Want to increase your computer speed without spending money for a faster processor or more RAM? It might be somewhat time-consuming, the simplest way to do it is by using a disk defragmenter.

Let's start by explaining how data is stored on the hard drive.

Your hard drive is a large disk-shaped device. When you add new programs to the hard drive, the data is stored on little chunks on the disk. These data chunks are scattered around the entire hard drive. When you open programs, each chunk must be read individually. It takes a long time for your computer to find each data chunk, so this increases the time it takes for the program to open.

When you defrag, the chunks of data for each program are grouped together. Since the computer doesn't have to search for chunks of data on every section of the disk, this saves time in opening programs.

Although the end result of defragging your hard drive increases the speed of your computer, there are some difficulties in trying this.

First, the process is time consuming. Expect to leave your computer idle for at least three hours. Try to find a time when you can do this, such as during classes. You can try it at night, as long as you don't mind the loud noise the program makes.

Also, make sure your screen saver is turned off before you begin the process. Each time your screensaver opens while your computer is defragging, the program will restart back to zero.

To disable your screen saver, right-click on the desktop and click on "Properties." Then, click on the tab that says "Screen Saver." Under the pull-down menu, click on "(none)." It should be the top choice. Then click "OK." Also, close any other programs you have open before you begin.

Ready to defrag? Go to the Start menu, go to "Programs," then "Accessories," then "System Tools," and click on "Disk Defragmenter." Make sure the program is set to defrag drive C, and click "OK."

If you want to be entertained, you can click on "Show Details," which will show the different squares of data being moved. Each square is color-coded, to show data which has been moved, is in the process of being moved or will be moved.

Although there is a pause button, I wouldn't recommend using it. I tried pausing the process about halfway through, and bad things happened. My computer froze and would not reboot without the system disk. To avoid this problem, just be patient and let the defragmenter run its course.

Perhaps the master at defragging is Chris Rush (freshman-architectural engineering). Rush has been trying night after night to defrag his computer. Using Windows Task Manager, he set his computer to defrag once a night. Yet the program would never go past 5 percent before returning to zero. The solution? Close out all the programs in the System Tray, located at the lower right of the screen, and restart your computer. For advice on how to do that, refer to last week's column, which can be found at the Collegian's Web site.

Also, instead of setting Task Manager to defrag automatically, do it yourself. Often Task Manager is unreliable, and it will say your computer has been defragged when it really hasn't. Next week, as promised, I will discuss ScanDisk and other error-detecting software.

Question: The Microsoft Networking prompt calls for a user name and password before it will complete startup. How do I delete this thing? I have been trying to figure it out for three years.

Answer: This problem is somewhat complex since it involves changing both Microsoft Networking and the Windows password setting. Despite the complexity, it is not that difficult to fix. First, click on “My Computer” on the desktop of your computer. Then, open up “Control Panel.” Once there, open “Network.” Under “Primary Network Logon,” change the setting to “Windows Logon.” Then, click “OK.” Continue by restarting your computer. When Windows starts again, it will ask for a password. Click “OK” without typing in a password. Once you do this, you havc stored a blank password in Windows, and the password screen will not come up again the next time you boot up.