If you regularly use Internet Explorer as your web browser of choice you’ll of course want it to run as fast as possible, but a variety of different things can cause it to run slower than normal or feel more sluggish than it should. Often times the slowness occurs over time, as you browse more and the cache gets full, or when the browser gets too bogged down with add-ons that have been installed over time.
This is why I’ve provided a list of 5 ways you can speed up Internet Explorer, and keep it that way.
Clear History and Cache
Having too much info stored in your history and cache can cause Internet Explorer to run slower over time, with more information being built up, the slower it will go.
To clear your history and cache simply click on the Tools button (should be a cog-looking icon in the top right), then go to “Internet Options” and then under “Browsing History” click the delete button, a new windows should open with check-box options. Check all of the boxes and then click the delete button in the new window, this will clear all of your saved history and cache.
You may also opt to have Internet Explorer clear your cache and history automatically when you exit it by selecting the option under “Browsing History”.
Remove Unnecessary Add-Ons
If you have a lot of add-ons installed that you don’t use, then chances are they’re using up resources and causing Internet Explorer to run slower. You’ll want to disable any add-ons you don’t actively use.
To do this, click on the Tools button and go to “Internet Options”, then select the “Programs” tab, from here you should see a button that says “Manage add-ons”, click this and then from there you can disable, uninstall and manage all of your add-ons.
Disable Tab Previews
By default, Internet Explorer will display previews of loaded tabs when you mouse over it in the taskbar. While the resources this uses is pretty minimal, if you’re using an older computer that doesn’t have much memory, you probably want to cut out as much needless resource spending as you can, however small it is.
To disable tab previews, click the Tools button, go to “Internet Options” then under “Tabs” click the settings button and then uncheck the option hat says “Show previews for individual tabs in the toolbar”. You’ll need to restart Internet Explorer for this change to work.
Start Without Add-Ons
If you would rather not use any add-ons at all, then you’ll want Internet Explorer to launch without loading add-ons.
To do this click the Windows Start Menu, then go to All Programs -> Accessories -> System Tools -> Internet Explorer(no add-ons). This will launch Internet Explorer without any add-ons whatsoever, and won’t change your settings for the default Internet Explorer.
Whenever you wish to start Internet Explorer without add-ons, just use this shortcut to launch it.
Enable Pop-Up Blocker
There’s nothing more annoying than having an ad pop-up when your trying to browse the internet, which is not only annoying, but can cause Internet Explorer to load the web page slower. Worse yet, sometimes these pop-ups can contain viruses and other malware that can wreak havoc on your PC.
To enable the pop-up blocker, click the Tools button, then go to “Internet Options” and click on the Privacy tab. From here you should see a checkbox that says “Turn on Pop-up Blocker”, make sure this is checked to have it enabled.
