ByKaran Bajaj Hitesh ..
Just like you, your devices need to be regularly checked for existing or potential problems. The issue is that many people tend to keep using their device without maintenance until an issue arises. Karan Bajaj & Hitesh Raj Bhagat show you how to keep your PC, MAC, iOS & Android in top shape.
Keep a check on heating
There can be several reasons for your device heating up. It could be due to a heavy game, an intensive process (Photoshop, video editing) and even due to a system antivirus scan at times. However, if your device is constantly running hot, it will affect performance and longevity. You should keep a check on the internal components to see what is causing your device to heat up. PC.
PC
HWMonitor (www.cpuid.com) provides information on the temperature of each component in your computer. It even shows you the minimum and maximum temperature recorded of each component for easy comparison. Typically, it will show you how fast your device fans are running — and you should be able to diagnose if any fans are blocked/not working.
MAC
If you don’t mind paying, then iStat Menus (US$ 9.99) is the best app available for temperature checks on OS X. However, if you are looking for a free option, check out VitalSigns (www.creationalstate. com). The app lets you add a widget in the sidebar of the Mac to keep an eye on system temperature.
Android
The free CPU Monitor app by GLGJing focusses on your phone’s processor. It shows the CPU temperature along with a graph curve of the changing temperature. The app even shows you details of which apps typically leads to a rise in temperature. If you like, you can set an alarm when a certain temperature is reached.
Move unnecessary files out
Over time, your device tends to collect a lot of junk files — these could include temporary files, residual files after app uninstallation, duplicates, log files and so on. These files occupy storage space in your device and often lead to your device slowing down due to lack of free space. It is recommended to regularly run a system cleaning software that gets rid of unwanted files/folders.
PC: Windows tends to have thousands of folders and files making it impossible to keep track of which folder is junk and which is useful. Using the free WinDirStat (https://windirstat.net) app, you can get a graphical view of your hard drive’s contents — this way it is easy to find out which folders and which type of files are taking up most space in your system and clean them accordingly. If you don’t want to go the manual way, get Atomic Cleaner (www. atomicware.co.uk) or CCleaner (www. piriform.com). Both have free versions that scan and clean your system of junk files and give you the option to properly uninstall programs without leaving any residual files.
MAC: OS X users who want to view their system’s disk usage in a graphical interface should get Disk Inventory X from www.derlien.com. The free app shows you a treemap view of various file types and they are colour-coded for easy identification. This makes it easy to access folders with junk files and clean them. If you want an app to clean up the system, CCleaner is available for MAC also and does a good job in cleaning junk files and uninstalling apps. However, if you don’t mind spending, we would recommend investing in Clean My Mac (get it from www.macpaw.com). It costs US$ 39.95 but does a thorough cleaning of your MAC and even detects and shows files and folders that have not been accessed for months.
ANDROID: Ever wondered how the storage on your Android device gets consumed? This is because each installed app takes space and keeps storing data on the phone for fast access when needed. Many Android devices come with a built-in system cleaner, but if you want a third-party app, get the free Clean Master app. Clean Master scans your Android system and installed apps for junk files and helps you quickly remove them.
IOS: There aren’t many options available for iOS cleaning because the OS typically takes care of this. However, you can still try a free app called Clean Doctor. It does not do an overall scan and clean but instead, it gives you the option to individually clean some sections. You can search and remove for duplicated photos and contacts, find and remove spam invitations in your calendar and clean the system cache of your iOS device (this only works if the internal storage space is less than 5GB).
Monitor your system
Device components work in conjunction with each other — this means that if one component Is not working properly, there can be a chain reaction leading to other issues. So how do you find out which component is acting up? That’s where system monitoring apps come into play — they provide detailed data about each component so that you can
keep track and detect anomalies easily.
PC: Rainmeter (www.rainmeter. net) is our recommendation for users looking for a free and customizable system monitor. The app lets you add widgets to your windows desktop for the component you wish to monitor (CPU, RAM, Disk, Network use). It even comes in a portable version that you can carry with you on a USB drive and use with any PC (no installation is required with the portable version, so this is useful for office PCs)
MAC: The built-in Activity Monitor on OS X is a powerful system monitor. However, if you want a third-party monitoring app, check out XRG (www.gauchosoft. com). This free app shows a floating window on your desktop with individual sections for CPU, GPU, hard drive, temperature and so on. Each section displays info in a graph, making it easy to understand.
Android: Android users can keep a check on their system resources using the free
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