Does this tech wizard exist in SF?
September 11, 2014 8:08 PM Subscribe
All of my laptops inevitably, inexorably slow down noticeably, way before they should. I know this happens with all computers. I am reasonably tech-savvy. But my current ThinkPad slowed down in the first three months. I want someone to take my laptop, figure out what's making it slow (software and/or hardware), and fix it all. I just want my computer to not be slow. Does such a person exist in SF? Who are they, where can I find them, and how much do they charge?
3 months is a short time to notice such a slowdown. The first things I'd think of would be to check for software that's running in the background, consuming resources all the time, and issues with RAM, disk space and virtual memory.
I've got a 5 year old Dell that was top-of-the-line when originally purchased. Specs are actually still respectable today. I didn't notice significant slowing until my primary hard drive got close to filling up. I purchased a bigger one as a replacement, cloned the old one over to it, and things are nice and speedy again.
Maybe you don't have enough RAM, or else some of the RAM you do have is damaged. Enough RAM and enough disk space on fast disks (SSD is great here, and the prices are coming down), plus making sure you don't have too much running in the background are primary things you can focus on to improve your machine's performance.
posted by syzygy at 11:56 PM on September 11, 2014
I've got a 5 year old Dell that was top-of-the-line when originally purchased. Specs are actually still respectable today. I didn't notice significant slowing until my primary hard drive got close to filling up. I purchased a bigger one as a replacement, cloned the old one over to it, and things are nice and speedy again.
Maybe you don't have enough RAM, or else some of the RAM you do have is damaged. Enough RAM and enough disk space on fast disks (SSD is great here, and the prices are coming down), plus making sure you don't have too much running in the background are primary things you can focus on to improve your machine's performance.
posted by syzygy at 11:56 PM on September 11, 2014
Best answer: I have had very good experiences (in LA) with the highest-rated computer repair places on Yelp. Some places specialize more in hard drive recovery or other "dead computer" problems which isn't ideal so I would scan the reviews looking for general performance improvement.
posted by acidic at 8:19 AM on September 12, 2014
posted by acidic at 8:19 AM on September 12, 2014
Local computer store with good ratings. I don't have a specific recommendations, but this is an easy problem to fix. Anyone you find who is competent should be able to diagnose and fix it.
(It's probably malware.)
posted by cnc at 10:06 AM on September 12, 2014
(It's probably malware.)
posted by cnc at 10:06 AM on September 12, 2014
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posted by kagredon at 9:04 PM on September 11, 2014