Windows 7 MSConfig - Startup tabHave you noticed how much longer it takes for your PC to boot up when you've had it for a while? How it takes longer for the desktop to appear and how the system response time seems to slow down over time?

Is this the computer equivalent of old age? Dementia? Arthritis in the hard disk and Alzheimers in the memory? No. It's software, the volume of which soaks up resources as you install more and more of it.

By default, many of the programs you install are placed in the Startup group to run automatically every time you start your PC. You will see a lot of them on your Taskbar or notification area. As well as hardware drivers and utilities, control panels and the like, common favourites such as Adobe Acrobat Reader and Apple iTunes sit there alongside your Anti-Virus notifier, instant messaging, calendars and all that other kruft. Your PC manufacturer will probably have saddled you with a collection of sponsored 'crapware' to boost the profit margin, most of which you won't need. Read more of this post