I usually feel the urge to clean my keyboard when I’m working on the computer, for instance when I see some dust on it. The problem that I constantly face is that I cannot really clean the computer while it is running. The same goes for the computer mouse. The reason is simple: Both the mouse and keyboard send keys or actions to the system which are then executed if the computer is running. And you need to press down the keys or mouse buttons if you want to thoroughly clean the hardware.

Sure, it is possible to shut down the computer to clean the keyboard and mouse while it is off. Then again, why shut down the computer if there is a way to clean keyboard and mouse while the computer is running.

You could try and lock the computer while cleaning, but that method is not foolproof as you may hit a key accidentally that unlocks the PC again.

The idea of using child protection software, like Toddler Keys or Kid Key Lock, makes sense considering that the programs can be used to disable keys and mouse buttons effortlessly.

Toddler Keys is probably the more sophisticated of the two. The program adds an icon to the Windows System Tray upon execution. A right-click displays the available options.

Here it is possible to lock the keyboard, keyboard and mouse, drive doors or power button separately. A keyword to unlock the computer is set in the program options. The default word is quit which needs to be entered to unlock the keyboard and mouse again.

You basically start the program and lock the keyboard and mouse whenever you want to clean your keyboard or mouse. I’d suggest to shut down the computer though before you start thoroughly cleaning it, especially if you are using fluids to do so (via).

You may also want to take a look at Mike’s guide on cleaning the insides of a computer.

There’s no way around this either as your PC’s case has to have vents and air-holes.  If it didn’t the whole thing would overheat and, unless you had a very elaborate heat-pipe system in place, your computer would constantly crash.

The thing is though that with dust clogging up the innards of your PC it’ll crash anyway, or at the very least heat up too much and be automatically shut down by your motherboard’s BIOS to prevent the components melting.  As an example of this, just look at the processor heatsink in the photo below.  This was taken of one of my own computers just this morning.  Underneath the fan the processor heatsink it caked in thick layers of dust.  Under this circumstance the heatsink won’t be able to vent any heat properly and the fan will just be something that spins around uselessly.

You can’t escape dust from entering your PC either.  Some people say you should keep it on a desk or lifted up from the floor by a small stand.  These things, while they may delay the inevitable, can’t prevent the build up of dust.  Other people say don’t keep it on a carpet and instead try and put it on a laminate floor.  Laminate and wood floors are even worse though.  You may not get thick carpet fibres in the PC but at least a carpet can trap a lot of the dust in the room.  With a wooden floor there’s nowhere for it to go except for inside your computer.

So we reach a point, as we all do from time to time, when you need to clean the inside of your computer, as I will have to do today.  I thought I’d share with you then my tips on the best way to do this.

First of all you should make sure that the computer is switched off and unplugged from the mains electricity supply before you take the side off the case.  You should then make sure that wherever you clean the PC, which should be in a place perhaps near an open door as it’ll get messy, it should be well supported on a clean, flat surface.

The best start is with a good strong puff of breath.  You’d be surprised how much dust this will actually clear.  Some people at this point may be inclined to stick a vacuum cleaner in the case, but first I’d recommend a small, unused, paintbrush.  This is a great way to get rid of most of the dust from the components themselves.

This won’t get the dust up from the inside bottom the case though and won’t help with the processor heatsink where you can’t (or at least shouldn’t) remove the fan.  Here you’ll need that afore-mentioned vacuum cleaner.

You should always make sure, when using a vacuum cleaner inside a PC that you observe the following rules.

1. Always use the vacuum on it’s lowest suction setting
2. Have a small, soft brush attachment fitted to the end of the hose

With these two rules in place you’ll be able to gently brush over the components inside the case and remove the dust.  The processor heatsink can be more stubborn but for that I’d recommend the long thin nozzle attachment which you can point inside the fan to get at the dust directly.

You do need to be very careful when cleaning the inside of your PC as the components inside, especially those on the motherboard and plug-in cards are tiny and sometimes very fragile.  Always be very gentle and take your time.

You should normally do this with a PC a couple of times a year or so depending on where you keep the machine and how dusty it gets. Doing this will help prolong the life of your computer, help keep it operating at its maximum speed, help keep it quiet and probably most importantly have the side-effect of reducing your electricity consumption.

The remaining 40% have a secret folder with a size between 1 megabyte and 9999 megabytes. The best method to create and maintain a secret folder ? Use TrueCrypt. Believe me the next poll has nothing to do with the previous one, might be hard to believe I must admit. How often do you clean your computer, better: do you clean it at all ?

The answers are pretty self explanatory. You have the option between once a day, a week, a month, a year and never. I think I probably missed the case where users buy new hardware instead of cleaning the old – Believe me that happens. Maybe not when it comes to expensive hardware like flat screens but definitely when it comes to the keyboard.

A new version was released yesterday which added support for Open Office and Nero Burning Rom Cleaning, this is a great tool, make sure you try it out.

Cleans:

* Internet Explorer Cache, History, Cookies, Index.dat.
* Recycle Bin, Temporary files and Log files.
* Recently opened URLs and files.
* Third-party application temp files and recent file lists (MRUs). Including: Firefox, Opera, Media Player, eMule, Kazaa, Google Toolbar, Netscape, Office XP, Nero, Adobe Acrobat, WinRAR, WinAce, WinZip and more…
* Advanced Registry scanner and cleaner to remove unused and old entries. Including File Extensions, ActiveX Controls, ClassIDs, ProgIDs, Uninstallers, Shared DLLs, Fonts, Help Files, Application Paths, Icons, Invalid Shortcuts and more… Backup for registry clean.
* Windows Startup tool.

Crap Cleaner Freeware

CCleaner is a freeware tool that optimizes system performance and maintains privacy. It clears browsing history in all browsers applications and cleans disk space in the Windows System, Windows Explorer, Internet Explorer and some more specific advanced options. The default settings are good enough. It is probably not a good idea to select the advanced options unless you know exactly what you are doing. CCleaner performs the functions of Disk Cleanup and much more. Privacy is maintained and hard disk space is cleaned to free-up memory. It doesn’t stop there. CCleaner also features an efficient Registry cleaner which supports registry backups. This is useful if you need to reverse the registry cleaning in the event that an important registry key was deleted in the process, but this usually does not happen.

CCleaner is an all-in one program including tools to uninstall programs, customize the startup menu, manage System Restore and also has a great Drive Wiper feature so you don’t have to spend $50 on some fancy “Disk killer” software. The GUI is very easy to operate and, best of all, it is fast. The only feature that tends to take a long time is the Drive Wiper, depending on how many passes you select.

There are three versions of CCleaner and only one of them is free. The major difference is that the free version does not include support. Honestly, you don’t really need the support. Just download it and start using it. The features are self-explanatory. Download the free version directly from the Piriform site. There is no malware or spyware to worry about. Here is the link.

The download is fast and simple and the program opens right away.

The details of your operating system and computer will be listed at the top of the interface, just below the CCleaner version name. If the program is updated or a new version is available, you will be alerted to the fact upon opening it and there is no need to uninstall the old version when a new one is available.

The basic “Cleaner” will clear out temporary files, browsing history, etc. You can easily customize what will be cleaned by using the check boxes. To initiate, click the Analyze button and this will produce a list of all the “clutter” then you click the Run Cleaner button to clean.

The Registry cleaner operates in a similar fashion. Scan for Issues then “Fix Selected Issues”. You are offered the option to backup the registry before fixing. The Tools are again simple to understand and use. Select the tool(s) that you want to use and click the buttons below to execute.

Finally, the Options involve specific settings for CCleaner such as exclusions, inclusions, general settings and advanced settings. You can also set the cookies that you want to keep and the ones you don’t.

This is an excellent tool to have on your desktop or toolbar. Use it at least weekly and enjoy better performance and security at no expense.