It’s a familiar problem for anyone with an older computer: a PC may run lightning-fast and smooth when it’s new, but over time it starts coughing up unusual error messages and unidentifiable icons appear on the taskbar.
If the computer also starts getting slower at the same time as well, then it’s time for a spring cleaning.
’When any computer is used under normal circumstances, a certain volume of garbage data is automatically produced, ’ says Harald Goerl, a professor for operating systems and computer architecture at the Bundeswehr University in Munich, Germany. Goerl nevertheless sees no need for routine clean-ups.