Only if you constantly install/uninstall programs, should you consider using
a registry cleaner.

among freeware i can safely vouch for 'ccleaner'.
--
http://www.WinVistaClub.com
Microsoft MVP 2007, 2008 Awardee.



"Bruce Chambers" wrote:

> goorambatman wrote:
> > Hi there, I have been an XP user and with that I have successfully used PC
> > Tools Registry Mechanic and Webroot Window Washer for maintaining my system.
> >
> > Window washer is supposed to be fully Vista compatible and Registry Mechanic
> > is supposed to offer basic Vista support.
> >
> > Does any one recommend any other system maintaining software for Vista?
> >
> > Im wondering if there is good registry tool or system checking tool out
> > there to help heep my PC running fine?
>
>
> There's no such thing as a "good" registry cleaner for any OS.
> About the best that can be said for any of them is that they don't
> render the computer unusable each time you use one.
>
> Why do you think you'd ever need to clean your registry? What
> specific *problems* are you actually experiencing (not some program's
> bogus listing of imaginary problems) that you think can be fixed by
> using a registry cleaner?
>
> If you do have a problem that is rooted in the registry, it would
> be far better to simply edit (after backing up, of course) only the
> specific key(s) and/or value(s) that are causing the problem. After
> all, why use a chainsaw when a scalpel will do the job? Additionally,
> the manually changing of one or two registry entries is far less likely
> to have the dire consequences of allowing an automated product to make
> multiple changes simultaneously. The only thing needed to safely clean
> your registry is knowledge and Regedit.exe.
>
> The registry contains all of the operating system's "knowledge" of
> the computer's hardware devices, installed software, the location of the
> device drivers, and the computer's configuration. A misstep in the
> registry can have severe consequences. One should not even turning
> loose a poorly understood automated "cleaner," unless he is fully
> confident that he knows *exactly* what is going to happen as a result of
> each and every change.
>
> Having repeatedly seen the results of inexperienced people using
> automated registry "cleaners," I can only advise all but the most
> experienced computer technicians (and/or hobbyists) to avoid them all.
> Experience has shown me that such tools simply are not safe in the hands
> of the inexperienced user. If you lack the knowledge and experience to
> maintain your registry by yourself, then you also lack the knowledge and
> experience to safely configure and use any automated registry cleaner,
> no matter how safe they claim to be.
>
> More importantly, no one has ever demonstrated that the use of an
> automated registry cleaner, particularly by an untrained, inexperienced
> computer user, does any real good, whatsoever. There's certainly been
> no empirical evidence offered to demonstrate that the use of such
> products to "clean" WinXP's registry improves a computer's performance
> or stability. Given the potential for harm, it's just not worth the risk.
>
> Granted, most registry "cleaners" won't cause problems each and
> every time they're used, but the potential for harm is always there.
> And, since no registry "cleaner" has ever been demonstrated to do any
> good (think of them like treating the flu with chicken soup - there's no
> real medicinal value, but it sometimes provides a warming placebo
> effect), I always tell people that the risks far out-weigh the
> non-existent benefits.
>
> I will concede that a good registry *scanning* tool, in the hands
> of an experienced and knowledgeable technician or hobbyist can be a
> useful time-saving diagnostic tool, as long as it's not allowed to make
> any changes automatically. But I really don't think that there are any
> registry cleaners that are truly safe for the general public to use.
> Experience has proven just the opposite: such tools simply are not safe
> in the hands of the inexperienced user.
>
> For other cleaning and maintenance, Vista's built-in tools are more
> than sufficient.
>
>
> --
>
> Bruce Chambers
>
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> safety deserve neither liberty nor safety. ~Benjamin Franklin
>
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>
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> ~ Denis Diderot
>