Fix Mac slowdowns

Does your Mac seem to be getting slower over time? This probably isn't your imagination. As you use your computer, a number of factors can gradually lead to poorer performance. Things slow down as your CPU becomes busier with more tasks, your RAM fills up with open programs and documents, and your hard drive runs out of free space. In addition, individual programs, such as your Web browser and your e-mail client, occasionally need some tweaks to maintain peak performance. Luckily, it's easy to solve most slowdowns and restore much of your Mac's original pep.

Web browsing is too slow

When Web pages take a long time to load, or when your browser becomes generally sluggish, you may suspect that your Internet connection is too slow. That's possible, but if you have a reliable broadband connection, the problem is more likely something you can easily solve. Try these tips.

Quit and Relaunch Web browsers tend to be resource hogs, and if you visit lots of media-rich sites, this effect can increase over time. Quit and relaunch your browser occasionally (at least once a day) to speed up browsing and reduce your browser's impact on other programs.

Close Tabs and Windows Do you keep lots of tabs or windows open? Each one uses RAM, and some of them can also bog down your processor, even when you're not actively viewing that page. If your browser's performance is poor, try limiting yourself to six or eight open Web sites at a time.

Try a Different Browser There's no easy answer to the question "Which browser is fastest?" It depends on your Mac's processor, which version of OS X you're running, and which version of a given browser you're using. What you're doing—for example, playing a Flash game or looking at a CSS-rich site—matters, too. My advice is to consider trying a different browser if yours feels too slow. You may get the best results from Apple's Safari 3, Mozilla's Firefox 2, The Omni Group's OmniWeb, or Opera Software's Opera, depending on the circumstances.

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