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Very Slow Application Performance

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mmcarthur

Technical User
Oct 2, 2000
11
AU
I'm using a program called AutoCAD 14 and for some reason my system seems to halt for 10 seconds when it loads and also for various commands I enter in at the prompt. The computer i am running is a Celeron 500 with 128MB RAM, we have another machine exactly the same build in the office and there is no problem with that at all. It's driving me nuts, it should be instantaneous like all the other computers here, so if you know what the problem is or what might help it would be much appreciated.
 
It could be faulty memory . It could be not enough hard disk space affecting the virtual memory preformance. Try running scandisk and the defrag under program - accessory -system tools .
 
Got 6 gig Free done a defrag and scandisk very regularly since the problem arose.

If it is faulty memory how could i check that.
 
While the system is 'halted', does the hard disk light flash like mad?. If so it could be that you have 'findfast' running in the background. If so bring up the task list (Ctrl-Alt-Delete), go to the 'findfast' entry and End-Task. I have never known exactly what findfast does, but killing it seems to have no adverse side effects.
 
I'm not certain the problem is caused by anything other than AutoCAD. I run a similar machine (but with more memory) and didn't think anything was wrong until I replaced the CAD software and found out what I had been missing for so long.

My experience has been that IntelliCAD loads and runs several times faster then ACAD 14 to 2000. It has a low overhead that lets me run several other apps concurrently without bogging down the system. It includes all of the ACAD 2000 features (+ more) and it is shareware. Click thread94-16846 for the details.

I don't think I will be willing to go back to AutoCAD, any time soon.
VCA.gif

Alt255@Vorpalcom.Intranets.com
 
Not familiar with CAD software, but assuming you're running from Win 95+, check out what your swap file and memory manager are doing at the time.

To do this, run system monitor from: Start>Programs>Acessories>System Monitor
(If system monitor is not installed, go to Control Panel>Add/Remove Programs>Windows setup etc. and install it.

When you've got it up and running, go to the Options menu and set the Chart to 1 sec refresh. Next choose Add item from the Edit menu. I'd look at processor usage, page faults, cache size, cache hits - perhaps even a few more.

Once it's all up an running and ticking over, load your CAD program and watch the charts closely.
 
This could be WAY off base, but when you need help it can sometimes come in unexpected ways. I was recently having similar sounding problems when running Internet Explorer - delays of up to 20 seconds before a submit command would actually submit.

Turned out it was a missing file called "imagehlp.dll". Reinstalled the program and everything was back to normal.

Like I say, this is probably a long shot for you, but you never know.

Have you tried reinstalling AutoCAD, by the way?

Good luck,

Gary
Austin, TX
 
Another possible solution is that there are lots of temp files on the H/D. Run find and look for *.tmp as these are safe to delete. Also check for *.chk files if the machine has been crashing regularly.
Hope this helps!
 
More info on improving system performance

Cleaning and preventative maintenance

1. Take as much stuff as you can from running in systray. Light off each app and disable them from running in systray.

2. Run msconfig and take checkmarks out of all you don't need running in start-up. Experiment with different apps etc. to see how they affect your free resources.

3. Click on control-alt-delete and highlight an item and end task then look at system resources and it will give you an idea on how much an application is robbing from your resources.

Note: You can right-click my computer and go to properties and click on the performance tab and see what your free system resources are and check as you eliminate some items to see how you are doing!

4. Search your "C" drive for *.tmp, *.~ and *.chk and delete them. You can do this from start\find\files (make sure you have your “C” drive set to be searched)

5. If you are running any Norton stuff (it likes to use resources!) be careful, a very powerful program. (You may want to disable it for this troubleshooting and enable after you clear up your problem or it may be the problem if you are having resource problems).

6. Clear your browser cache!

7. Compact your e-mail folders and empty your deleted folder and send folder.

8. Empty the recycle bin!

9. IMPORTANT! If you see findfast when you hit control-alt-delete then highlight it and end task and get rid of the program per this url:

Note: It is installed by Microsoft products (Office etc>) and was a bad dream from Microsoft that will cause major resource problems.

9. Run scandisk and defrag!

B. Utilities

1. Run hwinfo /ui (don't forget the space between the o and the /) and this will identify any device or driver problems in red text.

2. IMPORTANT! Do not run this unless you have too! Run SFC (system file checker) be careful and back up and files you may want to restore! This utility can replace files that will cause you to have to reinstall some applications. Caution this file needs to run with care because you may have to load some applications again if you replace certain files.

C. Recommendations:

1. Update your IE5 to either 5.01 or 5.5 if you use these. Note: Reports of bugs in 5.5 are being reported by some.

2. Increasing Your System Performance:
If you have a little extra memory to spare, here's one trick that really helps speed Windows 95\98 along. Changing your File System Performance from Desktop Computer to Network Server (even if you're not on a network) will basically increase the size of the cache that that the operating system uses. Here's how: Right click on "MY COMPUTER" and select "PROPERTIES". Then click on the "PERFORMANCE" tab near the top of the dialog box, and the "FILE SYSTEM" button at the bottom. Change from "DESKTOP COMPUTER" to "NETWORK SERVER", click on "OK", and "OK" again. The changes will take effect the next time you reboot your computer.

Windows 98 Annoyances



System Resources Decrease After Starting and Quitting a Program



Computer Speed and Performance Decreases

 
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