Issue 20.17
The workhorses in your computer are the Central Processing Unit (CPU) and the Random Access Memory (RAM). These two components are what does all the thinking in the computer. The hard drive and associated other storage devices such as external hard drives, flash drives, CDs, DVDs and BluRays are for storage of the information you want to access and the programs that give you that access. But the brain is the CPU and the amount of things it can do (especially at one time) is determined by the RAM installed in your computer.
Modern computers usually have at least a dual core CPU such as an Intel i3 or an AMD x2. This means that the computer chip that runs the computer has at least 2 actual “brains” that are working together to make your computer powerful and efficient. Upper end computers have 4, 6, 8 or even 12 processors working together.
Memory is measured in Gigabytes which are billions of bytes of information such as a letter or number. A minimum for most Operating Systems (such as Windows 7 and 10 or IOS x on the Mac) is 4 Gigabytes, but many of the better models will have 8, 12, 16 or even more Gigabytes of RAM onboard.
When your computer is turned off, no information is passing through or stored in these chips. When it is on however, there are usually 20-50 actual programs or processes running on your computer even when you have not opened any programs or files. These are part of the operating system or security systems on your computer. Most of them are small and do not take a lot of power to run.
When your computer is running slow, it is usually because too many things are running on the computer in the background or because you have too many programs that you have opened at the same time (or both). If you want to look at what is actually running on your computer you can usually do so. In Windows, you can hold down the CTRL and ALT buttons on the keyboard and the press and release the DEL or delete key. This will open a new screen with options – one of which is “Task Manager”.
If you click that, it will open a box that shows the programs, processes and performance issues that are currently running on your computer along with a few other options. If you go to the “Performance” tab, it will show you how much of your CPU power is being used and how much of the Memory is engaged. If more than 70% of your memory is in use it may be slowing down your system. For the CPU, the percentage of capability should be under 10% most of the time if you are not currently running programs and under about 70% if you are running powerful programs such as video editors, music or video streaming or other programs that require a lot of power. If you see that the power is being overused, it can overheat and limit your computer’s ability to do what it is designed to do. Look for programs that should not be running or that are taking too much power, highlight them and click on “End Task”
Be careful that you are not turning off your virus protection or other critical processes that make your computer run correctly and, if in doubt, it is best to have your professional look at the problem. However, you can often solve performance problems this way if you are careful.
Just use some common sense – and always make sure you remember to protect your data, documents, pictures and your computer, phone and tablet by always backing up anything important.
Shaun McCausland has worked in the computer industry for over 34 years, 27 years of it locally with Bits ‘N’ Bytes and Musicomp and currently works as a computer consultant. If you have questions you can reach him at 435-668-7118 or mccausland.shaun54@gmail.com .