Many of you have probably seen the various ads on TV about
DoubleMySpeed.com and MaxMySpeed.com and all these other free to use softwares
that claim to speed up your machine in minutes. As a technician, I am skeptical
of any service that claims to solve all of your computer problems, especially
if it says “in minutes”. Before I get into whether the program does as it
claims, allow me to address the fact that the issues these ads describe, such
as slow performance and Blue Screens, are NOT "tell tale signs of a
virus" as the ad claims. Many times this is the result of hardware
failure, incorrect/out of date drivers, and even reputable programs that simply
aren't compatible with your machine or were improperly installed. Sometimes it
can even be as simple as installing a Windows Update to correct the problem.
Allow me to also briefly address their categorization of "taking more than
three seconds for email to load". First of all - that question is so vague
it becomes inapplicable. The question doesn't take into consideration how the
user is accessing their email; through a program such as Outlook or if they
are using a web based email. This question also doesn't take into
consideration factors such as hardware, program (Outlook/browser) version, OS
version, and/or internet connection speeds. And if this is a company email account, well that opens up a whole different can of questions.
Now, being that I prefer to support my claims rather than go
on a blind, rage-fueled rant, I downloaded and ran the MyCleanPC program on a
new computer which was just purchased today. After running the scan, MyCleanPC
found over 2000 problems with my brand new computer. How is this possible? Well
- let's take a look at what MyCleanPC considers to be critical issues which can "cause permanent damage to your
computer."
What the - My web history? How is this a problem? Okay,
clearing your web history IS a basic step in boosting system performance, but 1.
This isn't worth $39.98, and 2. This would be more useful in 1997 than for
current systems with decent hard drives.
Okay, a fragmented drive. This is probably a result of transferring all my data, running all the Windows updates, and the number of bloatware programs I removed from the
manufacturer. This is mildly useful, but again, any user can do this themselves
for free! And look at this - it's
counting every single fragmented file individually. This is clearly to boost
the number of "problems" with your computer - a basic marketing tactic
to scare you into purchasing their software. And here's something interesting:
All these ads you're seeing are all from the same company.
That's a little disturbing.
My systems were pretty tied up backing up data from a couple customer's hard drives, so I decided to look into this further. I looked through some of my old computers and managed to find an old system that had two problems; 1.) It was infected....Horribly Infected and 2.) The hard drive was dying (bad sectors found). I ran the MaxMySpeed program and didn't see a
single thing about a virus. No mention of the Hard Drive's current health. In fact, the results were pretty much the same as the one I got from the first computer. It seems that this program is just a glorified Wizard Tool for some basic steps in speeding up a machine.
But just as you bring your car to a mechanic for simple oil changes, computer
maintenance and tune ups should always be performed by a trained specialist as
they can tell if there is something else wrong with your computer. Kinda like
the time my mechanic found a wrench stuck in my serpentine belt. Good
times....Good times...
IN SHORT:
I would not call this a scam - but I would call it a waste
of money. If you are experiencing Blue Screens, slow performance, and
repetitive and odd error messages - call a tech.
Call 617-396-7044 or visit us at www.MooreITHelp.com
