Tips and Tricks to Speed Up Windows Vista

Most computer users consider Windows Vista to be the most visually appealing OS from Microsoft's wide range of previous OS platform versions.  Powered by Direct3D, the GUI (graphical user interface) of Windows Vista is full of stylish animated graphics and sleek transparencies.  These 3D-driven features give Windows Vista users an entertaining visual experience bundled with similar user-friendly functions found on previous versions of Microsoft Windows OS platforms.  While the minimum system requirements of Windows Vista will allow the OS to perform basic tasks, the animated graphics and 3D-driven visuals of Windows Vista are best suited for mid-high level hardware components.  Aside from a beefy processor (preferrably a dual core), we recommend going with at least 2GB of RAM to bring things up to spec.

Whether your just not ready to start upgrading your hardware, or just trying to squeeze out a bit more performance, listed below are some tips and tricks that will allow you to optimize your Windows Vista-based machine.

  1. Disable the transparency option. You can do this by right-clicking on an empty portion of the desktop, choosing the 'Personalize' option from the menu list, and subsequently clicking on the 'Windows Color and Appearance' from the selection. Afterwards, clear the check box labeled 'Enable Transparency' in order to disable it. Finally, click Ok.

  2. Disable the Sidebar. You can remove the Sidebar by right-clicking on the Sidebar, selecting the Properties option, and finally clicking on the 'Start Sidebar When Windows Starts' check box in case it is checked. Afterwards, click on Ok. At this point, you can immediately disable the Sidebar by right-clicking on it and selecting the Close Sidebar option from the pop-up menu list. In case you need the Sidebar back any time you are using your Windows Vista-based machine, just click on the Start button, key in "Sidebar", and press Enter.

  3. Disable some Windows Vista visual effects. You can do this by going to Control Panel, select the 'Performance and System Tools' icon, and selecting the 'Adjust Visual Effects' option. Afterwards, a window with a list of options will appear. You can choose the items you want to disable from this window by unchecking it with a click of the mouse.  These items include animations and fades among other visual effects. If you're not sure about the items you want to disable, just click on the 'Adjust For Best Performance' option found on the same window.

  4. Disable Aero (Windows Vista's default GUI theme) and choose another Windows Vista GUI theme. You can choose a different Windows Vista theme by right-clicking on the desktop, selecting Personalize, and subsequently clicking on the Windows Color and Appearance option from the menu list. Afterwards, you can access the list of Windows Vista themes by clicking on the 'Open Classic Appearance properties for more color options'.  This will initialize the Color Scheme list box.  It is from here that you can choose from other Windows Vista themes including Windows Vista Basic, Windows Classic, and Windows Standard.  Just choose an option from the list and click Ok.