How to tune-up a computer using Windows XP Home Edition®: Part II (Read Part I here.)

Dear Tech Guy,

I have a computer running Windows XP Home Edition®. I read in a school journal article that sometimes you should give your computer a "tune-up," but it didn’t say how to go about this. Is this something I can do from within Windows, or do I need to purchase some other software programs?

A good place to start is to run an antivirus program. There are many to choose from, but some popular ones are bitdefender, McAfee VirusScan, Symantec Norton Antivirus, and Grisoft AVG. There are also web-based programs, such as Trend Micro Housecall, which runs in your browser so that you don’t have to install a program directly on your computer.

Next, it is always beneficial to inspect your system for spyware and malware. One good tool for this is Lavasoft Ad-Aware. Another is Spybot Search & Destroy. Another good addition to your antispyware toolkit is Microsoft Windows Defender. Although this is a beta program and expires at the end of this year, it is highly recommended and it has a refined interface. Each of these programs catches specific spyware that the other ones don’t, so it is advisable to download and run them all. There are other programs that check for multiple security problems at once, such as the All-in-One Secretmaker.

Checking your computer online is easy with programs such as PC Pitstop, which provides a free checkup and diagnostic of your system. A great online program that checks for open ports and other security vulnerabilities is GRC ShieldsUP! provided by security expert Steve Gibson.

It is a good practice to always run a reliable firewall program and keep it updated, such as the ZoneAlarm basic version, which is free for personal and nonprofit use. Remember to keep your other applications updated as well as needed.

After running the basic Windows® programs, and then following through with some third party utilities, you will have taken important steps in maintaining your computer’s performance and security.

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