
I list the features in the order that makes them easiest to turn off. Choose System Protection, Create and then follow the prompts. To make a restore point, click Start, type sysdm.cpl and press Enter. That way you can quickly return your machine to its present state should you decide that you don’t like the change. Just to be on the safe side, make sure to create a restore point before you turn any of the items off. (I’ve turned off only seven and a half on my PC, because while none of these features is required for Vista to function, some are still kind of nice and my computer is fast enough to handle them.) Should you really turn off all of the following features right this minute? That depends on your computer, your work habits and your tastes. A few can actually be quite useful, though they play a major role in bogging down your PC. Some are shiny baubles that slow down graphics performance, while others are optional utilities that hog memory when they shouldn’t. I’ve identified a dozen Vista features that you can turn off right now. You can regain some PC performance by removing unneeded features. All of that excess code has a way of slowing down an operating system.

The latest Windows packs a lot of code - more than any version of Windows ever - and some of it is just plain unnecessary.
