Tool Less
Does having less tool bars increase your speed?
I heard that the less tool bars you have on your browser page means faster response times when clicking on a new page of data.I have five total:
1.Navigation
2.Yahoo
3.Stumble upon (which is required if you want to use it)
4Roboform
5 Norton (Phishing protection)
Yes, as with any software, less is better. That said, most toolbars impact how long it takes for you to start up and shutdown your browser, and less so actually browsing (the exception is phishing... see the last paragraph for more on that).
Keep in mind that most of these toolbars put hooks (known as "add-ons") into your browser (Internet Explorer, Firefox, etc.). Add-ons take up memory and have a distinct potential to conflict with each other and cause memory leaks (where over time, the browser and all its add-ons keep increasing the amount of memory dedicated to it).
If your browser is slow, the first thing you can do is disable the toolbars and see if that helps. In IE: Tools -> Internet Options -> Programs -> "Manage Add-Ons": Try disabling all toolbars at first to see if that helps. Then re-enable one at a time to determine which one has the problem (it could be that each one running alone are fine, but two or more running together may be the problem, so enable only one at first and then when each passes their "alone" test, enable them in combination to see if two conflict with each other). In Firefox: Tools -> Options -> Main (tab) -> "Manage add-ons" It's the same - just enable/disable as necessary.
If that doesn't help, the options get more murky. Certainly upgrading to the latest version of the toolbar and applying all patches can help (though it can also cause other problems). Also, I tend to use a lot of tabs all at once and never shutdown my browser until it crashes or gets extremely slow. If you are like me (and get annoyed at how slow it's going), definitely restart the browser every few days or so. If your browser is slow even when it's first started AND after you upgraded and disabled ALL add-ons (not just the toolbars, but the others as well), then you may want to look at your internet connection. You can test it here: http://internetfrog.com/mypc/speedtest/. Personally, I had such a problem with add-ons in IE that I've given up attempting to isolate the problem (after doing the above and much much more) and now use Firefox without issue.
Remember, the goal is to "isolate" the problem so don't make more than one change at a time. If you do find that a certain toolbar is a problem, see if there is an upgrade or look on their FAQ/Support pages to see if others are having that specific problem. It may be a simple setting change or a minor patch that could resolve it. Or, as in my experience with the Yahoo toolbar, it could be a known problem that takes them a year or more to resolve. Also, know that the browser maker may also publish a fix or incorporate into a newer version, so consider upgrading the browser software.
Finally, and not to pick on a specific vendor, but phishing detection is notoriously slow (regardless of who makes it). I suspect turning that off (even if you keep the toolbar to do occasional spot checks) will go a long way in speeding up your surfing. Just know that if you do that, you'll need to be extra careful to not go to any site that's suspicious (that means hovering over links to make sure the URL is what the link title says it is), avoiding filling out forms on most site, cleaning up avoiding cookies, etc. It's a big responsibility to be your own watch dog so consider the trade-offs of not using it. I'm a motorcycle rider and a common motto is: "Never ride beyond your limits" (which means, don't get yourself into something you aren't capable of getting out of). I feel the same way about using computers and certainly IT security. Try to know your limits and stay within them (or at least near them). You'll be much happier that way. And if your limits are too, uhh, limiting look to expand them (I'm constantly doing that, and I've been an IT professional for over 15 years).
Good luck!
Erin
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