If your Mac’s running at a snail’s pace, there are a few simple things you can do to speed it up! My Macbook’s only a few years old but already I’m starting to notice a decrease in performance — windows opening slower, startup and shut down taking forever, applications lagging, etc. I decided it was time to give my trusty Macbook a tune-up. Below, I have complied a list of simple things you can do to speed up your Mac.
Remove Startup Items
Remove unneeded startup items. Click the apple, go to System Preferences, and click on Accounts. Go to the Login Items tab, and remove any applications that you don’t want to launch every time you login. Do this by highlighting the application and clicking the minus button.
Shrink The Dock & Remove ‘Other’ Applications
Shrink the size of the dock in System Preferences under dock. Also deselect Animate Opening Applications.
Remove any unused applications under Other. Open the item and there should be a “Remove” option.
Turn Off Widgets or Disable Dashboard
Turn off unused widgets in the dashboard. Click F12, and uncheck any widgets you don’t regularly use. You can also completely remove the dashboard from your Mac. I never use my dashboard and I dislike having applications running that I don’t use or need, so I opted to remove it from my computer. Launch Terminal and then enter the following commands…
To turn Dashboard off:
defaults write com.apple.dashboard mcx-disabled -boolean YES To turn Dashboard on:
defaults write com.apple.dashboard mcx-disabled -boolean NO To restart the Dock after making either change for it to take effect:
killall Dock Delete Unused Files and Cashe
Delete unused applications and files to clear space on your computer. Make sure to use an application such as AppCleaner to remove applications.
Download a maintenance application such as OnyX to clear out your computer’s cache. (Note: Make sure you download the correct version for your OS)
Run activity monitor
Check what programs are running by opening your activity monitor in the utilities folder. Check to see what applications are using the most memory. Turn off any you aren’t using.
Optimize Your Laptop
If you’re on a laptop, check the Options under Energy Saver in System Preferences to make sure the processor performance is on the highest setting.
I'm Jay Willingham. My main focus is to help you make better grades, more friends and more money during college by showing you how to develop study skills through new technology.
One Comment
Thanks for the tips! I have way too many apps on my computer, so I’m definitely going to give AppCleaner a try. I also have a bad habit of leaving my mac on for weeks. Which really slows it down. If I use these tips and remember to restart my computer, then it should be running fast once again. Thanks.