One of the most common repair symptoms we see at Small Dog is “My computer is slow.” Slowness can have many different causes, and it’s not always easy to figure out which one it is. However, it is also important to understand that a certain amount of software performance degradation over time is normal and expected.
Every time you use a computer or other device, its operating system is modified. You may not always be able to see it, but most OSes have many background processes that keep logs of system errors, even invisible errors, and other types of data that it can use for troubleshooting. If you open an application and it crashes, it’s a pretty safe bet that a line of text was added to a log file somewhere on your computer.
Installing applications on a computer or downloading files to it also will have a tiny impact on performance and system stability. Each impact is typically negligible, but over several years, it can add up and create noticeable slowness. This is not something that can ever be fully eliminated by an operating system, due to the basic principle that as the complexity of a software system increases, with no change in hardware, the performance will always decrease. The phenomenon is similar to the fact that if a vehicle has a small amount of weight added to it, it will require slightly more fuel in order to travel the same distance as before.
There is a common misconception that computers can easily be “cleaned up” to eliminate software performance issues. It is true that in some cases there are startup items that can be disabled or storage space freed if it is almost full, but in most cases the performance issues are so deeply embedded into the system that the only real solution is to erase the computer, reinstall the operating system, and restore the critical applications and data.
I personally do a full restore of my operating system at least twice per year, even if my computer is not having any problems, as I want to be sure that it is running as efficiently as it can. You can do this on your own Mac by following Apple’s instructions here or we can perform this service at any Small Dog location for $45. As always, make sure you have a full backup of any important data before attempting to perform any repairs or maintenance.