A scorched earth policy is not the best policy

Despite going through many of the procedures you describe for speeding up my Mac, I am still aware that it is operating slowly, and I would like to erase it and start again. Everything is backed up safely, of course, but as an install disc wasn’t provided with the Mac, I feel very wary. Could you give me foolproof instructions, please? Diane McDonald Step 1: don’t. The idea of resetting your Mac to brand new by starting again with a blank slate is just a seductive fantasy. The reality is that your Mac won’t get any faster this way. New computers feel fast because they have new hardware, not because they are emptier. Your Mac feels slower partly because you are used to it, and partly because you’re asking more of it.

You don’t believe me, I can tell. But I have seen this many, many times. If you erase and reinstall, you’ll waste an afternoon setting everything up, and after the giddy excitement of spring cleaning dies away, you’ll be left with a computer that runs just as it did before. Remove unwanted programs from Login Items in Users & Groups preferences and upgrade your RAM if you can. After that, sit tight until you are ready to buy a whole new Mac.