The thing about most Macs that are running OSX (Panther and up): if and when your Mac feels sluggish, and you're not sure if it's the system software or the hardware that's gone haywire - you can do a quick test - without having to resort to formatting.

Unlike the PC, 99% of the time (as a technical guy who has almost seen it all, I made that number up from experience), the issue is not hardware and you don't have to reformat your Mac. The quick and dirty way to test, and this is what we would do if you pass your Mac to us, is to create a new admin account under Users in Systems Preferences.

Log off your current sluggish account, and log into the new account. If the machine feels like it's new again, we can safely assume the issue lies with your account's preferences, not the system itself.

Do a backup from your old account, and restore back into your new account. Once you verify everything is in, you can delete your old account.

What to do:

• backup, backup and backup for important files
• do a simple new account test
• do a software update and make sure all system software is up to date
• disable auto startup for the less-used software applications or increase your physical memory by upgrading to accomodate

What not to do:

• defrag (this is a legacy thing, and may ruin your partition causing data loss)
• install anti-virus (not required and slows the system down)
• reformat (unless you know what you're doing)
• leave your battery in whilst plugged into a power outlet for a long period of time

Signs of possible hardware failure (usually a part replacement fixes it):

• clicking sound from the harddisk
• a computer with a sad face when booting up
• powered up but nothing shows up
• missing dock (possible hdd failure)
• internal fan constantly on full blast (defective detector)
• screen has rainbow lines, amongst other issues
• CD/DVD not reading; pops the disc out like a toaster
• bulging battery / short battery life
• applications crashing constantly

Signs of software issues (reinstalling/adjustment of software fixes it):

• sleeps randomly
• missing dock (files related)
• missing desktop background
• internal fan constantly on (software)
• slower bootup
• applications running slow than normal
• fonts distorted (missing fonts)
• application crashing constantly (outdated/incompatible software)

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