Problem:
The system could be slowed down for a number of reasons. Most commonly this problem exists due to large amounts of spyware and/or adware on your computer. Many websites on the internet carry ‘mini programs’ that are made to run on your computer without you knowing it. These programs can do anything from monitoring your internet use, to storing data that you input into forms such as username, passwords, etc.

Solution:
The first step in solving this issue is installing anti-spyware software from the network that will help you delete these “mini programs.” (Example: Ad-Aware)

Instructions:

1. Click on Start
2. Click on “Control Panel”
3. When the Control Panel window appears, double-click on “Add or Remove Programs.’”
4. When the “Add or Remove Programs” window appears, click on the “Add Programs” icon on the left pane.
5. After you have clicked on “Add Programs” a new list will appear. This list is a list of all possible software that can be downloaded to your computer from the college network. This list is arranged alphabetically.
6. The first program that you need to install is “Ad-Aware Personal SE” this should be first on the list of programs.
7. Click on the “add” button that will appear next to the “Ad-Aware Personal SE” selection.
8. Clicking the “add” button will automatically install the program onto your computer.
9. After setup has completed, you are now ready to run the program on your computer.
10. To run the program, click on “Start.”
11. Click on “All Programs.”
12. On your list of programs, find and point your mouse over “Lavasoft Ad-Aware Personal SE.”
13. When the menu expands, click on “Lavasoft Ad-Aware Personal SE”
14. When the program starts, you will see a button that says “start” in the bottom-right on the screen. Click on that “start” button.
15. Next, you will see a list of options for scans that you can perform on your system. Select “Perform Full System Scan.”
16. The program will now scan your entire computer for any signs of these ‘mini programs.’
17. When it has found these programs, it will give you the option to delete what files Ad-Aware has found. You will need to do this.
18. Once Ad-Aware has deleted these files, click “OK”.
19. Close Ad-Aware SE
20. Restart Your Computer