hartvix

If you run CCleaner without making any config changes, it will remove your pinned documents from the quick list in Excel, Word, etc., along with the other Recent docs. At least this is the case with my setup (Win7/Office 2007). I realize that you can avoid this by using exclusions of different kinds in CCleaner Options, but in my mind that shouldn't be necessary. If an element is pinned, it's because I made a conscious decision to keep it, and it doesn't make sense for CCleaner to remove it, at least without an explicit confirmation.

First of all, like several others have said, do NOT delete anything in your windows folder unless you are 100% sure what you are doing! The folder $hf_mig$ is needed for FUTURE updates to the system, so deleting it could easily get you into trouble. For those of you still running Windows XP (yep, myself included, most of the time...), you may want to check out this little program called Windows XP Update Remover by Tech-Pro. Before you use it, make sure you understand the difference between the 2 buttons: Uninstall update and Remove backup folder. I cannot personally guarantee your safety using this program, but i never had any problems with it myself. Also, I'm not sure how it compares to CCleaner when it comes to how much it will remove. Anyway, it will let you handle each update/hotfix separately. Link: http://downloads.tech-pro.net/windows-xp-u...ver_tpwu01.html After installing a hotfix or a service pack, i would suggest you leave those backup files for a while, so you can uninstall the update if it proves to be a problem. After a while, if it seems your system is working ok, remove the backups. If you delete the folders manually, your system will still think it's there, and show options to uninstall the updates. Should you try to uninstall from Control panel, this would cause an error message, since the files will not be found. If you use the Update Remover mentioned above, it will also clear this info from registry etc. so they won't be listed in Control Panel. And, most important, i trust the writers of the program will only present stuff that's safe to delete. The manual method is a bit risky...

The feature that allows you to highlight one or more files and see where they are located physically is very nice. I was thinking... would it be possible to go in the other direction as well? Let's say you spot one or a few used blocks in the middle of a free area, and you would like to know what files were placed there. If you could right click / double click, for instance, to get that info, that would be great! hartvix

I know, i know... just couldn't help myself...

It does work IN PRINCIPLE, only the help text hasn't been added to most of the controls...

Hmm... why would anyone want to increase boot time? ;-)

Hello there! A couple of comments on your system: Adobe Reader is a real resource hog, i threw that one out years ago. It always took forever to start when you wanted to open a PDF document. Then Adobe said they had made it start quicker.... yep, only by sneaking a so-called "Quick start" into your Windows startup, so you have to wait for it every time you start Windows, instead of when you actually need the program... That way, they make Windows look slower, and their own program faster. You could of course just remove the "Quick start", but i would recommend getting rid of Adobe (or Acrobat) Reader alltogether, and installing Foxit Reader instead (www.foxitsoftware.com). It's a fraction of the size, it uses a fraction of the resources, starts in a fraction of the time, and will do the same job. Also 100% free. A lot of sites who have manuals etc. for download in PDF format has a comment saying "You need Adobe/Acrobat Reader to open this". NOT true! There are better alternatives... Getting rid of as much of the automatic startups as possible is one of the most effective ways to revive your computer. Far too many applications put some unnecessary function in automatic startup without even asking you. There are lots of programs that can show you what programs / processes are running or autostarting, but most of them aren't very helpful unless you have some knowledge of those programs. From a list like the one you attached, most people, like yourself wouldn't know what they could delete. A great program for this is "The Ultimate Troubleshooter" from AnswersThatWork (http://www.answersthatwork.com). They actually explain in layman's terms what programs you should keep or remove, their own experience with those programs etc., and they keep a database of known programs that's updated on a regular basis. I've found it very useful. The downside is that you have to pay a few bucks (30$?) for a fully functional version.

Hi, Nicky! You weren't very specific about your problems with CCleaner, or what you did when you tried to fix it. If you haven't already tried it, my first step would be uninstalling CCleaner, and reinstalling the latest version. If you've already tried that, please give us a little more details about the nature of the problem, error messages etc. Harry

I've just downloaded and installed Defraggler myself, and have barely tested it, so I can't really tell you too much about this specific program. What i can tell you, though, is that with virtually no free space on your system disk (where Windows is installed, usually drive C), ANYTHING can happen. I wouldn't recommend having less than 20% of your C-drive free at any time. It seems you have been around 0-1%, and almost anything can crash your system. A lot of programs, not to mention Windows itself, will use and release a lot of harddisk space without informing you in any way, creating temporary files etc. This means that it's often impossible to pinpoint exactly what "stole" harddisk space at a specific time. Defraggers (generally) will always struggle if there's not enough "elbow room" to work with. To some extent this goes for other drives as well, but they are not as vulnerable as the system drive, for several reasons. One is that you will normally have much more control over what files are placed there, and when. Another reason is that the files on other drives will normally not be as critical to the operation of your system. It's also a good idea to have as few programs / processes as possible running when you are defragging. Files being used at the moment will normally not be defragmented, for one thing. Also, in the event of a problem, the fewer things running, the better. hartvix