— Steven Woodhouse is the Managing Director of Lincoln IT Solutions Ltd, a company which offers premium IT support and consultancy for businesses in Lincolnshire.
One of the most common questions I’m asked is “Why is my computer running slow?” With some simple advice, you can rule out and fix the most common problems yourself.
Old Hardware
As software progresses and advances, it gets more complex and so requires more processing power and memory to run. You can use Task Manager (press CTRL-ALT-DEL on your keyboard together and select Task Manager) to find out how much RAM your machine currently has available. If you are using all of your RAM, it will result in a significant slowdown. If this is the case, it may be time to add additional RAM, or look at a replacement machine if it’s over five years old.
Anti-Virus Software
Some anti-virus programs can significantly slow down your machine, as they generally install many additional components that you simply don’t need. I always recommend Microsoft Security Essentials, as it’s a Microsoft product to protect Microsoft software. It has minimal impact on the speed of your machine, and best of all, it’s free! If you plan to change your anti-virus software, remember to uninstall the previous one first.
Spyware
The most common reason for a slow machine is spyware. Symptoms include unwanted popup messages, website redirections to other unwanted websites and frequent web browser crashes. If you are experiencing any of these symptoms, then there is free software that can help. Malwarebytes AntiMalware can remove the majority of spyware. A full scan can take several hours, but you can leave it running. When the scan is complete, it will tell you if any infections have been found and will remove them, pending a reboot.
Rootkits
A rootkit is a malicious piece of software specifically designed to hide the existence of itself and other malware. If you find that spyware keeps returning even after you’ve removed it, a rootkit may be the cause. Fortunately, Kaspersky offer a free tool that can detect and remove rootkits. A rootkit scan with this tool only takes a few minutes, so I would highly recommend you run this tool before a spyware scan.
Pinpointing the exact cause of a slow machine can be difficult, but by following the suggestions above, you will be able to fix the most common problems.
Steven Woodhouse is the Managing Director of Lincoln IT Solutions, a company which offers premium IT support and consultancy for businesses in Lincolnshire.
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Can you help us identify the woman in these CCTV images?
We are appealing for help to identify the woman shown in these CCTV images following a theft that occurred on Wednesday 22 June in Grimsby.
A 92-year-old woman was walking through Freshney Place Shopping centre, Grimsby when it is believed that her purse was taken from her shopping trolley.
The woman in these images we believe may be able to assist with our investigations and we would ask anyone who believes they recognise her to please contact us on our non-emergency 101 line quoting log 246 of 23 June.
A retired fire engine that used to operate in Grimsby was used in Ukraine to help combat a missile attack on a shopping centre, which the G7 has described as a ‘war crime’ by Russia.
On Monday, footage emerged of a missile striking a shopping centre in the Ukrainian city of Kremenchuk, with Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky claiming is is evidence of a deliberate attack by Russia.
At least 20 people were killed and around 56 were injured following the incident, with G7 leaders saying the attack is considered a war crime. More than 1,000 people were inside the building when it was hit by the missile.
A familiar looking fire engine can be seen in video footage of the blaze shared across news outlets and social media platforms, in the form of an old Humberside Fire & Rescue vehicle.
Large shopping mall in Kremenchuk with hundreds of civilians inside has been hit by a Russian strike. Russia is a disgrace to humanity and it must face consequences. The response should be more heavy arms for Ukraine, more sanctions on Russia, and more businesses leaving Russia. pic.twitter.com/Uvi6fbyShK
The fire engine used to operate here in North East Lincolnshire, covering Grimsby and Immingham, and it is one of many vehicles sent out by Humberside Fire & Rescue to various countries across Europe in recent years.
Fire Aid recently sent a convoy of around 75 vehicles, equipment and clothing to Ukraine to help provide resources for recovery.
At least 20 people were killed in the incident. | Photo: BBC Look North
Area manager Matthew Sutcliffe told BBC Look North: “We’ve sent a number of fire engines since 2015 over there. These are end of life fire engines for us in Humberside, so we share them across Eastern Europe where we can.
“It’s an absolute tragedy what we saw yesterday. Firefighters there were using one of our old fire engines to protect the property but also save lives.”
"Absolute terrorism" – says @ZelenskyyUa and publishes a video of a deliberate missile strike on the Kremenchuk shopping center with people inside. Russian propaganda always lies: there is no coincidence, it is a deliberate blow to intimidate the population and mass victims. pic.twitter.com/Gx1f90cMta
During a regular nightly address to the nation on Monday, president Zelensky said: “The Russian missile hit this very object, purposefully. Obviously, that was the order. It is obvious that Russian assassins received such coordinates for this missile.
“They wanted to kill as many people as possible in a peaceful city, in a regular shopping mall.”
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