CompuClever Blog

Improve Internet Speed

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With demanding schedules is it any wonder we become easily frustrated when we are held up in traffic?  Whether it is out on the road or on the Internet, we want uninhibited passage.  In our previous article we began to introduce you to Internet speed tests by reviewing four popular testing tools that are available.  The caveat is that each of these is different and results vary.  So… how do we equip ourselves to: a) determine if the fault is at our end and b) if not, to better be able to present some real data to our Internet provider?  First we are going to offer more information on the speed tests in case you have given up hope on them. The key to using them is: create a history!  Next, we are going to examine and better understand how slowdowns and bottlenecks occur and what the impacts are.  By doing this you can better assess if the issue is within your home and network or outside and due to poor conditions.  Finally, if the issue is due to your PC, we will show you a very easy method of improving your Internet speed.

What did we learn from our previous article and our investigation with the multitude of speed tests that are available?  Continue reading...

Test Your Internet Speed

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Currently, one popular speed test site performs more than 5 million speed tests each day.  This speaks to the need of attempting to verify if our Internet is slow or suffers from periods of poor connectivity.  Stopping and waiting for a video or show to buffer in the middle of viewing or being cut off during an online chat session – these are sources of frustration.  This is especially true given the fact that we paid for a service and full expect that it should deliver.  When you signed up for a service you may have heard the boastful claims for fast download and upload speeds.  But, do those numbers hold up to everyday use?  And why do we face slowdowns?  Many service providers are looking at changing the monthly subscription model to a usage model.  What leeway do they have around charging more for priority services; and, what about government regulations in this area?  We’ll look into these concerns and we’ll show how all speed tests are not created equal.  We also have a list of phrases, terminology, and speed measurements to help with some of this subject matter.  We’ll start with some recent news.

In the News: Fair and Equal

At the end of February of this year, The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) voted to have the same rules applied to broadband as what is governed by the telephone service.  Continue reading...

New Year’s PC Resolution

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This past year we introduced topics and subject matter related to PC enhancement. We intend to highlight the best of these as they apply to providing you the tools needed to enhance your PC performance and take action against unwanted behavior. It is our hope that you can take a look at our year in review and pick what you need to carry out your PC goals for the upcoming year. It’s likely that there are items in your computing world that need attention and here’s your chance to fast track to those areas that have been neglected.

We have chosen six of the most popular articles from 2014. Here is an overview of these articles in three categories:

Privacy / Security:
– Identify and Clean Cookies (July)
– Virus vs PUP and How to Remove Both (Sept)

TuneUp / Clean Up:
– Improve Startup (Aug)
– Spring PC Cleaning (June)

Support:
– CompuClever Free Functionality (Oct)
– DIY vs. Repair Shop (Nov)

Here are the PC enhancement articles for 2014.

Identify and Clean Cookies

About: Not all cookies are created equal. Cookies are created when browsing to particular web pages. While most are safe – especially when coming from a trusted source – not all are. Continue reading...

DIY vs. Repair Shop

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Why is it that asking for help can be an overwhelming obstacle?  The reality is… there is a certain shame that comes from seeking help when we don’t know something.  No one wants to admit to being lost and needing directions and no one wants to feel like they are not smart enough.  Plus, we all want to join the ranks of DIY – Do It Yourself.  To be real, this takes assessing the situation and knowing if the issues are outside our expertise.  When we are simply spinning our wheels, it’s time to take it to the professionals.  The next task is to get good and reliable service that will lead to a real solution.  This article segues from some of our recent articles that focus on assessment of PC problems.  We’ll cover this in brief and provide links.  The main impetus for this article is to shine some light on PC repair technicians that are not trustworthy and to strongly emphasize how our users can benefit from available tools and services including those offered by our CompuClever support team.

Here is the article menu du jour:

  • Background:  We’ll start with the background story of one man’s experience with a not-so-honest repair shop.
Continue reading...

CompuClever Free Functionality

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We’ve mentioned before in previous articles how there are some companies of poor repute that offer “free” stuff.  But what you actually get is something not entirely free.  At best you get a free time trial of the product; at worst you get a free app bundled with a bunch of add-ons that you didn’t want resulting in a clogged system with popup ads or other system modifications you didn’t ask for.   CompuClever provides applications that have some functionality enabled for you to try for free.  If you want the full program you can upgrade.  There are no tricks or deceptions.  We want you to try our products and see if they meet your needs.  As you do have one of our paid programs we encourage you to look at our entire application suite and try out anything that looks of interest.

CompuClever offers four programs including: PC TuneUp Maestro, PC Clean Maestro, Ultra eBook Reader, and Ultra File Opener. We will provide a description of each product, introduce what each product is capable of, and highlight the free functionality that is available with that product.

PC TuneUp Maestro

PC TuneUp Maestro is the most advanced suite of PC maintenance software tools available. Continue reading...