CompuClever Blog

Secure Computing Practices

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Synopsis:  This blog article focuses on the privacy and personal security functionality of PC Clean Maestro– the removal of personal and private files.  There are numerous examples of cybercrime and online hacking which exemplify damages that can be lost in terms of financial wealth, private data, and personal information that can be used against your will.  In this article we will offer some examples of how you can prevent falling into malicious traps.  For more detail of cybercrime examples refer to our newsletter.  While encryption and firewall techniques are available, experts agree that there are always vulnerable points of entry.  We emphasize eliminating the risk by removal of data where possible.

Introducing – PC Clean Maestro:

The CompuClever application PC Clean Maestro has more than one major function.  It is used to remove junk files, to uninstall programs, and for removal of data for purposes of security and retaining PC privacy. Removing private data that is sensitive or can be stolen is done in the same manner as removing junk files with minor differences.  We will outline the procedure here in step-by-step fashion.  Before we begin, let’s start with a best practice tip.

Best Practices: 1. BackUp Data

As we stated in our previous article… backup your data!  Continue reading...

Too Much Junk: Stay Lean and Clean

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Synopsis:  Two months ago we presented articles on defragmentation – one of the most effective methods of improving PC system performance.  Prior to applying this procedure it is highly recommended to remove clutter from your PC – what is often referred to as “junk” files.  We are going to look at the symptoms your PC could be displaying.  Next, we will examine what some experts suggest and some of the challenges associated with these tasks.  Finally we are going to look at performing two solutions using PC Clean Maestro:  one, cleaning junk files and two, uninstalling programs that are not necessary.


There are many online references providing information and instruction on cleaning junk files and cleaning your PC.  Many of these articles offer instructions on how to go about manually using the onboard tools supplied by your PC operating system.  The difficulty with this is:

  1. Much of this depends on what operating system you are running.
  2. This can be time consuming if you do not know where these Microsoft tools are located.
  3. Manual removal of files is almost always tedious and does not produce thorough results as items are stored by programs in areas without your awareness.
  4. Quite often you need a fair bit of PC expertise and a whole lot of patience.
Continue reading...

How to Reset Internet Explorer

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Over time and frequent use, Internet Explorer can accumulate extra “add-ons” and can experience changes that result in slow performance.   There are instances where settings are adjusted by add-ons, browser extensions, and toolbars without your knowledge or approval.  What most users experience when installing items to their computer are software additions that are part of the package.  In other words, you begin installing some item and it includes browser add-ons that are intended to give you quick access to websites (via shortcuts) or additional functionality such as search fields.

Slow Performance:  The result of unwanted add-ons can be slower times when opening IE, slow browsing speed (it takes longer to view the pages you browse to), and unexpected behaviours such as crashes and program freezes.  Even worse, there are those additional items that can be malicious.  They function in such a way as to include links to sites that threaten the security of your online banking / financial information, they can lower your security settings making you vulnerable to further malicious attacks, or they can also result in annoying pop-ups that you can’t stop from appearing.  A good indication that you need to reset your IE to its original “factory-installed” state. Continue reading...

How Defrag Hard Drives to Speed Up Your PC

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One of the most effective ways of speeding up your PC is to defrag your hard drive. This article contains a full layout of how to dramatically improve the health and performance of your PC by using the PC TuneUp Maestro Defrag Disk utility. We will cover, in brief, preparing your PC by removing unwanted files. Next we will lay out step-by-step instructions for using the Disk Defrag tool. To wrap up, we will cover some additional tips and features such as frequency of defragmentation and automation of the Defrag tool. So, let’s begin.

Download free defrag tool

You can get lots of information on the subject of defragmentation in the following articles:

Best Practices

There are a few best practice recommendations to outline from the start.

Clean Up: Before you can organize, it is always best to do a quick clean up.  This is also true with your Hard Disk Drive (HDD).  If you stop to think about it, the defragment process works to organize scattered data caused from installing, modifying, and deleting files and software.  Before doing a defrag is the best time to do a quick removal of junk items including files in the recycle bin, temp files (unwanted items that are created as temporary storage), outdated cache items, log files, and more.  Continue reading...

Is an Upgrade to Windows 8 the Right Choice?

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Microsoft Windows has now released its next operating system – Windows 8.  There are many sophisticated functions and features.  In a nutshell, it is safe to say that this new operating system (OS) is a profound shift from previous versions.   In this article, we at CompuClever strive to best present some of the more technical aspects in ways that make sense in order to get a perspective and an insight that our readers can grasp without being washed out in a storm of nuances and complex technologies.  After this brief feature description, we will provide the observations that our experienced staff and technicians have noted when trying out the new OS for the first time.  Finally, we will provide our recommendation.

Quick Facts:

Here are some of the notable features:

  • Windows RT.  The “RT” stands for Runtime. 
Continue reading...