Crash Proof Your Computer

Part 1
 
If you think your PC will stop crashing after you apply all the wisdom
contained in this article, hit the Back button now. Simply put, there's
no way to crash-proof a Windows PC.
 
You see, when Windows first came out, it was just another program that sat on top of DOS-- except it went on to take over the entire machine. When the operating system got much bigger with the advent of Win95, DOS continued to reside beneath it. Problem is, a 32-bit version of Windows, like Win95, sitting on top of MS-DOS is like John Candy sitting on a plastic tricycle. In both cases, crashes are inevitable.
 
But it'd be unfair to blame Microsoft for all of our PC crashes. Read
on.
 
 
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The best way to make a Windows PC crash infrequently is to keep it
lean. When you have some free time, perform a clean install of Windows. Then, only install the applications that you really use. Eliminating that which is unnecessary-- such as the game you no longer play or the freeware that wasn't as cool as you thought it'd be-- will cut down on software conflicts and system bloat. As an added benefit, your PC will run faster if the hard drive isn't full.
 
Once you find a stable configuration-- a selection of software and
hardware that won't constantly crash your system-- resist the temptation to mess around with anything. Every time you add new software to your computer, the likelihood of conflict-causing crashes increases. When you do add new software, back up your system first so that you can revert back to the old, stable configuration if trouble brews.
 
Above all, keep away from beta software. It's fun to be one of the
first people to tool around with a new product, but unfinished, buggy
applications can cause your system to crash more.
 
When using your computer, run as few programs as possible. My computer crashes when I start feeling drunk with power and run a silly number of cool applications simultaneously. On all but the most powerful computers, even if you just have Word, Netscape, and your email client open at one time, you're at risk for a crash.
 
If you like or need to have several applications open at once, add more RAM. One of the reasons computers crash when you have a bunch of applications open at once is that they run out of memory. For Windows computers, the RAM minimum sweet spot is between 32- and 64MB, remember the more the better - think about 128, 256, dream on and on.


 
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