What does it even mean?

This article assumes you know the basics of how a hard-drive works. When you save something on your brand new computer, the files are split up into fragments, and are all placed sequentially. This is one of the reasons why new computers always seem fast, as the hard drive is able to locate and read the information rather quickly. Over time you install applications, delete applications, edit files, and move folders. All this disturbs the original sequential order the hard drive had. Over some time fragments of the same file are all over the hard drive causing it to work extra hard to read/write information and consequently it reduces the life of the hard drive. When you de-frag your computer, the method puts everything back in sequential order. The Windows Defragmenter finds all broken pieces and moves to a location closer to the center of the drive.

Now that I know what it is, what can I do?

You many many options available that do this job. The best two, in my opinion would be the Windows Defragmenter and Norton Speed Disk, as it not only defragments, but moves your most important files closer to the center for faster boot/load.

How do I start?

Note: Please take note that this process may take hours to complete, especially if you have a large hard drive.

To continue with the Windows Defragmenter, follow these steps:

Start > Programs (All Programs in Vista) > Accessories > System Tools > Disk Defragmenter

I hope this article has taken you one step closer to speeding up your PC!

Thanks for reading, see ya!