As any computer owner can attest, dealing with an unreliable computer is as painful an experience as any visit to the dentist, DMV or post office during the holiday season. For better or worse we have grown accustomed to sending and receiving information at such speed that anything impeding that process becomes almost too much to deal with.
Whether it’s been on our computer or a computer at the office we have all experienced the pains of waiting for a simple request to be fulfilled. With impatience mounting we swear we will do something about the speed as soon as we have the opportunity because the delays have become unbearable. Unfortunately those self-made promises usually go unfulfilled and we find ourselves in the same predicament the next time we try to log on.
While we may think the only damage being caused by a slow computer is to our blood pressure, the truth is we are also subjecting our computers to a deadly computer disease known as fragmentation. It is this disease that is often the root of the problem when it comes to our slow computer dilemma.
For computer owners who are experiencing long waits in logging on, delays in loading applications or pages, browsing the internet, and slow email or file retrieval the source of our frustration can typically be pinpointed as fragmentation.
Fragmentation occurs due to the manner in which our hard drive saves files. Throwing reason out the window, our hard drive simply stores information in the order it is saved. This contiguous manner in saving files isn’t concerned about anything but space. There is absolutely no thought in organization or efficiency.
By storing files one after the other our hard drive neglects to recognize the common practice of editing and deleting files. This is where the problem of fragmentation is born. When we retrieve a file, make changes, and then try and resave the updated file it will no longer fit as one piece of information in the same space. Our hard drive fills the original space and then cuts the remaining information and saves it in the next available space.
This practice creates fragmented files and literally litters our hard drive with pieces of disjoined files. When we try to retrieve one of those files at a later time it can take our computer a while to scan the hard drive for all the pieces that comprise that one file. It’s almost like taking that needle in a haystack, breaking the needle in several pieces, scattering those fragments back into the haystack and then trying to find all of them the next time you need the needle.
It is important to understand saved files aren’t just our creation. Our computers save thousands of temporary and cache files every time we’re on the web so the danger of fragmentation exists on every computer. Left untreated, fragmentation will not only slow down our computer’s performance, it could lead to loss of information and a complete crash of our hard drive.
While fragmentation could potentially end your computer’s life there is a simple solution that can prevent such an occurrence. By installing defragmentation software computer owners can prevent the damaging effects of fragmentation and keep their computers running smoothly and efficiently. Defrag software works by cleaning your hard drive of fragmented files and joining the pieces of a file and saving it in one space. Through this process your computer is capable of operating at its optimal speed and delivering your requests in a timely and reliable manner.
The best part of defrag software is it’s a one time installation. There are no subscription fees or monthly payments to protect your computer. It’s as easy as heading to your local computer retailer and asking for defragmentation software. For those who value their computers and the information stored on them life without Defrag is a dangerous proposition.
