I spend a lot of time, eight to twelve hours per day, online and so even small efficiencies can make a difference to my life. Over the past few years I have tried many options to accelerate my progress, highlights of which are given below. I hope that these tips will also help you in saving time online and in having a better computer.
Best Tips to Save Time Online and Increase Productivity
1. Upgrade Your Computer
Surfing the web may not sound like a demanding task, but modern web browsers have a lot to do. In addition to displaying static content on screen, they have to handle dozens of plugins from Flash to Java, while downloading content from multiple sources and processing audio, video and 3D animation.
As a result today’s browsers are hungry beasts, with every tab requiring additional RAM. Our work machines have all been maxed out to their limit and some days we wish they had more.
Multicore processors are well suited to handling multiple tabs and so this is another area where you don’t want to cut too many corners. Any mid-to-high end i3, i5 or i7 processor should be fine, but avoid stripping down to Pentium, Atom or Celeron processor unless you’re really on a tight budget (in which case you should buy more RAM first).
Also Check :
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2. Uninstall Unnecessary Applications
Few months ago, I upgraded to a swanky latest i7 processor laptop thinking that it would run like a dream. On day one, it felt great, much faster than my previous i5, however, by the end of the first month the difference was far less noticeable.
So, I used Soluto, a clever Windows boot up manager, to see what was taking so long and stopped many rarely used applications that were trying to preload when Windows starts. This saved a couple of minutes per boot (down from four minutes to two) and stopped my new machine from feeling like an old one. On older machines the time savings are even more significant and unlike hardware upgrades, this solution is free.
3. Uninstall Unnecessary Browser Plugins
In the same way that Windows can be reduced to a crawl by unnecessary applications, your browser’s performance can be hampered by excessive extensions, toolbars, add-ons and plugins. No doubt some come in handy, but it is worth uninstalling those you do not use regularly since a fully loaded browser can easily have its load time increased from 5 to 25 seconds.
4. Clear the Browser Cache from Your Computer
When you surf the web, every icon, picture, ad, text block and video on each page you visit is cached by your browser i.e. quietly downloaded and stored locally, in case you want to see it again. Over time, this adds up to thousands of files, many of which are no longer required. It takes almost as much effort for your computer to keep track of a small file as a large one, so clearing bloated caches can make a difference.
Also Check : HOW TO : Remove Web History, Cache and Cookies from iPhone
5. Defrag Your Disk Drive
Because it takes similar effort for your computer to keep track of a small file and a large one, it is much more efficient to have a small number of large files than a large number of small ones on your hard drive.
These days most operating systems come shipped with defragmentation scheduling software pre-installed to all you have to do it tell it to run overnight, once a week to keep your data optimised.
Please note that this advice is for computers with conventional disc drives and may not apply to SSD drives, which work differently.
Also Check : HOW TO : Defrag a Computer Hard Disk
6. Upgrade Your Internet Connection
Often it is not your computer which makes the web feel slow, but your internet connection itself. Most of the UK’s broadband networks have been upgraded over the past couple of years and so many people can now upgrade to a faster package than they’re on.
Even without the indulgence of a high speed fibre optic line, which are great when you can get them, most people in the UK can achieve actual download speeds of 11 to 20 Mbps through a BT telephone line, which is plenty fast enough for most users.
Further, gamers, homeworkers and other heavy users can often pay a little more to receive a prioritised line. This means that your traffic is prioritised over other users at busy periods (i.e. when it matters) avoiding that feeling that the whole web is slowing down when your fellow countrymen (and women) go online in unison.
Further, if your current provider doesn’t offer the service you are after, there are plenty of alternatives to choose from. Beyond BT, you can choose from Virgin, Sky, TalkTalk, Plusnet (a BT subsidiary, but with more competitive packages and potentially better service) or any of the mobile phone operators.
The choice can be baffling so, if in doubt, try a broadband comparison site such as Uswitch.com. Not only do they provide the lowdown on the packages and prices of offer, but you can start off with a broadband speed test to see whether your connection can be improved.
These tips are what worked for me to save time online while working and helped me in increasing my productivity. Feel free to share your productivity tips in the comments section below.