3. Activate Shields

If you’re willing to pay to protect your system from malware, and get some extra firewall protection to boot, we recommend you install our Editors’ Choice security package, Norton Internet Security 2009. Its defense against spyware and viruses is extremely effective, and impact on system performance is minimal.

If you don’t want to pay, you can set up a pretty good one-two punch with AVG Anti-Virus Free 8.0 (free.avg.com) and another Editors’ Choice, ThreatFire 3.5 (www.threatfire.com). The former uses virus signatures to detect problems; the latter uses behavior analysis. Thus they don’t conflict, as two anti-malware programs running on one machine usually do. (Keep in mind that ThreatFire can be almost too effective, and should probably be turned off when you’re installing new software. Otherwise it may see the new program as a threat.)

Everyone on a broadband connection needs a software firewall to control which applications on your PC can access the Internet. The firewall in your network router is not enough. When it comes to free firewall software, Comodo Firewall Pro (www.odo.com) remains our top pick.

4. Download Updates

At some point your PC will tell you there are Windows Vista updates available. If you haven’t already, feel free to grab them. You may have an icon in the system tray at the lower right, or you can select Windows Update from the main Vista menu at the lower left (choose All Programs to find it).

Depending on which version of Vista has been installed on your computer and when, you could have quite a few updates—big updates—to download. Let this process run its course. Walk away. Eat some leftovers, go out for a mocha latte, watch an Adam Sandler movie. It’s going to take a while, and the Sandler movie will seem to last forever.

When the downloads are done, run Windows Update again. Updates tend to beget updates. Three times should be sufficient. By now you’ve got a truly pristine system.

5. Ghost the Machine

After something catastrophic happens, some techies would just as soon reinstall from the original CDs to get a fresh start, but that means going through all those updates again. Instead, back up your pristine system completely right now with the full, updated OS, so you can restore everything quickly after a disaster.

Make a complete drive image (aka a ghost) of the C: drive. You can make images with Norton Ghost 14, Acronis True Image 11, or a freebie like DriveImage XML (www.runtime.org). If you’ve got Vista Business or Ultimate, use the built-in tool called Complete PC Backup to do the job. Store the image on an external drive, if you’ve got one, and burn it to a DVD.

6. Transfer Files

Vista makes this relatively simple with the Windows Easy Transfer utility. It works with the methods we’ll discuss (disc, network, and transfer cable) to move not only data files and folders but also settings from your old Windows system to the new. It even re-creates your user accounts, if you want that. It does not move your old applications. To take advantage of Easy Transfer, your old PC must be running Windows 2000, XP, or Vista.

You can always use old-school sneaker-net—putting files from the old PC on a CD, DVD, or thumb drive, then copying them over to your new machine—but if you’ve got a lot of files, this could take minutes or days. That really big external hard drive with a USB connector you bought for backup is an option. A better solution might be to reuse the old hard drive. A USB 2.0 to SATA/IDE Adapter (about $20) can turn an old drive into an external drive for use on your new PC.

But as you know, the home network is your slickest alternative—once you have it set up right. Go into the System control panel, click Advanced system settings, and then go to the Computer Name tab under System Properties. Click the Change button. Make sure the new computer has a name that’s unique among the computers in the house, and that the Workgroup name is exactly the same for all the computers in the house. Otherwise, they can’t see each other to share. Go into your software firewall and check that it’s open to other PCs on your network (and that the firewalls on the other computers are open to the new PC, as well). Find the folder containing the files you want to share, right-click on it to get Properties, and tell Windows to share the folder. On Vista systems, the folder should now show up in the Network and Sharing Center when you click View computers and devices.

You might be tempted to buy a migration utility to move your old stuff. Or you might succumb to Microsoft’s pitch for a special USB cable (from Belkin) to use with its Easy Transfer utility. Neither option is worth the money, especially for an action you’ll likely take only once. An option that might be a good buy is a cable with software that lets it do much more, like IOGear’s USB Laptop KVM Switch (www.iogear.com). It not only handles file transfers between computers but lets you switch instantly from PC to PC, using a single monitor and keyboard/mouse. At $129 it’s not cheap, but it is one way to ensure that both your old and your new computers remain useful.

7. Prep for Data Backup

No doubt you’ve heard this a zillion times, but in case this advice hasn’t taken, I’ll repeat: A simple backup regime is great for peace of mind. Online backup services like MozyHome (www.mozy.com/home) make it painless. You can start with a free account that stores up to 2GB of data. Perfect for your unfinished novel or other small projects. (You can get unlimited online storage with Mozy for $4.95 per month.)

If you’ve got multiple machines, consider one of the many new services that synchronize files between computers and add online backup in the middle, so you can get to files when you’re at someone else’s PC. Dropbox (www.getdropbox .com) is an up-and-comer that supports sync between multiple Windows, Mac, and even Linux PCs. Basic service is free and gives you 2 gigs of online storage; it costs $9.99 a month to get 50 gigs.

Local backup of your data gives you more control. One option is to partition your hard drive into multiple drives—C: for the system and programs, D: for data, E: for items you don’t need to back up. That way, you can tell Vista’s built-in Backup and Restore Center control panel to look at one drive only. Buy an external hard drive that’s at least 1.5 times larger than the data partition (a 500GB external drive to back up your 300GB partition, for example) as a target drive. Now even huge video and photo files are no big deal to back up. Simply put them in the same spot every time—always “D: for data” (for example)—and let the software do its job.

8. Geek Out Firefox

Firefox is our PC Magazine Editors’ Choice Web browser for good reason. It’s fast, friendly, and infinitely configurable. Sure, you could go your whole life using Firefox and never change a thing, but once you install a few key extensions, you’ll wonder how you ever lived with Internet Explorer or how Google’s Chrome will ever measure up.

Here are some key add-ons worth trying (in the Firefox menu bar, go to Tools, then Add-ons, and search for them in the Get Add-ons tab):

• Cooliris: Turns browsing into a full-screen 3D experience. • DownThemAll!: Download manager handles multiple downloads at once. • FireFTP: If you need an FTP client, get one that stays within Firefox. • Foxmarks: If you use multiple PCs, you can synchronize the bookmarks on each one. • Greasemonkey: Using scripts from UserScripts.org, it can change the look and feel of almost any site. • IE Tab: If you absolutely must view a site in Internet Explorer, do it within a Firefox tab. • ScribeFire: If you blog, ScribeFire makes it easier. • Tab Mix Plus: Take complete control of the tabs in Firefox. • Update Notifier: Never let your Firefox extensions go un-updated again.

If you used Firefox on your old computer, you probably want the same settings, bookmarks, and extensions. Back up the old Firefox using freeware MozBackup (mozbackup.jasnapaka.com), save the file to your new PC, and use MozBackup to restore. It also works with Thunderbird to back up e-mail.

You have your own list of favorite utilities, but we recommend installing these programs no matter what browser you use: QuickTime, Adobe Flash, Microsoft Silverlight, Windows Media Player, and a PDF reader (try the free Foxit Reader from www.foxitsoftware.com; it’s faster and smaller than Adobe Reader).

9. Place Your Programs

This is one area where you’re on your own: We can’t decide what software you want or need. But if you’re configuring this new machine for someone else, remember that no PC is complete without at least an office suite, a photo-editing tool, a media manager, and something for e-mail. And there are free alternatives for almost any program you might need; see our no-cost favorites in The Best Free Software.

If you want the same setup as your previous machine, check the Program Files folder on the C: drive of your old PC. Make a listing of the programs there using an online word processor like Google Docs so you can access the list from any computer. Keep in mind that you’ll also want to carry over the settings and log-in info for software like e-mail and IM clients.

Gather those monstrosities known as registration codes for your software. Record them somewhere permanent and accessible. Write them on the discs themselves or keep them in a notebook, or whatever method you have for preserving data you know you will need again.

Some software is limited to a certain number of machines. For example, iTunes will play only songs you’ve bought online on up to five PCs. So check that the software is de-authorized on the old PC if you won’t be using it there. Uninstalling might be all it takes.

10. Tune-Up Time

Windows Vista on the right system is very fast, but first you have to decide: Do you want a system that’s fast—or good-­looking? Here are a few steps to tweak your new PC’s performance in favor of speed, not appearance:

• Set the desktop to a plain, one-color background. Big photographic wallpaper can slow load time. • If you’re not into desktop widgets along the screen’s edge, or maybe prefer those from another source (like Google), turn off Windows Sidebar. It takes up space on your desktop. Go to the Windows Sidebar Properties control panel and deselect Start Sidebar when Windows starts. • Aero is the name for the fancy graphics interface in Vista that delivers things like transparency in windows. Cool as it looks, Aero can slow down your system. In the Personalization control panel, select Windows Color and Appearance. In the next window, click Open classic appearance properties. Change the color scheme to something else, such as Windows Standard, and click Effects to turn off menu shadows and the ability to see windows as you drag them. • Go to the System control panel, click System Protection, and on the Advanced tab, click the button in the Performance box. If you turn off every option under Visual Effects (like animated controls, fading menus, and shadows under your mouse cursor), it should speed things up. • The network icon in the system tray shows a subtle animation to indicate you’re online; right-click and select “Turn off activity animation” to stop it—unless you like incessant reminders that you’re online. • If you’ve got a very fast USB thumb drive, insert it and activate Windows ReadyBoost. This cache can help a bit with performance while the drive is inserted. • Adjust the power settings, especially if you’ve got a laptop that is unplugged while in use. The “high performance” pre-sets will drain juice faster.

Visit PCMag.com and ExtremeTech.com for many more tips on speeding up Vista and your PC.