Speed Up Windows Explorer

The Hassle: I use XP on a fast, dual-core system with a SATA II drive and lots of RAM. Yet Windows' My Computer sometimes takes a full 2 minutes to open.

The Fix: Ah, the pain. I'll bet you're on a network, and XP is merrily monitoring shared resources--a printer, for instance, or a networked folder--to make connecting to those resources easier. But you can turn off the monitoring--and still access shared stuff.

Open Windows Explorer, go to Tools, Folder Options, click on the View tab and uncheck Automatically search for network folders and printers-and you'll feel the speed again.

Back Up-But Validate, Too

I made a terrible discovery. My old, reliable backup image wasn't any good. I had backed up to a drive with a bad sector, so my Acronis True Image backup was corrupt. Lesson learned: Always, always find and use your backup program's validate feature. It's the only way to be sure of having a reliable backup. (Click here to download Acronis True Image.)

Tool of the Month

Revo Uninstaller

I never use Windows' brain-dead uninstaller. It's slow, supplies scant info, and often leaves remnants of the app I want off. My replacement is Revo Uninstaller, a free tool so useful, it's on my Start menu. It tells me the unwanted program's version and location, when I installed it, and the vendor URL. I highlight an entry to uninstall, and a click brings me to the program's folder or Registry entry. After Revo uses the app's uninstall routine, it scans my PC and finds the left-behind odds and ends--files, folders, and Registry entries. A dialog box gives me options to delete them or remove them from the Registry. (Click here to download Revo Uninstaller.)