While the basic configuration of the display computer outlined in Chapter 2 “Installation” is sufficient in many cases, some computers require additional work to achieve best possible performance. This section provides some general hints and pointers on how to proceed.
DEDICATED COMPUTER If you intend to use a computer primarily as a WATCHOUT display computer,
it probably makes sense to re-format the hard disk and then install only Windows, required device drivers and WATCHOUT. This avoids many prob- lems caused by various pieces of software that are often pre-installed on computers, or that may have accumulated over time.
◆ NOTE: You don’t have to re-format your hard disk in order to use WATCHOUT. This is an advanced procedure that helps in obtaining the best possible performance. You can apply all other adjustments described in this appendix even if you choose not to dedicate the computer to WATCHOUT.
Formatting the Disk and Installing Windows
To prepare your computer in this way, first make sure that the hard disk doesn’t contain any important information. You should perform a backup if you’re unsure about the content of the hard disk. Then start the computer from the Windows installation disk, and follow the on-screen instructions. Early on in the installation procedure, you will be asked where to install Windows. As part of this, you will get the opportunity to remove the existing partitions and create new ones, which you should do.
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For best performance, you should create a smaller (50 GB or so) partition for Windows, and any other applications you may want to install. This partition will become the C: drive. Leave the remainder of the disk unformatted for now. Proceed with installing Windows on the newly created, small partition. Once that’s done, install required device drivers (graphics or sound card drivers, etc), and perform any additional adjustments mentioned in this appendix.
Installing WATCHOUT Before installing WATCHOUT, you need to format the remaining space of the hard disk. Choose Start > Programs > Administrative Tools > Computer Management, then click Disk Management in the list.
▲ IMPORTANT: On the last page of the “New Partition Wizard”, choose the NTFS file system with an “Allocation Unit Size” of 32K. Generally, it is OK to also select “Perform a Quick Format”.
Right-click on the Unallocated space and choose “New Parti- tion”. Proceed with creating a primary partition of the maximum size.
Specifying a larger than usual allocation size greatly reduces the tendency of disk fragmentation, at the cost of a small amount of wasted disk space. Given the fact that most WATCHOUT media files tend to be rather large, this should not have any practical disadvantages.
Once the formatting is complete, the new partition will appear as the D: disk drive. Create a WATCHOUT folder on this disk, and install WATCHOUT to this disk using the Installer, as described on page 17. When given the opportunity to specify where to install WATCHOUT, chose the newly created WATCHOUT folder on the D: drive.
GENERAL PERFORMANCE The performance of a PC is often degraded by numerous small programs and
services running in the background. Such programs consume considerable system resources, and may serve no purpose on a WATCHOUT display computer. You can enhance performance by identifying and removing, or disabling, such programs.
Identifying Background Programs To identify any unwanted background applications or services, first close all open windows then click the Start button and choose Programs > Accessories > System Tools > System Information. Select “Software Environment, Running Tasks” in the list to the left. The list to the right displays all currently running programs (see illustration on page 198). Look specifically for tasks whose path is anything but “c:\windows\system...”.
To see which programs that are automatically started, choose “Software Environment, Startup Programs” in the list to the left.
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◆ HINT: The names listed in the Running Tasks and Startup Programs lists are often cryptic, and may be hard to associate with a particular program. In this case, looking at the path leading to the program’s file can provide a valuable hint. In particular, if the program is installed under “c:\Program Files\...”, you should be able to learn more by looking inside its installation folder.
Removing Background Programs Once you have identified any undesired background programs, you should either remove or disable them. If you know you won’t need a background program, remove it from the computer.
To remove a program, open the “Programs and Features” control panel, choose the program, and click “Uninstall”. Follow the subsequent instructions on how to remove or uninstall the program.
If you’re uncertain about removing the program, or if the program doesn’t appear in the “Programs and Features” control panel, you may instead choose to disable it. This can sometimes be done with configuration options in the program itself. Other programs don’t offer this capability, forcing you to either uninstall the program or disable it using other means.
Background programs often identify themselves by an icon on the taskbar, in the lower right corner of the screen. Right-click such an icon to open its menu. Sometimes the menu includes a “Disable”, “Close” or “Do Not Load” item. It may include “Open”, “Configure” or “Properties” items that allow you to set various options, including the automatic loading of the program at start-up. After disabling a program in this way, restart the computer to verify that the program is no longer active. Some programs only allow you to disable them temporarily, and will then load again the next time you start the computer.
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Another way to locate and disable startup programs is by using the System Configuration utility. To open this utility, click the Start button and choose Run. Enter “msconfig” into the Run dialog box. Click the “Startup” tab. You can turn off any undesired startup item by unchecking its checkbox.