My mother called recently, asking me to fix her PC. It seems her monitor was listing to the right, apparently from the weight of the nine icons in her system tray (the area in the taskbar next to the Windows clock). System tray clutter isn't unusual: A poll of the user group I run indicates that most people have five or more items in their tray. If you're like many of the poll respondents, you don't know the function of all the icons you have, you don't want them in the system tray, and you'd like to know how to remove them. Your wish is my command.

The fewer icons you keep in your system tray, the better. Every icon represents a program that may be gobbling system resources, even if it's not doing anything. And the lower your PC's resources, the worse its performance. I keep just three icons in my system tray, all of which I really need: AdSubtract to block cookies and ads, ZoneAlarm for firewall protection, and Second Copy for quick backups.

Iconoclasm 101

The safest way to remove a program's icon from the system tray is to use the application's own remove-icon option. Sometimes you can find this by right- or left-clicking the icon, but other times you must open the application. Look for "Options" or "Preferences", and hope the application offers a choice similar to "show icon on task bar". If it does, uncheck or otherwise deselect that option. If it does not, you'll have to take more drastic measures. First, see what programs Windows loads when it starts up. Select Start, Run, type msconfig, press Enter, and click the Startup tab. Uncheck all the items you recognize and are sure you don't need. In my mom's tray, I discovered icons for a long-abandoned fax program and three other programs she rarely used. When you're done, click OK and restart your computer. For more removal details, consult "Let My Resource Go."

But how do you block new icons from taking up residence in your system tray? StartupMonitor is a neat utility that tells you when a program is about to load an icon into the tray and lets you prevent it from doing so. If you must keep many items in your system tray, minimize the clutter by using TraySaver, a clever tool that selectively hides icons.

Install With Care

There are reasons why your system tray may be overloaded. First, I point a finger (no, not that one) at the many installation routines that arrogantly dump items in the tray. For instance, Real Networks' RealPlayer adds an icon or two to the tray without permission. And the icon is unnecessary because RealPlayer loads automatically when you click on a file associated with it. To get rid of the icon, right-click it, choose Preferences, select Settings on the General tab, and either deselect Enable Start Center or choose to show the icon only when you receive a message.

But we users share the blame. Most people (me included) consider installations trivial and rarely pay attention when doing one. Not a good idea. Much of the trouble I have with my PC--from extra icons to a hosed system--occurs immediately after I install something.

You can do several things to steer clear of installation problems. Heed setup programs' warnings to close all other applications. The new program may need access to a file or resource that an open program uses, which could honk up the installation. And leading propellerheads agree--Installatus Interruptus is a disorder to avoid. If an installation does go bad, you'll wish you had a way to get yourself back to the status quo ante. Adaptec's GoBack restores hard drives to their state a few days, hours, or minutes earlier. Try it at our Downloads library.

Many new programs let you customize their installs by asking many questions and giving you lots of choices. Besides avoiding system tray litter, you can stop programs from adding icons to the Start menu and desktop. So resist the urge to click the Next button before you read any other word in the installation window. Amazingly, some of the information on those screens is actually useful.

Uh-oh. Mom's on the line again. Seems her microwave oven picks up the Disney Channel whenever she defrosts a chicken. Anybody got Michael Eisner's number?