Many people refer to the time we live in now as the ‘digital age’, but despite that there are millions of people in developed countries such as the USA and UK who know incredibly little about currently technology, some can’t even answer the question ‘What is the internet?’

The topic has been raised recently in Britain with people encouraged to try and find a ‘Broadband Buddy’ to help them learn about using computers and the internet. Many of these very people have kids and relatives who love gadgets and are with the times, yet despite that they couldn’t tell you the best games console for love nor money!

Despite the shortfalls in the education of the individuals involved time and money in being put in to try and help them. The governments is acting to try and achieve there targets of having everybody connected to the web. And not so far from now everyone should not only have the access but super speedy connectivity in the form of broadband, which in the UK is currently not the most rapid for many parts of the region.

With the continued help from others though no doubt in the not too distant future nearly 100% of people will be surfing for information and doing shopping for everything from household toiletries to digital cameras for kids and even the odd wedding dress!

Why does it seem like every time you get a new computer it operates at lightning fast speeds for only a few months before becoming slow and laborious over its tasks? Is this something we have to live with or we can do something to keep our computers running at optimal speed?

The truth is that computers are not slow as they age, a slow computer is a signal that something is literally holding your PC again and affecting performance. And the good news is that you can do something about it.

There are many things that can affect the performance of the computer’s memory to a low of disk fragmentation and everything in between. Things that can affect your computer’s performance often make their own. You see, every time you download a program or delete a program that affect the way your computer works. This change in the operation may leave holes in your PC or operating procedures can leave behind even the programs that can affect the performance of our computer.

Here are some things that could slow your computer:

Background Running Programs - These programs are software applications that run behind the scenes, even when not in use. You may not even know they are running, but that can zap precious memory and slow down considerably more. To see if you have programs running in the background, press Ctrl + Alt + Delete keys simultaneously. The box will show all running applications.

Full Hard Drive - If your hard drive is too full of data, will not have enough space to perform household chores. Your hard drive must have at least 2MB of free space on 3 MB.

Fragmented hard drive - When you download and delete programs, it creates holes in the hard disk. These holes meant that the PC has to find the files it needs over a distance and not necessarily in the order they are needed.

More Pieces of the left - When installing and uninstalling Windows programs, they leave behind parts or applications that can slow down your computer. Even without knowing it, you can delete a file needed for other software applications. (Note: Spyware and viruses can also slow the performance of your PC, but for the purposes of this article we are assuming that the problem lies in application errors.)

Make your PC run like New

Although it is not rocket science, making your computer lightning speed, once again, have a little work from you. Sometimes this is as easy as its Windows operating system tools program. You can find these programs by clicking on “start”, “all programs” “accessories” and “system tools”. Here you will find several system optimizers to help you release the disk space, defragment your PC, and detect and repair disk errors.

In addition to the tools already installed on your PC, you can choose to download additional software to optimize your computer’s performance. These optimizers can be purchased as a package with other software programs that can help you get the most from your computer. These are just some of the extra optimization that you may want for your PC:

Memory Optimizer - When you are using your computer, it takes several programs and the application to handle everything you’re doing. Each of these programs uses memory. When memory is short response time of the computer is slow. Memory Optimizer helps the memory allocation for each program more efficient. This can help eliminate the slow run-time PC, Windows hang or crash, data loss and unwanted machinery.

Register Deffrager and Optimizer - As mentioned before, a record with holes results in slow response times as the search for the data to your PC needs. This program improves the system response time and saves memory by creating a lower register.

Windows Optimizer - We all use our computers differently. Some use your computer as a media center and entertainment, while others use their PC for data storage and business. Windows Optimizer allows you to modify the program settings to be done in accordance with their needs.

Of course, a slow computer is a nuisance and may stop wanting to go out and buy a new model. But before you abandon your current model, make sure you’ve optimized first. You may be surprised at how much life is still in your PC.