Any computer that has been around for a year or more
will likely suffer a slowdown, a problem that can either be remedied by some
of the tricks in the ???Hard Disk??? section later in this chapter, or by a thorough
cleansing and complete reinstallation of the operating system (see ???Install
Windows Vista??? in Chapter 1).
So, if you??™re wondering how much faster your PC will be if you replace your
2.2 Ghz chip with a 2.4 Ghz chip, the answer is: don??™t even bother unless
someone else is paying for it.
242 | Chapter 5: Performance
If you feel that your system isn??™t adequately cooled, don??™t be afraid to add
more fans, but beware: do it wrong, and you could actually make things
worse. For instance, you need to consider airflow when installing and orienting
fans; if the power supply, for instance, exhausts air through the vent in
the back of your PC, it must pull it in through the vent near your processor??™s
heatsink. So, make sure you orient the CPU fan so the airflow is as
smooth as possible.
Most fans in modern PCs connect directly to special plugs on your motherboard,
and are activated when internal thermometers (thermocouples)
detect too high a temperature; these typically do a good job of moderating
their cooling duties so that they don??™t produce too much noise. But you may
have to tinker with your BIOS settings to make your PC cooler (which can,
by itself, improve performance), even if it means a little more noise from
your box.
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