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Is your PC acting sluggish? Are strange windows inexplicably popping up on your screen? Do you have to reboot your computer because of errors and lockups? Our free computer checkup and diagnostics can help you detect and fix many common computer problems! Our full PC tune-up should be your first stop to get the computer help you need.

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Get the most From PC Pitstop, sign up for a free account! Once you run the tests, you can post a link so the mechanics at our PC Pitstop Forums can look at your PC to help solve tough problems. We're here to provide computer help, and the assistance through our forums is always free. Or, email your test results link to anyone you want, including friends or technical support staff.
We add new features all the time so please bookmark the site and stop by for a visit or tune-up every month--or more often!

What's new?

Vista Migration: 4 Months Later July 20, 2007: Has Rob finally warmed up to Vista, or does he yearn for the stability and familiarity of XP? Check out this video update to see if Vista has won his heart!
Summer Fire Season July 20, 2007: Steve updates us on the dangers of Li-Ion battery fires and the resulting massive battery recall. Learn more.
The World of Processors July 12, 2007: Our staff takes a look at processor types and breaks down the essentials of Intel and AMD processor technology. Delve into the World of Processors.
Backing up Your DVD Movies July 11, 2007: Our research shows a significant percentage of PCs contain DVD decryption and ripping software tools that can be used to rip DVD movies to a hard drive or other digital media.
Online Video Survey Results July 11, 2007: A look at how people are using online video streaming and downloading. The results of our online video survey results reveal what type of videos people are watching and Where they are going to download and stream video content.
The Way of the Upgrade July 3, 2007: Revivalist is the winner of the PC Pitstop 'I Pimped My PC' Video Contest. Check out his masterpiece.
Apples to Apples, the PC vs. Mac debate June 15, 2007: Rob takes an 'Apples to Apples' look at the PC vs. Mac debate and crowns a heavyweight champion of the computing world in his new video.
Get the Scoop on Obsolescence June 11, 2007: Our May Obsolescence survey results are in, and there are interesting differences betweens ages and genders.
Historical Bloatware Trends June 8, 2007: A look at the historical trends of bloatware prevalence. Over 35% of the of the Vista systems tested in May 2007 contain one or more of the trialware software titles we analyzed.
Is Your PC Feeling a Little Bloated? June 1, 2007: Your new PC may need Gas-X. This new video From our research team documents the prevalence of bloatware in 8 brand new PCs.
A Battle for Hard Drive Freedom - Part II May 21, 2007: Which of the major PC manufacturers is staking the largest claim to hard drive space on brand new computers? In our latest video, the PC Pitstop Research Team investigates hidden partitions on 30 new systems.
The Hall of Shame May 10, 2007: Rob captures a the rudeness of a Gateway Tech Support employee when he calls about the sinister D:\ partition at the Hall of Shame .
A Battle for Hard Drive Freedom May 9, 2007: Rob's new video documents his crusade to reclaim his hard drive space on his new PC.
The Popularity of PC Games May 9, 2007: Our April PC Gaming survey results reveal that 96% of people regularly play games on their PCs. The results also show that there are differences between boys and girls.
My Hard Drive Can't be Full May 9, 2007: Our reseach shows that a significant number of PCs contain an unutilized partition drive D: . If you have concerns about your PC hard drive capacity, check out out latest research.
A Worthwhile Migration? April 10, 2007: Is Vista the brighter side of the OS world or is it for the birds? Rob's latest video documents the ups and downs of his migration From XP to Vista.
Missing some hard drive space? April 9, 2007: We take a look at how some PC venders are claiming some of your hard drive space. Our research takes a look at the prevalence of small drive partitioning that may also leave you without the ability to restore your operating system in the event of a hard drive failure.
Vista Attitudes April 9, 2007: PC Pitstop's Vista survey results reveal peoples' views and attitudes towards Microsoft's new operating system.
The Illusions of Vista April 6, 2007: Rob tries to separate the reality From the illusion of Microsoft Vista. Vista is definitely storing more information but to whose benefit?
We got game! April 6, 2007: We teamed up with Hoyle® to bring PC Pitstop visitors exclusive offers on some great game bundles. Check it out now and you can even try some of the games for free.
The tax man cometh. Will you be ready? March 7, 2007: Our research takes a look at the prevalence of US income tax preparation software. We also show how the top three applications are doing.
Hello Firefox, Goodbye Internet Explorer February 27, 2007: Firefox is now Rob's browser of choice and there is no looking back. In this new video, he details the strength of the Firefox feature set and the reasons behind his switch.
Putting Firefox Users to the Test February 26, 2007: Attention Firefox Users. Did you know a handy plug in called IE Tab will allow you to run all PC Pitstop scans & tests, without opening a new browser window? Learn more.
Vista - More Planned Obsolescence? February 16, 2007: Does Vista help or hinder your fight to keep your PC running at top speed? Rob takes a hard look at Microsoft's latest product offering and the related cycle of planned obsolescence.
Canada Piracy In the News February 14, 2007: Recent news articles implicate Canada as having a serious movie piracy problem. We analyzed how Canada compares to other regions for the prevalence of certain PC media copying applications.
Ready for a Printer Market Revolution? February 8, 2007: Is the printer market primed for an overhaul? Our Printer Survey respondents shed light on their printer usage and printing related purchase motivations.
♥ Give Your Hard Drives Some Love February 7, 2007: PC Pitstop's fourth software application is geared to make your hard drives run faster and last longer. Run PC Pitstop Disk MD's free disk health scan now and learn how to put a smile on your PC. Just in time for Valentine's Day.
Sony - Busted Again! January 17, 2007: Would you believe Sony's rootkits and MediaMax are still being installed on people's PCs? Shockingly, recent tests run at PC Pitstop suggest they are! Rob takes a closer look and calls Sony out .
Microsoft's Zune Media Player January 12, 2007: Is Apple's iPod market share in danger? See how Microsoft's Zune media player is doing based on PC Pitstop's installation rate analysis.
Courting Hard Drive Disaster January 9, 2007: The responses to our Storage & Backup Survey suggest that an amazing number of people are willing to take their chances with their hard drive data.
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What do our tests do?

Our tests check out your PC looking for security risks, Windows configuration issues, or performance problems. The test uses a small ActiveX utility that you load before starting the testing; it takes less than a minute to download, and you're on your way to a faster PC.
The full check-up does all this: measures disk fragmentation; checks available system resources; analyzes device drivers; benchmarks the CPU, memory, video, disk, and Internet connection; looks for viruses and spyware in running software; and checks for common security problems. The analysis doesn't change any settings on your PC, and you'll be able to review our advice before making any changes.
Once the tests are complete, you'll get a detailed report with our advice, plus an inventory of the PC's hardware and software setup. You can send a link with your test results to anyone you want, or post the link on our forums if you have questions. So let's go!

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