Registry Mechanic Q and A

Recall --

Last week, I wrote a review on WinGuides Registry Mechanic. Since then, a number of users have contacted me with Kudos and Questions in regard to the article.

Infopackets Reader 'Marv MnM' writes:

" Hi Dennis,

I have been a subscriber to your newsletter for quite some time and have learned a lot from it. This time, I feel compelled to comment on your latest recommendation, Registry Mechanic.

First, let me say that I'm not a techie nor a very advanced user, just a 73 year old who enjoys his computer and tries to keep it squeaky clean from viruses, spam, Spyware, and the like. The one area that I have never dared to delve into has been the System Registry. The mere mention of the word sent shivers up my spine. That is, until I read your July 27th newsletter that featured the review on Registry Mechanic. I read the account of your experience with the program, and although I trust your expertise and have learned a lot from your newsletter, I must admit, I was still apprehensive.

However, after some time out for deep thought, I decided to take the plunge and download and install the program. Well, I could not be happier or more impressed. Just as you said, it is super easy to use (could be used by a first day computer user without any problems) and did everything that you said it would.

I was especially impressed with the back up feature before tampering with the registry. I did the backup about 15 seconds, then ran had Registry Mechanic run the scan which took 3 minutes. I was absolutely floored to see that no matter how problem free I thought my computer was, Registry Mechanic still managed to find 352 problems. A simple click on the Repair Button fixed everything in less than one minute!

Does my computer perform any faster since cleaning the registry? Not that I can notice, but my speed was always great. It's still worth the peace of mind to know that my registry is O.K. and I can easily keep it that way on a regular basis with only a few minutes of my time.

My message to all of your subscribers is: if you have been gun shy of the registry as I was, fear no more, this is the program for you and you can kiss your fears goodbye! Great job Dennis! "

Continuing on, Infopackets Reader H. Hartranft asks: " Will Registry Mechanic take out the items that aren't considered Spyware but still show up when SpyBot is scanning? "

My response:

Just to clarify, SpyBot (and similar Spyware removal tools, such as Spy Sweeper) search the registry for Spyware components, called "signatures". Spyware signatures are pre-defined in a database which needs to be continually updated to detect new threats.

Registry Mechanic does not use a database; instead, it searches the registry for errors 'on the fly'. So, to answer your question: it is certainly possible to have Registry Mechanic remove Spyware entries in the registry (specifically, erroneous entries which aren't linking to anything and are taking up space). Since most Spyware applications are typically coded in a sloppy manner (resulting in high CPU usage and a slow computer), it is quite plausible that Registry Mechanic will remove quite a number of erroneous instances in the registry.

The next question came from Infopackets Reader Alexander P., who asks:

" I downloaded the full version of Registry Mechanic (RM) based on your review and have run it several times since then. Each time RM notifies me that my problems were fixed, but every time I run it, I get mostly the same errors. What is the problem, and why aren't the errors being repaired? "

My response:

Excellent question. Keep in mind that all software programs are created by humans; since humans are not without fault, neither are programs which were created by humans -- including the ones that are currently running on your machine. If all programs were free from mistakes, then we wouldn't have crashes or error messages, nor would we need critical updates, patches, bug fixes, and programs like Registry Mechanic to fix the registry.

To answer your question: Registry Mechanic works by identify and correcting errors that found in the registry. If RM is reporting the same errors, it's most likely because the programs that are associated with the errors are re-injecting themselves into the registry whenever they are executed.

A similar question was asked by another Reader, Diane A., who writes:

" I just finished reading your review on Registry Mechanic. Actually, I obtained the full version a few weeks ago and found it to be invaluable. It works so well and quickly. It really did speed up my PC. I also have RegClean and have on occasion used them both. Registry Mechanic always seems to find more errors than RegClean. I am not sure how often you should use Registry Mechanic but since I use scandisk and defrag once a week, I use Registry Mechanic at the same time. The one thing I don't understand is the majority of the errors that Registry Mechanic finds seem to be happen after McAfee has done an update. Do you have an answer for that? PS: I love your newsletters and find them very informative. Thanks very much. "

My response:

Based on my own experience: any time I've attempted to uninstalled McAfee anti-virus v4 or v5 on a machine, it would take (literally) 5 ~ 10 minutes just to get through the uninstall (keep in mind that almost every program capable of an uninstall is supposed to [but not required to] remove self-related values from the Registry). Based on that theory -- and the fact that your registry is continually updated, even when running the McAfee update program -- it would be no surprise to learn that McAfee update program is injecting junk into your registry when it runs.

The final question came from Infopackets Reader Jeanine O., who writes:

" I tried to download the full version of Registry Mechanic from the eSellerate web site, but was told I needed to enable java script on my browser. I don't know how or where to do this. Help? "

My response:

The eSellerate web site uses JavaScript. By default, JavaScript may be disabled on some Windows XP machines. If you have problems running JavaScript on your machine (even if you don't use Windows XP), you can download a supplemental install of Java directly from Sun Labs. See this previous Gazette article for more detail.

How effective will Registry Mechanic work for you?

The only way to find out is to run a scan!

Registry Mechanic is a free download and is available from our web site.