is fixed.
The master boot record is a “vulnerable spot exploited by viruses” due to its necessity of system booting. If your computer is compromised due to virus, then it’s necessary to run a MBR anti-virus check on the system before taking any further steps.

View the original article here

Iobit ASC V4 Computer Cleanup Software

By sophiesummers on 7:08 PM

comments (0)

Filed Under: ,

You may realize that your no longer new computer or pc seems to be slow in operating the system. It does not only happen to you. Everybody has the problems but the point is how to solve this problem. You need to have software which will be helpful in cleaning your system and will make your pc perform better. In this case you need Iobit ASC V4, such software which will be your good assistance.



This software appears to be the upgraded version of the previous one, Iobit ASC V3. Compare to the previous version, of course this software gives you better things such as the functions and the use. Free computer clean up is presented by this software along with comprehensive and deeper system cleaning. This will make your pc healthcare service, including anti spyware and privacy protection.

This free computer clean up software provides you feeling like you have your new pc and by installing the program, automated working in the background will be soon enjoyed. Keeps your pc running at good performance, quick system cleans up are the benefits of this software. You can download the program with special price which is by only spending $12.97. You, however, are also offered free download.

View the original article here

Drive Striping Improves Performance in your PC

By sophiesummers on 1:21 AM

comments (0)

Filed Under:

In this recent years technology has changes at a dramatic pace: memory, processor speed and memory size have grown over past few years. Likewise processor and memory improving, it surpass the improvements of disk speeds and more application become I/O limited. Especially if you are working with large files in daily basis, the hard drive may respond slow by making you wait for log time to load and save a particular document. For this type of problem the only way to increase the data rate and Input/output rate from a file system is by striping or distributing the file system over multiple disks. Even With disk striping, you can nearly double the storage performance of your computer in some applications.

Before knowing how to do disk striping let’s know what is disk striping. Disk striping is a method by which data extents to multiple hard drives. All hard drives involved in the stripe set are all together read from and written to. For example, if a striped set of disks consists of three hard drives, then the data will be read and written about three times faster because Windows is distributing the workload among three hard drives. It is wise to create the partitions equal in size to prevent wasting disk space. Each stripe created is part of the stripe set. Disk striping is used with unneeded array of independent disks (RAID). RAID is a storage system that uses multiple disks to store and distribute data. RAID has multiple implementations called “levels,” and a RAID array that only employs disk striping is called “RAID level 0? or simply “RAID 0.” When you use a RAID 0 array, your computer uses two or more hard drives as one logical volume. The RAID controller splits data evenly between all of the physical drives and writes the split data on each drive simultaneously.

There are two types of disk striping: single user and multi-user. Single user disk striping allows multiple hard disks to simultaneously service multiple I/O requests from a single workstation. Multi-user disk striping allows multiple I/O requests from several workstations to be sent to multiple hard disks. This means that while one hard disk is servicing a request from a workstation, another hard disk is handling a separate request from a different workstation.

In windows Xp before you do striping you need to install hard drive as your primary hard drive cannot be included in the striped set because you can only make striped sets on an empty hard drives. There will be minimum two new hard drive need to create striped set and maximum is 32 hard drives in the set. Once it’s done boot windows and log in as the administrator. Then enter DISKMGMT.MSC command at the run prompt to open disk management. After that right click on the located new disks. Select to dynamic disk command from the context menu. When you do, a wizard will open which will verify that you want to convert disk into a dynamic disk. Click yes. When the conversion completes, repeat the process for each disk in the striped set. To create the striped set, right-click in the empty space on one of your new disks and select the New Volume command from the context menu. Windows will then launch the New Volume wizard. When the wizard asks what type of volume that you want to create, select Striped. Then, follow the instructions to complete the wizard. The process involves simply selecting which disks should be included in the striped set. Your striped set is now ready to use.

Creating a striped set is an inexpensive way of considerably increasing performance. This process significantly improves the performance of the computer when reading and writing large files. Video production and audio recording are two professional applications that benefit from this speed boost. Follow this instruction and increase your pc performance.

View the original article here

Registry Cleaner a Must For Your Computer

By sophiesummers on 10:42 PM

comments (0)

Filed Under:

Window registry is a database that stores configuration settings and options on Microsoft windows operating system. It contains settings for low-level operating system components as well as third party applications all make use of the Registry. The registry also provides a means to access counters for profiling system performance. The Windows computer registry provides a document databases for every single file or gear of your computer, which includes all Computer configurations and software program, hardware configuration, file associations, and control panel settings.

Each time you install an application to the computer, create new files and folders, browse the Web, and perform any other activity a completely new entry will be added to your registry. But when you uninstall a particular program from your computer after a long time there are always a few extra entries that stay behind. Many times, when the entries are removed from the registry they leave behind vacant spaces. These invalid entries and vacant spaces keep accumulating in the registry and lead to its unrestrained growth which results computer slow down, physical memory dump, hanging. Just one way of dealing with these issues is by using a useful computer registry cleaner to fresh up the unnecessary files of computer registry. A complete registry cleaning will make positive you a great to use machine. Registry cleaner is a type of software utility designed for the Microsoft windows operating system whose purpose is to remove redundant or unwanted items from the windows registry. Let’s look at some core benefits of using registry cleaner.

The most noteworthy benefit of a registry fixer program is that it goes deep into the registry hive in search of worthless, incorrect, outdated, superfluous, and corrupt entries. They make the task of weeding out these errors as simple as fetching a glass of water. After the scan is complete, a list of errors is displayed on the screen. Many registry cleaners display these errors by type. This makes the task of analyzing errors and selecting the one you want to eliminate easy.

Advanced registry cleaners come equipped with registry defrag tools that enable you to remove vacant spaces from the registry to make it compact and contiguous. Defragmenting the registry also enables you to re-index the registry files thereby reducing the access time

A good registry cleaner also enables you to schedule regular registry scans on your PC. This way, you just need to set the scan schedule and forget all about it. There are so many registries cleaner out there in the internet. Ex- advanced system care, registry cleaner. Along with the basic function to scan and repair the registry, each software program provides many other features that help keep your PC at its optimal performance. But don’t try it manually unless you are not a expert of programming. It can result permanent loss of your data. So always go for software you trust in.


View the original article here

Protect Shield: Malware Pretending To Be an Anti-Malware

By sophiesummers on 5:16 PM

comments (0)

Filed Under: ,

These days we rely and trust our computers to safely store many things that we consider valuable. But virus breaks your trust even if you don’t do anything with your computer. A virus enters to your system when you visit a website containing malware. The truth of the matter is that no particular sites out there have harmful malware on them and most times the site owners don’t even know there is a problem. Even if you do not clicked any link but still some of the worst programs like   protect shield enters to your system. This malware is designed to look just like anti-malware software. Protect Shield is a dangerous cyber threat which is known to be spread through browser hijacking techniques with a help of Trojans.  Mostly it manages to get on board unnoticed and then starts its saleable movement based on fake system scanners and alerts.

At the beginning an advertisement appears on your screen pretending to be an online antimalware scanner. This application states that your system is virus infected once this advertisement finishes. Then a message appears on the screen stating that you need to install Protect Shield as it is the only way to remove this infection from your system. Then it starts a fake scan on your screen without your permission. After finishing scan It shows a lot of infection in your system. Different alerts keep appearing in your system stating the being there of various infections inside your system. Also it alerts notifying that your personal data inside the computer is being shifted to various remote locations. Also as suggested by this malware program the only way that these infections in your system can be fixed as suggested by this program is only and only when you buy the full version of Protect Shield. This is it how this malware try to sell you its full version.

All of these issues can be prevented with the use of security software on your computer. As this program damages files, folders, permissions and registry keys without our permission, a solid application program is needed to fix all the damages caused by it to our system. If you have updated anti virus then you are protected otherwise If your computer has been infiltrated with this malware remove it fast with a system and registry scanner.

If you want to remove it manually then follow this

  1. Press CTRL+ALT+Del keys together and stop all Protect Shield process in the windows task manager.
  2. Uninstall Protect Shield program from windows Add/Remove Programs.
  3. Open windows registry. Find and Remove all Protect Shield Registry Files using regedit.exe command
  4. Perform a Windows search using term Protect Shield and remove all the detected files.

It does not always guarantee complete deletion of the Protect Shield, since some files might be concealed or may automatically reanimate themselves later. So it is recommended that you should use automatic removal software to ensure that your system is safe. A solid program like Reimage you can use to get rid of this type of issues. Reimage not only removes the infection present in your system but it also prevents our computer from getting infected by the same Trojan again. Reimage works by correcting the damage thereby restoring the performance of the PC.


View the original article here

How web proxy works

By sophiesummers on 2:04 AM

comments (0)

Filed Under: ,

Today rising internet users are facing a lot of problems because of hackers around the world. Malware and virus is most common cause for infecting computers these days. Fixing malware infestations can be very complex and time unbearable. Many “malware ailments” are “hidden” in the computer’s most “critical” sections. Any mistake can cause permanent damage. To prevent from these types of problems use the wise way would be use “web proxy” which is “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. Web proxy is a program that allows users to browse the Web while keeping their identity a secret. By using a proxy, users can prevent third parties such as children, parents and employers from investigative their browsing history, while at the same time surfing the Web in nearly its entirety. Even it can obstruct hacker attempts to steal personal data.

When internet user visits a web proxy site such as Proxy.org, The user then enters the URL of the website he wants to visit into the proxy website’s search bar. That website is then displayed to the user. Since the proxy website made the request, the users own information (computer name, IP address, location, etc.) is not displayed. Thus, the user can surf anonymously. Here web proxy performs internet object cache function by storing requested internet objects, i.e., data available via HTTP and FTP protocols on a system poisoned closer to the recipient than the site the data is originated from. Here closer means increased path reliability speed or both. Web browsers can then use the local proxy cache to speed up access and external reduce bandwidth utilization. When setting up web proxy, make sure it serves only your clients, and is not misused as relay. Some web proxies block JavaScript and “referrers” (identifies a visitor’s origin) to establish secure surfing. A web proxy can unblock websites and bypass filters. It allows you to secure you privacy such as you IP address but also give you access to certain places that may have been block to your networks. With the help of a proxy you will able to unblock those websites that have been blocked with your network’s provider, as this will enable you to surf the internet using another server with another IP address.

There are a number of different web proxy anonymity levels. Higher levels use “cloaked” and “encrypted” techniques – encoding the Uniform Resource Locator (URL) and establishing Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) Access to provide for safe web surfing. A web proxy is undetectable; use hidden identification to send anonymous e-mails.

The online criminals are very much competent of installing proxies. Of course the purpose is to snoop upon the dataflow between the client machine and the web. The proxy operator can imprison and examine all the accessed pages as well as submitted forms so once if an unauthorized proxy has been detected the password of all the online services such as webmail, banking etc, should immediately be changed.

Protect your privacy. Make sure that your web activities cannot be tracked. Use a web proxy so that you can weaken into web traffic and not be inimitably recognized. Malware cannot assault you, if it cannot locate you.

View the original article here

Usefulness of Microsoft security essential

By sophiesummers on 9:21 AM

comments (0)

Filed Under: ,

Microsoft Security Essentials (MSE) is a free antivirus software product created by Microsoft that provides protection against different types of malware such as spyware, computer virus  root kits and Trojan horses for windows 7, vista and XP(both x86 and x64). Microsoft Security Essentials replaces windows live OneCare, a commercial subscription-based antivirus service and the free windows defender, which only protected users from adware and spyware. But MSE has great features including on-demand scanning and removal tool engines.

Microsoft Security Essentials has one of the simplest and clearest GUIs we’ve seen for an antimalware solution.  When something is wrong, MSE makes sure users know they’ll need to take action, with red-color highlighting across the UI and via a red taskbar icon.  Even it updates itself very quietly in the background. In fact, never once troubled by its updating system; the only prompts we received were when the application actually needed our attention, like when it detected a threat that needed to be cleaned.  The company includes three features in MSE to keep it light: CPU throttling (the system will remain responsive to the user’s tasks), idle-time scanning (scans and updates use a low-priority thread and only run when the PC is idle), and smart caching and active memory swapping (virus signatures not in use are not loaded into memory. Let’s see how to use MSE to stay protected.

  1. Download Microsoft security essential from the website (http://www.microsoft.com/security_essentials/).
  2. Install the application normally and allow it to check for updates, and run its initial quick scan on the infected computer.
  3. While the scan is running, the real-time protection module by MSE should detect active malware. Active malware are malicious files that have loaded in Windows with or without a graphical user interface, before the antivirus program was installed.
  4. Then proceed in removing the detected threats. It’s not required to stop the scan when the on-access scanner finds and removes active malware.
  5. After removing the risks and the active malware the application will be shutdown because MSE can end the task of malicious processes.
  6. Allow MSE to restart the computer and then run a quick scan to look for any additional active malware.
  7. The on-demand scanner will now start checking the computer for malware that is residing and actively running in Windows. And if it finds more malware, the clean-up option will be available.
  8. Never stop running a scan until MSE displays a message that the computer is now clean


The default action of Microsoft Security Essentials in handing malware infection depends on the risk rating and type of infection. If it’s severe, a remove option is recommended. Depending on user if the file is not very essential for you then remove and quarantine is recommended. If the malware is spiteful that is preventing antivirus software to be installed or run, you should try using other antivirus or on-demand malware scanners in cleaning an infected computer.

Although MSE might not swank as many features as OneCare did, it is a lot better at what it does do. It’s free, and it requires no registration, trial versions. It really does automatically stay up-to-date. Most core functions can be activated with a single click. It’s recommended using an on-demand or online scanner, in addition to using an antivirus scanner to verify the health status of the computer.



View the original article here

Guide to clean your hard drive

By sophiesummers on 9:47 PM

comments (0)

Filed Under:

Your hard disk drive is one of the most important parts of your PC. It’s where all your system files, applications and user data reside. If your hard disk becomes too full, your computer will not have any room to work and will slow to a creep. You can avoid this type of slowdown by doing a little cleaning up given below.


Emptying the Trash: 
One of the quickest ways to clean up your hard drive is to empty your Recycle Bin (Trash Bin for Mac users) frequently. You can do this by either clicking on the bin, then selecting to empty the bin, or you can use the Cleanup utility offered by Windows. Open My Computer, right-click a hard drive icon, select Properties, and then click the Disk Cleanup button. This one action will allow you to free up a large amount of drive space that was occupied by superfluous files.


Removing Old Files: 
Old files also misuse some space on your hard drive, If you are running low on hard drive space, then you should clean up your hard drive by removing files that you no longer use. Windows users can try the Add/Remove Programs utility to “uninstall” unwanted programs. On Macs, Appzapper goes through your application folder, helping you to remove unneeded and unused software. If you run Ubuntu Linux, try the built-in Disk Usage Analyzer, for other Linux/Gnome environments. You can use it to find large files, overstuffed folders, and other hard-to-find junk. Mac users may also want to check out grandperspective, which does a similar job.

Over the time, you could have dozen copy of the same file lying in different corners of your system. The best place is to hunt them down and eliminate them before they take control of the hard disk. Fslint is a utility to find and clean various forms of lint on a file system, especially duplicate files and broken symlinks. If you wants to use a free addition then go for “system care” which is a very useful tool for windows computer.


Run a Virus Scan: Make sure to scan your computer for viruses and spyware on a regular basis; if you leave your computer for a span of time each day that is a great time to run a scan. There are a lot of antivirus out in the market. Norton and McAfee are two of the most popular. Remember that you must keep your subscription to these packages up-to-date in order to protect yourself against new viruses.


Keep your desktop clean:
If you save a lot of stuff to your desktop, it takes long time for your computer to boot up once Windows starts. A good idea is either to move things to “My Documents” or create folders for each grouping of icons on your desktop and move the icons to the folders. It will be better if you are going to keep these file for a long time then it is safer to move these files to another drive so that when you starts windows it won’t take more time further.

The next thing you should run is the Disk Defragmenter:
When you store stuffs on your hard drive, they get put in different places, and that means your computer has to search through more of your hard drive in order to find an item. Defragmenter puts data in a more rational order, so your computer will know where to look. You can also find Disk Defragmenter under Programs, then Accessories, then System Tools. Select your C: / Drive and click “Analyze.” The analysis will tell you whether or not you need to defragment your disk. If you do, click on the button that says “Defragment;” after it organizes your data, your hard drive will be cleaned and run faster.

Don’t be afraid to uninstall programs that you don’t use anymore. Keeping your computer clean may not make you anymore consecrate, but is a worthwhile attempt. Remember, just like anything else, your computer hard drive needs to be kept clean in order to work properly. Keep up with these steps and your computer will continue running fast and your hard drive will stay clean!

View the original article here

How to improve your computer performance

By sophiesummers on 8:56 PM

comments (0)

Filed Under:

The computer on which you are working should perform well and fast to achieve your work target timely. Following are  some ideas on how to optimize your system to improve PC performance!


Tip 1: (use an antivirus with spyware)
Now a day’s everyone who are using computer would have known about antivirus, yes it is very essential to install an anti-virus for the computer especially if you are using internet. Lack of antivirus makes the computer slow.  So it is very necessary to install antivirus to speed up your computer.


Tip 2: CLEAN UP YOUR WINDOWS REGISTRY (Frequency -Daily)
Most PC users are unaware of the necessity to regularly clean the Registry as Microsoft does not include a cleanup tool in any version of Windows. Every time a program is installed it makes changes to the Windows Registry. Changes to your PC system are not always handled correctly in the Registry, leading to conflicts and the slowing down of your PC. Over time this leads to a bloated, and possibly corrupted, Registry.

Reasons for this include:
- Frequently installing or uninstalling programs
- Leftover entries from hardware uninstall
- Unused drivers on your system
- Spyware or similar programs that reappear every time you reboot

You can edit the Registry manually using a Windows program called Regedit, but this is difficult to handle by normal user, so this job left for the experts. Some programs are available that can clean up your Registry automatically to help improve PC performance, such as “Registry Optimizer and cleaner. This scans your Registry, looks for entries that are unneeded or invalid and correct them automatically.


Tip 3: EMPTY THE PREFETCH CACHE (Frequency – Quarterly)
Sometimes our computer takes some times to load a program which is because Windows guesses which files are likely to be needed next and loads them into a pool or ‘cache’. To improve this there is process called prefetching needed to be works well. Overtime, though, the prefetch cache can become clogged with files you no longer need – and that can slow down Windows’ startup.

To clear Prefetch, choose Run from the Start menu, and enter Prefetch into the text box that appears. When you’ve done that, you’ll be confronted by a window filled with icons. Press (Alt+A) to select them all and press Delete. The cache will quickly refill with links and files that Windows really needs. Now computer will load the clicked program easily.


Tip 4: DISK DEFRAGMENTATION (Frequency – Quarterly)
When Windows stores programs on your PC hard disk it saves fragments of files in the nearest empty spaces. This slows down your PC as it has to spend time hunting down the fragments and piecing files together. There is a simple cure by running the Windows program Disk Defragmenter. This gathers together the fragments of programs and puts them back in the right order. This makes it far easier for your hard disk to find what it’s looking for, enabling programs and files to load more quickly, this is another way for improving PC performance. Defragmenting your hard disk may take such a long time like an hour. Defragment your hard disk every 2 months. This way you can optimize the performance of your PC.


Tip 5: EMPTY THE RECYCLE BIN (Frequency – Weekly)
When you choose to delete a file, rather than removing it completely from your computer, Windows first puts it into the Recycle Bin. This gives you a second chance, as it means you can restore files from the Recycle Bin back to their original place on your computer. If you don’t need the file anymore then after deleting the file, go to recycle bin and empty it to ensure optimum PC performance.  This will release hard drive space and help improve PC performance.

View the original article here