[help]"choppy" performance

[janus zeal]

alright, ive got xp pro, a 2.4 ghz celeron cpu and 512 mb ram.

when im typeing in google, or this post, or anywhere else for that matter, i type a bunch... then it appears alittle bit at a time.

or, if im scrolling down a page, it will pause every couple of lines before going on.

its not causeing my computer to be unuseable yet, but its highly annoying.

any ideas?

[atomizer]

graphics card driver would be my first guess

[janus zeal]

Nope. already have the offical ATi drivers. should have said that in the first post.

may i have your second guess? xD

Edited June 17, 2006 by janus zeal

[janus zeal]

Also, its not the same type of choppy scrolling you get with bad video drivers.

sorry for the double post, the edit button was missing on my last post. >_<

edit - seems to happen when my cpu temp goes higher then 55 c, but im not sure if thats the problem.

Edited June 17, 2006 by janus zeal

[Andromeda43]

If you're using Windows XP it's all together possible that you could have thirty or more programs (and Services) running in the background.

You only have one CPU and since you've already admitted that it's a Celeron CPU (well known to be the least efficient cpu that Intel makes) therein lies your problem.

It just can't service that many programs at once without some having to 'Wait'.

The solution is to shut down all TSR's and Services that you don't need running all the time.

You can kill the TSR's by running "MSCONFIG", going into the Startup tab and deselecting all the programs that you don't absolutely need to have running all the time.

Then from the RUN box, you can run 'Services.msc' and deselect all the services you don't need.

My own favorite list of services to shut down is:

******************************************

Here's my short, short list of services to disable for a stand alone PC, not on a network: From the RUN box, type in Services.msc , then maximize the window to full screen size. Then scroll down the list of services to each item on the following list and right click on an item and then click Properties. In the properties box you can Stop a running service and then set the action box to "Disable". Then Apply the change and OK the window to close it. Move down the list to the next item and repeat the process. When done, close the entire window and reboot your PC.

Clip book

Computer Browser

DNS Client

Error Reporting Service

Messenger

Performance Logs and Alerts

Portable Serial Number

Remote Registry

Remote Desktop Help Session Manager

Routing and Remote Access

Server (leave this on for a local network)

Smart Card Helper

System Event Notification

Task Scheduler

Universal Plug and Play Device Host

Upload Manager

Web Client

Windows time

Wireless Zero Configuration (disable if you are not using a wireless network)

*************************************

There may be more (or less) that you can get along without, but that's a good place to start.

Next, clean out all the junk files from your hard drive and do a full Defrag.

Use "Windows' Disk Cleanup" and "Defrag" to do a basic cleanup.

Windows is always using the HD and when it's clean and defragmented, things just work better.

Good Luck,

Andromeda43 B)

[atomizer]

If the above post doesn't help you, then i'd ask what browser you're using? Does the problem occur only within your browser, or is it present in, like, notepad or whatever?

Edited June 17, 2006 by atomizer

[LLXX]

Try more cooling. Intel CPUs will slow down when they approach the temperature limit (Thermal Protection).

Remove the stock cooler, clean it thoroughly, and reinstall it with some new thermal compound.

I have the same CPU, but running at 3.2GHz with the stock cooler. Full load temps ~60°C.

@Andromeda43: I think you need the DNS client service... otherwise it'll only resolve from the cache and can't resolve new domain names.

Edited June 17, 2006 by LLXX

[janus zeal]

Im going to remove unneeded services and reinstall the cooler.

oh, the DNS client is needed, but:

Here's my short, short list of services to disable for a stand alone PC, not on a network:

[hougtimo]

Look in taskmanager. obviously something is using 100% cpu. find out what it is, then tell us and we may be able to help you rectify your problem.

@Andromeda43 : stop talking a load of bull crap. Celerons are quite able enough to even run vista. (I know ... I have one here)

HougTimo

[TheFlash428]

Look in taskmanager. obviously something is using 100% cpu. find out what it is, then tell us and we may be able to help you rectify your problem.

@Andromeda43 : stop talking a load of bull crap. Celerons are quite able enough to even run vista. (I know ... I have one here)

HougTimo

Sure a celeron may be capable, but I think Andromeda was only stating fact--a celeron running at the same speed as it's pentium counterpart has less cache memory and slower bus speed, making it a slower chip. Intel designed the Celeron in order to produce a less expensive chip that could adequately drive a home system for the average home user. If the problem truly is too many background applications and services running, then a celeron chip is more likely to show signs of overload than say a P4 chip.

[trickytwista]

i must admit in my experience and from what i have also read in many forums celeron are pretty lame cpu's but i doubt thats what causing you the problem... my guess would be something draining pc ( i.e services/tasks running in background) cheers

Edited June 19, 2006 by trickytwista

[ripken204]

well if ur sure this is only happening when ur cpu gets hot, then cool it better. invest 40$ into a good heatsink. it is summer you know.. do u have airconditioning on? right now my comp is acting sluggish b/c the airconditioning is off and everything is burning up.

[Zxian]

i must admit in my experience and from what i have also read in many forums celeron are pretty lame cpu's but i doubt thats what causing you the problem... my guess would be something draining pc ( i.e services/tasks running in background) cheers

The old Celerons were really horrible CPUs. The newer versions (Celeron D) are actually quite alright. I've built several systems around these and the people using them certainly don't complain.

Have you checked your hard drives for the transfer mode? You can find this in the Device Manager under the IDE controllers. If any of them are set to PIO mode, then that's your problem. Usually uninstalling and rebooting will help fix this problem. Otherwise it's a problem with your drive itself. You want to be running your hard drives on Ultra DMA mode for best performance.

[janus zeal]

Alright, ive figured it out.

The cpu was overheating, nothing was useing 100% cpu.

ive also now upgraded to a P4m, and replaced a fan, running at 32 C right now.

And yes, the old Celerons blow.

[bilemke]

Alright, ive figured it out.

The cpu was overheating, nothing was useing 100% cpu.

ive also now upgraded to a P4m, and replaced a fan, running at 32 C right now.

And yes, the old Celerons blow.

In case it comes back and it isnt related to heat, if this is happening in Internet Explorer, try Firefox or some other browser like Opera.. This can happen in IE on a perfectly fine running machine in some cases too. I know what the problem is, but it isnt worth resolving in IE because it will eventually return again..