MacBook slows down to a crawl when using iSight

Hi!
I have a 2006 MacBook (Core Due 2 GHz), which I have upgraded to Snow Leopard (via Leopard). I am trying to use the built-in camera ("iSight") for video chat, but when I do, the computer slows down to a crawl, and the application that is using the camera takes all CPU.
I've tried with both iChat and Skype, and the result is the same, so it seems to be in the camera drivers and not the applications themselves.
Does anyone have any good ideas on what I can do to alleviate the problem? I have not installed any specific drivers for the camera beyond what comes with Mac OS.

nafmo wrote:
Hi!
I have a 2006 MacBook (Core Due 2 GHz), which I have upgraded to Snow Leopard (via Leopard). I am trying to use the built-in camera ("iSight") for video chat, but when I do, the computer slows down to a crawl, and the application that is using the camera takes all CPU.
I've tried with both iChat and Skype, and the result is the same, so it seems to be in the camera drivers and not the applications themselves.
Does anyone have any good ideas on what I can do to alleviate the problem? I have not installed any specific drivers for the camera beyond what comes with Mac OS.
Hello nafmo
Snow Leopard's iChat 5 does require more CPU power than iChat 4 (from Leopard), so you may, in part, be noticing that. The best way to verify that is with your Mac's Activity Monitor utility. For your comparison, my new 2.26GHz Core2Duo MacBook Pro uses slightly more than half of both cores for Snow Leopard iChat video chats.
Here are some other things you can consider:
  http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?path=Mac/10.6/en/8496.html
We will watch for your status update.
EZ Jim
Mac Pro Quad Core (Early 2009) 2.93Ghz w/Mac OS X (10.6.2)  MacBook Pro (13 inch, Mid 2009) 2.26GHz (10.6.2)
LED Cinema Display  G4 PowerBook 1.67GHz (10.4.11)  iBookSE 366MHz (10.3.9)  External iSight

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    after 15 minutes=5.67 Mbps
    after 30 minutes= 5.59 Mbps
    1 hour-5.66 Mbps
    Very solid, stable readings for what I am used to. This would seem to isolate the problem to the imac.
    directly connected to imac with new modem
    IP address of 192.168.1.64
    5.8 Mbps on speedtest
    after 30 minutes= .60 Mbps-ping takes 250 ms
    1 hour= .46 Mbps-ping takes 250 ms
    Now a problem that only started last night after I hooked up the new modem and started up my old Time capsule/airport configuration, I got a message that said something to effect of "another device on this network is using computer IP address 192.168.1.64. So I tried manually changing last digit of the IP address on the computer to one number higher and it kept saying the start and end range were incorrect so I shut the airport station down since when it was connected, it would not allow the computer to connect thru the router via ethernet. I did a hard reset on the airport and I got it back up and running just fine but the internet speeds on the imacs' ethernet connections are so slow it's practically worthless. I also checked to see what was connected to my airport on any given occasion, 2 iphones, 2 pads, another imac running upstairs and a newer powerbook running icam source that is supposed to be the baby monitor. Except for the laptop everything can use "802.11n" but the powerbook only connects via 802.11g so I have set the airport to that limiting setting.
    Any suggestions? Is there a way for me to log what is happening so I can report in more detail?

    First thing is to check if the wireless is on a sensible channel: HomeHub doesn't always make sensible choices.  Install inSSIDer on your laptop and see what other devices there are around and if there is any clash.  Also, try moving the HomeHub around a little, even quite small differences can make a big difference to wireless signals.
    You could run an ethernet cable from downstairs to upstairs.  Easy to do, but can be a bit unsightly.  If most of your devices are upstairs, you could use this cable to connect the modem to the HomeHub.  If you have devices both up and down, you may want to keep the HomeHub downstairs and add a switch upstairs.
    HomePlug may be suitable for you.  If you search Amazon for HomePlug you will see a couple of kits for just over £30.  Don't go for an 85Mbps one.  A 200Mbps such as the TP-link or D-Link should be much better than wireless, but not as good as a cable.
    Depending excatly how many devices you want to connect and where, you can pay more and have a builtin wireless at one end: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Devolo-1408-Wireless-N-HomePlug-Adapter/dp/B00472MMCQ/ref=sr_1_15?ie=UTF8&qi...  Or it may be best for you to use the basic devices and add an old wireless router in switch mode.

  • The spinning beach ball - why has my MacBook slowed down SO much?

    My MacBook has become terribly slow. I get the spinning beachball almost every time I hit a key now, and I am just about ready to throw everything out the window. Mainly I use my laptop for internet browsing (Safari only), iTunes and iPhoto. I do have third party stuff on my computer such as the software for my Nike Fuelband, and Jawbone Updater for my Jambox. I have Java too, which I probaby don't need. Oh I also have some card games - but those sorts of things I get from the App Store. I don't muck around with settings or anything, because I don't know anything about that! I just USE my laptop. So having said that, I don't know why I would have the spinning beachball as my new sidekick....
    I have followed instructions I found on another discussion (https://discussions.apple.com/thread/5303293?start=0&tstart=0) to test my MacBook. My results are good news I think: Logging in as a guest account, everything runs like I would hope - iTunes opens up quickly, same with iPhoto, and when I look up sites on Safari they load up quickly. I then started in safe mode, and logged in as myself. Excusing the "stuttering" of the graphics and such, I would say that in safe mode things moved along much more quickly. I got the beachball in safe mode but not every time I tried opening something, and only briefly when it did appear.
    My question is, where do I go from here? How do I "clean up" or fix my MacBook so that it runs like it used to? Like I say, I think it must be good news that in those test scenarios my MacBook performs much more like the good old days. Does this suggest that my own account just has crap on it that needs to go? And if so, the big question is, how on earth would I go about identifying the source(s) of the problem and then getting rid of them?
    I have searched some on the forums here but I'm at a bit of a loss because I don't really even know what to search for! As I say, I am a complete user only! I do follow instructions pretty well though, so if anyone could point me to the right help page or give me further advice, I would be oh-so-grateful!
    cheers,
    Lydia

    Please read this whole message before doing anything.
    This procedure is a diagnostic test. It changes nothing, and therefore will not, in itself, solve your problem.
    Third-party system modifications are a common cause of usability problems. By a “system modification,” I mean software that affects the operation of other software — potentially for the worse. The procedure will help identify which such modifications you've installed, as well as certain other aspects of the configuration that may have a bearing on the problem. Don’t be alarmed by the seeming complexity of these instructions — they’re easy to carry out and won’t change anything on your Mac. 
    These steps are to be taken while booted in “normal” mode, not in safe mode, if possible. If you’re now running in safe mode, reboot as usual before continuing. If you can only boot in safe mode, you can still use this procedure, but not all of it will work. Be sure to mention that in your reply, if you haven't already done so. 
    Below are instructions to enter UNIX shell commands. The commands are safe and do nothing but produce human-readable text output, but they must be entered exactly as given in order to work. If you have doubts about the safety of the procedure suggested here, search this site for other discussions in which it’s been followed without any report of ill effects. I am not asking you to trust me. If you can't satisfy yourself that these instructions are safe, don't follow them.
    The commands will line-wrap or scroll in your browser, but each one is really just a single long line, all of which must be selected. You can accomplish this easily by triple-clicking anywhere in the line. The whole line will highlight, and you can then copy it.
    Note: If you have more than one user account, Step 2 must be taken as an administrator. Ordinarily that would be the user created automatically when you booted the system for the first time. Step 1 should be taken as the user who has the problem, if different. Most personal Macs have only one user, and in that case this paragraph doesn’t apply.
    Launch the Terminal application in any of the following ways: 
    ☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.) 
    ☞ In the Finder, select Go ▹ Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens. 
    ☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid. 
    When you launch Terminal, a text window will open with a line already in it, ending either in a dollar sign (“$”) or a percent sign (“%”). If you get the percent sign, enter “sh” and press return. You should then get a new line ending in a dollar sign. 
    Step 1 
    Triple-click anywhere in the line of text below on this page to select it:
    P=/usr/libexec/PlistBuddy; E () { [ "$o" ] && echo $'\n'$1: && echo "$o"; }; F () { o=$($P -c Print "$2" | awk -F'= ' \/$3'/{print $2}'); E "$1"; }; { o=$(kextstat -kl | awk '!/com\.apple/{printf "%s %s\n", $6, $7}'); E "Loaded extrinsic kernel extensions"; o=$(launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.apple|org\.(x|openbsd)|\.[0-9]+$/{print $3}'); E "Loaded extrinsic user agents"; o=$(launchctl getenv DYLD_INSERT_LIBRARIES); E "Inserted libraries"; o=$(crontab -l); E "User cron tasks"; o=$(cat /e*/lau*); E "Global launchd configuration"; o=$(cat ~/.lau*); E "Per-user launchd configuration"; F "Global login items" /L*/P*/loginwindow.plist Path; F "Per-user login items" L*/P*/com.apple.loginitems.plist Path; F "Safari extensions" L*/Saf*/*/E*.plist Bundle | sed 's/\..*$//;s/-[1-9]$//'; o=$(find ~ $TMPDIR.. \( -flags +sappnd,schg,uappnd,uchg -o ! -user $UID -o ! -perm -600 \) | wc -l); [ "$o" == 0 ] || printf "\nRestricted user files: %s\n" $o; cd; o=$(find -L /S*/L*/E* {,/}L*/{Ad,Compon,Ex,In,Keyb,Mail/Bu,P*P,Qu,Scripti,Servi,Spo}* -type d -name Contents -prune | while read d; do $P -c 'Print :CFBundleIdentifier' "$d/Info.plist" | egrep -qv "^com\.apple\.[^x]|Accusys|ArcMSR|ATTO|HDPro|HighPoint|driver\.stex|hp-fax|JMicron|microsoft\.MDI|print|SoftRAID" && echo ${d%/Contents}; done); E "Extrinsic loadable bundles"; o=$(find /u*/{,*/}lib -type f -exec sh -c 'file -b "$1" | grep -qw shared && ! codesign -v "$1"' {} {} \; -print); E "Unsigned shared libraries"; for d in {,/}L*/{La,Priv,Sta}* L*/Fonts; do o=$(ls -A "$d"); E "$d"; done; } 2> /dev/null | pbcopy; echo $'\nStep 1 done'
    Copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C. Then click anywhere in the Terminal window and paste (command-V). I've tested these instructions only with the Safari web browser. If you use another browser, you may have to press the return key after pasting.
    The command may take up to a few minutes to run, depending on how many files you have and the speed of the computer. Wait for the line "Step 1 done" to appear below what you entered. The output of the command will be automatically copied to the Clipboard. If the command produced no output, the Clipboard will be empty. Paste into a reply to this message. No typing is involved in this step.
    Step 2 
    Remember that you must be logged in as an administrator for this step. Do as in Step 1 with this line:
    E () { [ "$o" ] && echo $'\n'$1: && echo "$o"; }; { o=$(sudo launchctl list | sed 1d | awk '!/0x|com\.(apple|openssh|vix\.cron)|org\.(amav|apac|cups|isc|ntp|postf|x)/{print $3}'); E "Loaded extrinsic daemons"; o=$(sudo defaults read com.apple.loginwindow LoginHook); E "Login hook"; o=$(sudo crontab -l); E "Root cron tasks"; o=$(syslog -k Sender kernel -k Message CReq 'GPU |hfs: Ru|I/O e|find tok|n Cause: -|NVDA\(|pagin|timed? ?o' | tail | awk '/:/{$4=""; print}'); E "Log check"; } 2> /dev/null | pbcopy; echo $'\nStep 2 done'
    This time you'll be prompted for your login password, which you do have to type. Nothing will be displayed when you type it. Type it carefully and then press return. You may get a one-time warning to be careful. Heed that warning, but don't post it. If you see a message that your username "is not in the sudoers file," then you're not logged in as an administrator.
    You can then quit Terminal.
    To prevent confusion, I'll repeat: When you type your password in the Terminal window, you won't see what you're typing.
    Note: If you don’t have a login password, set one before taking Step 2. If that’s not possible, skip the step.
    Important: If any personal information, such as your name or email address, appears in the output of these commands, anonymize it before posting. Usually that won't be necessary.
    Remember, Steps 1 and 2 are all copy-and-paste — no typing is involved, apart from your password. Also remember to post the output.

  • Why does my Macbook slow down every 4-5 seconds?

    I am a big gamer nerd, and recently i have been moving over from x-box to computer.
    I have recently noticed when i am playing high graphics games, or any game that takes a good amount of graphics, my computer seems to slow down alot every few seconds.
    For Minecraft, i can play it on all the best settings and it will run perfectly fine for 3 seconds, then i get about 8 fps for one second and it repeats. It gets really annoying especially when it is in an intense moment, (or when it makes me fall into lava) This also becomes a big concern on games like Left 4 Dead, it makes these games (that my computer CLAIMS it can handle perfectly) almost unplayable.
    This seems to become more apparent as my computer heats up.
    Why does my computer do this? and Is there a way to make it stop?

    Good that "big gamer nerds" are starting to use the Mac.  Not long ago, there were hardly any good games around.  Going backwards, yes, it's going to make the MBP run hotter.  It's using the max amount of everything running.
    To really help you, we would need the exact model of MBP.  For example, if you have 15 or 17", you need to make sure you're running with the discrete video card (nvidia or AMD) instead of the integrated Intel version (which is good enough for TV viewing and web browsing).  Also, you need to make sure you maximize memory.  When I play a game (I only play Starcraft), I shut down all other programs, especially anything that runs in the background (like a twitter feed, though that really doesn't use too many resources).  You can use Activity Monitor (it's in your Utility folder) to see what's sucking resources on your computer.
    Remember, the game companies want to sell as many games as possible.  So they give computer spects that will just barely run the game if you tweak every setting.  You want to be way over the minimum settings in processor speed, memory, disk space etc.
    Minecraft has known framerate issues on the Mac port of the game.  It has nothing to do with you, your Mac, or anything, but the quality of code from the developer. 

  • Macbook slowed down - spinning ball

    Hello --
    Over the last few weeks I have sensed that my MacBook is slowing down, but I've been in denial about it. Now it's so bad I can't deny it anymore. If I click an application, a folder, or document, it takes a hugely long time to open. I can't scroll a document and or even delete a line of text in a document without waiting for what seems like forever as the ball spins and spins and spins. A lot of the time nothing on the screen seems live and clickable.
    Any thoughts about what the problem might be? Any suggested fixes? Or should I just head into the shop. Is my computer dying or is it something that might be repairable?
    Thanks for your help.

    Mary Ann De Stefano wrote:
    Someone suggest that I trash my ~Library/Cache folder as a possible solution. Does that sound like a possibility to you?
    Hi,
    That's not a bad idea.. you can do that by Starting in Safe Mode...
    Safe Mode
    Be sure your Mac is shut down.
    Press the power button.
    Immediately after you hear the startup tone, hold the Shift key. The Shift key should be held as soon as possible after the startup tone, but not before the tone.
    Release the Shift key when you see the gray Apple icon and the progress indicator (looks like a spinning gear).
    After a Successful Startup in Safe Mode... Restart your Computer Normally..
    What is Safe Boot, Safe Mode?
    Starting up into Safe Mode does several things:
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    It loads only required kernel extensions (some of the items in /System/Library/Extensions).
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  • Firefox is slowing down. More I am using Firefox then more I have to wait for reaction(open tab, klick on button etc.)

    For more that one year everything was ok with Firefox. Even after upgrades of my PC everything was just fine. About 2 months ago when I opened Firefox I noticed that he is slowing down(not PC only browser). More time I spend on Firefox longer takes everything-from tab opening, button klicks, closing tabs etc. It looks like it freeze for period of second or longer and come back to normal for few seconds. I was trying to ckeck that on many any only one opened tab. But result was same. I deinstalled Firefox, deleted related folders and installed him one more time with updates and with updated Adobe Flash but without changes. Still crap. Please HELP!!!

    The proper way to close Firefox is through the File menu "Exit" or the equivalent with the Firefox button.
    More detail in item '''#38 Firefox already running '''
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    [http://dmcritchie.mvps.org/firefox/firefox-problems.htm#fx4interface Fix Firefox 4.0 toolbar user interface, problems (Make Firefox 4.0 look like 3.6) (#fx4interface)]
    Firefox already running, to properly shutdown Firefox when closing the last window use File → Exit/Quit (or Firefox button → Exit). Closing Firefox with the [X] in the upper right corner closes the window ("Ctrl+W") but that does not necessarily close Firefox if it has subtasks running. If you want to close and reopen Firefox use the "Restart" within Add-ons if you made a change requiring a restart, or install "[https://addons.mozilla.org/firefox/addon/restartless-restart/ Restartless Restart]" ("Ctrl+Alt+R") which will allow you to take Firefox down and restart without having to check the Windows Task Manager to see if Firefox first actually ended. [http://kb.mozillazine.org/Firefox_hangs Firefox hangs]

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