In this article I will be going over a few basic Windows XP “hacks” that may or may not improve your XP experience. So if you have XP and are interested in possibly making your computer more efficient, then by all means, read this article.
Contributed by Michael Lowry Rating: / 5 April 15, 2008
It's important to realize that this is a beginner's article, though some experts may run into something they didn't know or, at least, may have forgotten about. I realize that many people who read through these sites are experts. So if you feel you are in this category, I'd appreciate it if you'd kindly read a different article on this site. We're all really impressed that you know so much, but your smug attitude will serve no purpose at this point. Also, if you don't use XP, well, obviously this article isn't for you. Yes, clearly I'm trying to narrow my audience down as much as possible. Hurry, someone hire me as their VP of marketing!
Now that we've gotten rid of those folks, I'd like to welcome all three of you to the discussion. Actually, what I was doing just then was making sure the article wasn't bogged down with any unnecessary readers (hint: not you), consequently ruining your reading experience. Try to ignore that impeccable logic for one second and realize that it was all aimed at user optimization. And right now I will be trying to help you with a similar process that will show you when your computer is being hung up from paging. Paging is simply what happens when the computer is transferring data from its faster physical memory (RAM chips) to its slower virtual memory located on the hard drives.
First of all, the best time to check your memory usage is when you're in the middle of your usual activities. So if you're already running Word or Excel, run another application (e.g. a media player) and open a large file. There is nothing special about what I'm going to tell you. It's all right there in Task Manager for you to peruse yourself. I'm going to specify what all that information means and how to use it. But first you have to click ahead to the next section.
All the information from here on will be given in list form simply because there are steps you need to take in a specific order. So without further ado, the following will tell you how to track your computer's memory demand:
First you need to open the Task Manager either by holding down Ctrl and Alt and hitting Delete or right clicking an empty part of the taskbar and clicking Task Manager.
Once the Task Manager appears, click on the tab labeled Performance. The tables underneath the graphs show Windows keeping track of your memory usage. Voila!
Under the table labeled Commit Charge there is a subgroup called Total. As you can probably guess, this shows how much total memory the computer is using (physical and virtual).
The subgroup labeled Peak shows the highest Total Commit Charge value, since the last time you logged on to your computer.
The PF Usage bar graph on the left side of the Task Manager is tracking the Total Commit Charge.
The following could be a sign that you need to add more memory for better performance:
If the Total Commit Charge frequently surpasses the Total Physical Memory (top right table), you could add more memory chips or just replace the ones you have with larger ones to make your computer run faster. However, unless it is a rather large difference, the benefits probably won't be very noticeable.
In correlation with the above statement, the Page File Usage History line graph will be consistently over the halfway mark if the preceding statement is true. This way of tracking memory usage isn't as reliable though.
If the Peak Commit Charge is close to reaching the same value as the Limit Commit Charge, you're computer is running low on virtual memory.
In order to fix one of these problems quickly, because you need to have a faster computer right away and don't have time to purchase and add more memory, do the following:
Click on the tab labeled Processes in the Task Manager and then click on the column labeled Mem Usage (click twice or until the list of running processes is shown from most memory usage to least).
Close the programs using the most memory (except the ones you need to use at that moment) and exit the Task Manager. Keep in mind that this is only a temporary solution. I think it's pretty clear that memory shortage means you need to get more memory.
Continuing with our discussion of the fabulous Task Manager, this section will delve into CPU Usage, which can easily slow down the computer if the CPU is overworked. Just think of all the times when you try to open an application and nothing happens for an undetermined period of time. In fact, the whole time I've been writing this article there have been numerous occasions where the words I type don't show up on the monitor until 2-5 seconds after I type them. Oh woe is me! Whatever shall I do?
First of all, it's important to know that these freezes usually happen because Windows is waiting for some application (slow Internet connection, some program scanning the computer at that exact moment, or multiple programs trying to get at the hard drive at once) to complete its process. But for the purpose of this section, I'm referring to what happens when a program takes hold of the processor and rarely, if ever, releases it. This is called red lining and Task Manager can help you determine whether this is happening when your computer is freezing. If you want to find out, open the Task Manager and follow these instructions:
Click on the tab labeled Performance (the same visual showing the graphs and tables will appear).
Double click on any area near one of the graphs – a larger, more detailed version of the CPU Usage graphs will appear. If the usage history graph shows numerous and frequent hits at the top of the graph (100% mark), then I'm afraid your computer has become all too familiar with the red line zone and you'll need to look into terminating one or more programs. I hate to be the one to tell you this.
If you find yourself in the above situation, double click anywhere near the graphs in order to set the Task Manager back to normal view.
Click on the tab labeled Processes and then click on the column labeled CPU (click twice or until the list of running processes is shown from most CPU time to least)
At this point you can shut down any processes causing you to red line. The safest way to do this is by going to the program's File menu and choosing Exit or Close. If that doesn't work, you can try shutting it down in the Applications or Processes tab of the Task Manager – choose either End Task or End Process.
The best thing to do after this is restart the computer.
Perhaps you've noticed that the previous sections have focused on ways to fix problems that have happened to your computer. Good for you! Have a cookie. Well it just so happens that there are preventative measures you can take to avoid all the problems mentioned earlier. Oh, and of course they're achieved via the uber handy Task Manager, the ultimate tool to keep your computer running as fast as it can.
Here I will tell you how to adjust how fast each program runs in Windows. In other words, I'll show you how to set program priorities, or use the Task Manager to set individual programs to run faster at the expense of others. This is useful because in standard operating mode, Windows has to let each program run simultaneously so that the whole system will work properly. However, it does not specify how fast each program has to run. Open your Task Manager and follow these instructions:
Click on the tab labeled Applications and choose which one(s) you want to run the fastest (and consequently, faster than normal).
Right click on that program and choose the option labeled Go to Process. The Task Manager will then direct you to the program as it's known under the tab labeled Processes (it usually has the .exe extension).
Right click on that process and choose Set Priority. Follow the arrow to the option labeled High and choose it (make sure you do not choose Realtime). There is a warning that Windows issues upon selecting a different priority. Click yes to clear the warning.
Exit out of the Task Manager. At this point, the program you set to a high priority will run faster as long as it is open. If you close it, you will have to go through this process again.
Please note that, although this program will run faster, all other programs will run slower because of it.
You've reached the end of this article. Hopefully I've helped you in some way by giving you some new information. If not, go ahead and pat yourself on the back because clearly you are on another level when it comes to Windows XP knowledge.
Handling the Details of PC Operation
