I'm sure we've all experienced a general slow down on our aging computers.. well I know that's happened to me and the older the computer, the slower it seems to run despite the fact that it was fast and efficient back when it was new (which sometimes isn't really that long ago)... it never occurred to me (and now I'm wondering why it didn't) that it could be the computer manufacturers behind this essentially forcing you to buy another faster and better and newer computer to perpetuate their industry. I'm surprised this didn't occur to me because I know I've said that is what happens in the housing industry these days.. they don't build houses to last 50-100 years anymore.. at best they are built to last 15-20 years

So why am I posting this.. well I read an article today about a product called TurboYourPC which resonated for me because over the weekend my mother-in-law asked me to review some problems she had on her computer. While I managed to resolve the core issue she was asking about, one of the side issues was "why is my computer so slow". I was unable to resolve this issue for her, nor have I had success resolving a similar issue on my wife's laptop or even, to a lesser degree, the same issue I've experienced on various work computers (especially laptops) over the years I've had a job involving computers that I had in my possession but was not responsible for purchasing in the first place...

Phew long wind-up to get to my question - is there a product out that that anyone on Darkshade has used or know about and would vouch for that helps restore a computer that is 3-5 years old so it doesn't take 10 minutes to load up? I don't have any faith in TurboYourPC - but I thought I'd include a link the the article in case anyone wanted to read it (http://www.supertechconsult.co.....tm_medium=Social+Adv)... perhaps one of you have actually used it and feel it is legit (I doubt it but the things I don't know could fill many more caverns than the things I do know, especially when it comes to computers and technology) or perhaps you know of a similar program that works well (and most ideally is free, but let me know of one even if it isn't free).

Just curious and thought I'd poll all of you to see what's out there. Thanks!

The thing that works best for me: Wipe the hard drive and reinstall the operating system.  I know it sounds like a scorched earth policy, but it works.  As computers get used day to day, stuff builds up.  Old files, old registry entries, orphaned fragments of uninstalled software or upgraded drivers.. it all builds up and slowly drags your computer down.

Just be sure to back up everything you want to keep, and block off the time to install everything you need back onto the system.

I don't trust any software "speed up your PC" solutions.  But if you're serious about squeezing extra horse power out of an aging machine, I'd recommend a RAM upgrade.  If it's not TOO old, it won't cost much to increase the memory of your computer.  Find out what the maximum it will handle is, and go for it.  I use crucial.com to find out what kind of RAM I need and how much I can fit.

I agree with Diddly that scorched earth is the best way to go to fix the problem properly - if you do that, and still have a problem, then the issue has to be with the hardware, or its inability to efficiently meet the needs of the software you're running.

Having said that, I've had moderately good luck in the past with CCleaner ( https://www.piriform.com/ccleaner/download ).  It tends to be a temporary fix (I found that each time I had to resort to using it, it made a little less of a difference), but it may be able to fix glaring problems with the registry, and squeeze a little more life out of the system before resorting to the nuclear option.