Computer and Web Articles

Yes, the glass-like translucency effects you see in Vista are nice. But they come with a price: their graphical fanciness slows down your system.

If you’re not married to Vista’s Aero-glass effects, consider disabling them to see if they’ve been slowing your computer down. (If turning off the glassy effects doesn’t seem to improve your computer’s speed, just turn them right back on.)

To disable the effects:

1. Right click on an empty area of your desktop, then click Personalize.
2. Click Window Color and Appearance.
3. Uncheck the Enable Transparency box.
4. Click a color you’d like to use for your Start menu and taskbar (you’ll need a solid color now that your transparency effect is going away).
5. Click OK and try using your computer for a day or so.

Did turning off the glitzy glassy effects make a noticeable difference? If yes, that’s great! If no, simply return to the Window Color and Appearance area and re-check the box next to Enable Transparency.