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Part 2 – Your Mac Speed Can Decrease
If you believe that just because you have a Mac computer that the overall performance cannot slow down, than you are mistaken. This is yet another common misconception made by those who own Mac computers. Macs like any other computer can see a drop in performance. I have seen my Mac decrease in speed before, however, unlike a Windows computer, most people don’t know what to do in order to fix the issue.
How Do I Fix The Issue?
I know this is the question you want answered and I know what I may share my seem obvious. However, for those who use a Mac or for those who have made the transition from a Windows computer, performing these functions of the computer may not seem as obvious.
First, clean out your cache. This will rid your computer of temporary internet and cookie files that are collected from websites you visit. These files are unnecessary and don’t need to be taking up space on your hard drive. By leaving them there, they just build up and you can expect to see your Mac’s performance decrease. Now, how do you do this? First, make sure that Safari is the program shown in the toolbar at the top of the page. All that’s left to do know is click the toolbar where it says Safari and select “empty cache.”
Second, close programs not in use. Yes, another no brainer. However, this goes unlooked as well. This one at least is simple to fix as the tip listed above, but I think this fix sticks out a lot easier. When looking at the doc at the bottom of your screen, check to see how many programs listed have the “blue light” under them. If you didn’t know already, this tells you which programs are currently running. If one of the programs is running for no reason, hover your mouse over the icon, hold down control and click the icon. At that point, you just need to click close. By keeping only a select few programs open at a time, you give your Mac a significant chance to run smoother and faster. Simply put, you’re using less resources.
My third tip is to check how many programs launch on start up. This can be viewed by looking at the top right hand corner of your screen. To the left of the clock, there’s programs listed there which launch at start up. As before, you can click control and then click on the icon to close non used programs or set the preferences so they don’t launch on start up. Just think, when programs are running in the background even when not being used, it takes up resources. I know I said that earlier with programs you manually launch, but you don’t need to have programs running at start up that may potentially be of no use to you.
I also suggest running a virus scan of your computer. As we discussed in the first part of the series, having a virus program on your Mac is very important. Now, when we get to the topic of computer performance, the possibility of a virus on your machine comes into play. So, run a scan and see if any viruses exist because you never know what outside intrusions could be slowing your machine down.
Here’s My Optional Tip…You Decide on This One
Another thing you can do is clear the history on your browser. The reason why I say you decide on this one is because your browser will forget any websites you have visited. It’s as if you just downloaded your browser and have never used it before. As with cleaning out your cache, this is yet another way to clear out stored information on your computer. This information you have to decide whether or not it is valuable to you. Some people like to keep their browsing history. I do keep mine. That’s one thing I do not clear out.
Anything You Would Like To Add?
Do you have anything else to add to this list? I think this list covers the absolute “to-do’s” when trying to maintain the high end performance that a Mac is capable of. However, I’m sure some people may have something that I have missed and I’m always interested in hearing your thoughts. If you do share a tip, expand on it a little like I did. By providing people the directions on how to fix something, we are helping a lot of people out there who may own a Mac, but not know how to improve its performance.
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