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I have one or two programs (such as photo editing) which I don’t use. Do these slow my computer down and should I uninstall them?

Unwanted Programs

Many of us buy computers that come preloaded with programs that we don’t want. In addition, when we buy products such as printers and digital cameras, these often come with additional programs that install along with the primary software. Each year, we must install a new tax program in order to do our income taxes because the tax laws change so much from one year to the next. The more we use the Internet, the more we find must-have programs that turn out not to be so great after all. Soon, our computers are loaded with software that we never use!

Do Unwanted Programs Slow Computers Down?

Unwanted programs can slow computers down in several main ways. One, just by hanging out on the hard drive, they are contributing to clutter. The operating system uses hard drive space as a resource, so if space is at a premium, it makes sense to free it up. Another way that unwanted programs slow computers is if these programs are set to load automatically with Windows. For example, if you don’t use a program such as QuickTime, but it loads each time you start Windows, that’s a waste of your computer’s memory. Finally, programs that you don’t use may conflict with those that you do use. This may not be obvious in most cases, but it is possible. If conflicts exist, your computer may run slower than expected or errors may appear.

Uninstalling Unwanted Programs

Since you don’t use or want these programs, go ahead and remove them, making sure to remove them using appropriate tools. For example, Windows XP has a built-in tool for removing programs called Add and Remove Programs. This is found in the Control Panel. Simply click the Add and Remove Programs icon, find the unwanted program in the list and highlight it. Once selected, click the Remove button. Follow the prompts.

But wait! If you see a warning message asking for permission to remove “shared program files” that are no longer needed, avoid the temptation to allow these shared components to be removed. Removing shared program files such as DLL files can lead to problems when other programs really do need them.

In some cases, an unwanted program won’t be listed in Add and Remove Programs. In these cases, look in the program’s folder to see if an uninstall file has been included. If not, use a program such as Perfect Uninstaller to remove the program.

Add or Remove Programs is a tool on the Control Panel to give users more authority over the programs installed on the computer. There are many applications for Add or Remove Programs users will find important, such as the frequency of program use, availability of updates, installing new programs, and removing unwanted programs from the system.

The main screen of Add or Remove Programs will populate a list of all programs installed on the computer accessible by Windows. If your hard drive is partitioned, or you run a dual boot system, not all programs will be listed. To the right of each program name will be important information. Windows will tell the user how often the program is used, when the last use occurred, and the size of the program. There will then be a button to change the program or to remove it from the system.

On the left side of the screen are some other tools. Add New Programs will allow the user to start the install wizard for software from a CD-ROM or to update device drivers and Windows components through an Internet connection. Most of the time, simply inserting a CD-ROM into the computer will cause Windows to begin the Installation Wizard. Older or specialty software may not allow this feature, and in this case a user must start the process from the Control Panel’s Add New Programs.

Another tool in Add or Remove Programs is the Add or Remove Windows Components. This does not require the Windows disk to add or remove components. This can be a handy tool when you are setting up different user accounts on the system, and don’t want certain components available to all users. Or, if you do not use a particular component of Windows, such as Media Player, Windows Messenger, you can remove it from your sight.

Finally, users should also take advantage of the ease of Set Program Access and Defaults. This will allow users to select the default programs for email, media files, and web browsers. This isn’t an issue if you only use Microsoft products such as Internet Explorer or Outlook for email. If however, you wish to select Firefox as your default browser, or Winamp as your default movie viewer, this is the place to do it.

One problem with using Add or Remove Programs to delete programs is that Windows will often give you the message that files are used by multiple programs, and deleting them could cause other programs to become unstable. This is a problem because the information is limited in nature. As a result, prudent users will choose to keep the “shared” files, when its possible that it is unnecessary. Whenever possible, it much better to use a programs uninstall feature if available because it will remove all of the files associated with the program.