PC cleaners and speedup software.

[Dan/Panther]

I see these ads all the time for FREE download for PC registry cleaners and speed up software, but everytime I download and run the scan, it tells me whats wrong and then wants a lot of money to fix the problems. Many say free sofware, is their really any download to fix PC problems that works, and is safe, and doesn't cost an arm and a leg ?
D/P

[AE_Collector]

Yeah,don't you love that! FREE DOWNLOAD but after you take the time to download it all it does is tell you how many hundreds or thousands of problems your computer has and that they can all be fixed for the low price of $xx.xx.

Terry

[benhutcherson]

Spybot S&D, as well as AdAware, are both good programs and are also truly free for consumers. I use both programs regularly, as one will often catch something that the other misses.

http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html

http://www.lavasoft.com/products/ad_aware_free.php

[bellsystemproperty]

You can always switch to Linux, and Linux does not get viruses. It works on any computer. Linux can be harder to use and does not work with all Windows programs.
http://www.ubuntu.com/
Still it is a good operating system. My 794 C*NET exchange runs on Linux because Linux is so reliable. This website probably runs on Linux.

[baldopeacock]

I've been using Registry Mechanic,  from PCTools, downloaded  after researching the various programs for the purpose.   Reviews are positive, and it works quite well.   I chose to buy the thing after trying the freebie download, and I was pleased with the results.    Performance improved dramatically.

I'll renew it when it runs out.  It was $30 for a one year license, and I think the results were well worth it.   Some so-called registry cleaners are scams, this one isn't.   Far as I know, PCTools has a pretty good reputation.

[Dan/Panther]

I read today that "FinallyFast.com", Is a scam.
D/P

[gpo706]

Ubuntu is a good platform, nobody hacks it as its not worth their while.

I run my laptop on it, when I reformat my PC I'm saying a big F-off to Gates

[Dennis Markham]

Dan, I found this program to be decent and free.  They have a version that you pay for but the free version will check out your hard drive rather quickly and you can then quarantine and delete any unwanted files.

http://www.superantispyware.com/

It's called SuperAntispyware

[Dan]

I agree with Dennis. I use his program on mine.

[Wallphone]

I use AVG, Spybot S&D, and I paid for Registry Mechanic a few years ago when I got a virus. Registry Mechanic got rid of the virus and I can still use it but after a year you can't get updates. I just used Malwarebytes.org on my wife's computer yesterday for a virus she got from a pop-up. I used to use Ad-Aware until they started putting pop-ups on my computer trying to sell me stuff. How ironic that Ad-Aware would have pop-ups. > http://www.lavasoftsupport.com/index.php?showtopic=25237 <
I have used Superantispyware before on my daughter's computer and it cleaned out a bunch of garbage but if I remember correctly, it took forever to run a scan. It would be best to set it to run late at night on nights that I don't have my AVG set to run.
Using the programs that I have seems to speed up the computer by clearing out Temp files and cookies you don't need.
Dougpav

[baldopeacock]

I read today that "FinallyFast.com", Is a scam.
D/P

If I run across some much promoted software remedy I usually Google it - something like "finallyfast.com scam" ...  if I don't find a bunch of complaints it's probably a good sign.

[Dan/Panther]

Thank you everyone, I'm currently checking each one.
D/P

[AE_Collector]

Thank you everyone, I'm currently checking each one.
D/P

Update us once you are done. I have Spybot and Adaware on my computers as well. With the free versions, I don't think that they can be scheduled to run automatically, you have to manually run them. I have C-CLeaner as well and it can be sceduled, or at least it will run each time you restart your computer as does AVG antivirus.

Terry

[Dan/Panther]

So far I've downloaded an used the program Dennis mentioned. It found 781 registry and cookie errors that were potential threats.
It took 5 minutes to download and 20 minutes to run the complete scan and clean.
D/P

[Wallphone]

Twenty minutes isn't bad for a Superantispyware scan. When I scanned my daughter's computer, she had three Hard Drives so maybe that is why it took so long.
In reading this thread I was surprised that AVG wasn't mentioned more than it was. It can scan emails and the nice thing is when you Google something it will tell you if the site is a trusted one or not. There are many that you wouldn't want to go to, so beware. I used to use Limewire for music downloads, but never again. About a year ago I opened a music file and a pop-up asked if I wanted to upgrade my Microsoft Media Player. I surely wished that I hadn't pressed YES. It was the nastiest virus that I could not get rid of. Luckily I could save all my files to disk before I re-formatted. That took an enormous amount of time to get my computer back to normal. Now if I want to hear a song I go to You Tube.
Dougpav