CustomPCMAX: Designing your next Gaming PC.
CustomPCMAX: Designing your next Gaming PC.
Computer Maintenance
Below are some helpful links to programs and drivers, to help you keep your PC running smoothly. Please contact us via email or in the forums if you have any question about any of this.
Check back as we will keep this page updated with new and useful information.
Virus and Spyware Scanners
AVG Free Edition Home Page: http://free.grisoft.com/ww.homepage Link to download: http://www.grisoft.cz/filedir/inst/avg_free_stf_en_8_100a1295.exe AVG Free is a pretty decent AV scanner that recieves constant updates on virus definitions. Might not be the "strongest" out there, but I personally use it and have never had issues with viruses. Small memory foot print too, so it shouldn't kill your PCs performance, either.
Lavasoft Ad Aware Free Home Page: http://www.lavasoftusa.com/products/ad_aware_free.php Link to download: Click here This is a strong scanner and will find most everything on your PC. The only problem with the "Free" version is it is not live "real-time" scanning. So, this requires you to "run" the scanner on a regular basis. But, it works good, so it isn't a bad addition to your PCs arsenol.
Avast! Free Edition Avast is another great anti-virus software that has a very good free edition. It gets plenty of updates and has a very thorough scanner. Home Page: http://www.avast.com/ Link to Download: Click Here |
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Computer Maintenance
CCleaner Home Page: http://www.ccleaner.com/ Highly recommended, to keep the "cobwebs" out of your PC. CCleaner is a freeware system optimization and privacy tool. It removes unused files from your system - allowing Windows to run faster and freeing up valuable hard disk space. It also cleans traces of your online activities such as your Internet history. But the best part is that it's fast (normally taking less than a second to run) and contains NO Spyware or Adware!
Tweaknow Registry Cleaner Home Page: http://www.tweaknow.com/products.html Link to download: Click Here This excellent freeware utility makes the potentially daunting prospect of cleaning your Windows Registry safe and simple. The interface is sparse and straightforward, and most users will probably only need the Scan and Remove buttons. |
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Driver Updates
ATI Video Card Driver Updates Webpage: http://ati.amd.com/support/driver.html Enter your system information and download the appropriate drivers. Nvidia Video Card Driver Updates Webpage: http://www.nvidia.com/Download/index.aspx?lang=en-us Enter your system information and download the appropriate drivers. Instructions on how to install new video card drivers. After downloading the appropriate drivers (see above):
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Utilities
CPU-Z Home Page: http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php Link to Download: Here All this does is scans your mobo, CPU and ram and informs of some of the basic information about it. It can be useful to identify what parts are in your PC, so you can get proper updates or help you pick upgrades. GPU-Z Home Page: http://www.techpowerup.com/gpuz/ Link to Download: Here This is the same as CPU-Z above, except GPU-Z focuses on your graphic card. It can be helpful when trying to determine what chipset your graphics card has.
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SpeedTest Home Page: http://www.speedtest.net/ There is actually nothing to download for this. What this does, through the above website, is it measures the speed of your upload and download speed of your internet connection. This can be helpful if you are trying to figure out if your internet provider is actually providing what they say they are. It is also helpful for troubleshooting.
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