Everyone likes shiny new things, and technology is no exception. Visuals are an undeniable draw, and new versions of Windows exploit this. Windows 10 uses transparency, blur, and animation to impress its users; yet, some of these features comes at a price of system efficiency. Every visual advancement takes its toll on performance, reducing the benefit from upgrading. In an age of form-over-function, it’s up to the user to tweak their system and achieve the best results.
In Windows 10, there are two main areas which allow users to adjust the graphics and performance tradeoff. First is the “Themes” tab, accessible by typing “Themes” into the Start Menu and selecting the first result. From this screen, either select “Colors” on the side, or click “Color” from the main panel. Scroll down and make sure “Transparency Effects” is set to off.
Second, those fortunate enough to possess administrator access have an alternate options menu, with more granular control. To access this, type “appearance and performance” into the Start Menu and select the first result. This will prompt for administrator access; log in if necessary and agree to run as administrator. From the menu which appears, unselect all checkboxes except the ones absolutely necessary. Users may want to consider leaving the following items checked: Show thumbnails instead of icons, Enable Peek, Show window contents while dragging, Smooth edges of screen fonts. Once finished, click “Apply,” and then “OK.”
Together, these tweaks, when paired with each other, may provide significant improvement—if not in resource consumption, then in responsiveness. Turning off intensive effects will increase the speed of the system, while reducing the delay between user actions and their processed reactions. Until companies return to a focus on functionality, these types of tweaks are the best way to speed up one’s PC.
Author: Grey Ruessler, IT User Services
References:
Microsoft. (2016, August 31). Optimize windows for better performance. Retrieved from https://support.microsoft.com/en-us/help/15055/windows-7-optimize-windows-better-performance