Ridiculous speeds on my Mac

I'm running the latest Leopard (10.5.5) with 3 gig of ram and a 2.33 core 2 duo processor on a Macbook Pro (Not latest update)
I've had the MBP since April last year. All of a sudden I have huge speed issues. Sometimes a restart makes an effect, sometimes not.
In most instances, for example, when I want to start iTunes I click on the icon in the dock, it bounces for a while then the blue light appears telling me iTunes is running. However, no matter how many times I click on the icon, the main iTunes window refuses to show itself. It's not on any of my other desktops, and it can take almost 5 minutes to finally appear.
Spore is also a problem, frequently taking many minutes to display the splash screen and then sometimes upwards of 5 minutes before I'm at the menu page!
The final major problem is Safari. Very often taking forever to start up, and then reducing to crawling speed for seemingly no reason at all. Even when I'm trying to start a new tab or even select an option on a single web page!
I check the CPU usage whenever this happens and it's always at below 10% user and then the rest on idle usage, whatever problem is occurring.
Out of a 154gb hard drive, I have between 25 and 30gb free. Although I have previously run down to 1/2gb with none of these problems.
I'm completely at the end of my tether. I have no idea what else I can try so please, if you can help I would forever appreciate it.
I would prefer not to receive just a link to a program as I have had this before and I find the program completely unfathomable.
Thanks very much
Chris

I suggest you boot from your system disk 1 (which came with your machine) by inserting the disk and restarting holding the "C" key. You can then perform some [maintenance tasks|http://support.apple.com/kb/TS1417] as shown in the linked page. This will help you to solve many issues caused by software problems.
You may also want to check for hardware problems. Again you would need to insert your system disk 1 and restart holding the "D" key (check the "extended diagnostics"). This will check all your hardware (Logic Board RAM Storage) for underlying faults. Be warned - this can take a while so be patient
It might also be wise to back up your work before your start.
Best of luck!

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Things You Can Do To Resolve Slow Downs
If your computer seems to be running slower here are some things you can do:
Start with visits to:     OS X Maintenance - MacAttorney;
                                  The X Lab: The X-FAQs;
                                  The Safe Mac » Mac Performance Guide;
                                  The Safe Mac » The myth of the dirty Mac;
                                  Mac maintenance Quick Assist.
Boot into Safe Mode then repair your hard drive and permissions:
Repair the Hard Drive and Permissions Pre-Lion
Boot from your OS X Installer disc. After the installer loads select your language and click on the Continue button. When the menu bar appears select Disk Utility from the Utilities menu. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the installer.
Repair the Hard Drive - Lion/Mountain Lion/Mavericks
Boot to the Recovery HD:
Restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the COMMAND and R keys until the Utilites Menu screen appears. Alternatively, restart the computer and after the chime press and hold down the OPTION key until the boot manager screen appears. Select the Recovery HD disk icon and click on the arrow button below.
When the recovery menu appears select Disk Utility. After DU loads select your hard drive entry (mfgr.'s ID and drive size) from the the left side list. In the DU status area you will see an entry for the S.M.A.R.T. status of the hard drive. If it does not say "Verified" then the hard drive is failing or failed. (SMART status is not reported on external Firewire or USB drives.) If the drive is "Verified" then select your OS X volume from the list on the left (sub-entry below the drive entry,) click on the First Aid tab, then click on the Repair Disk button. If DU reports any errors that have been fixed, then re-run Repair Disk until no errors are reported. If no errors are reported, then click on the Repair Permissions button. Wait until the operation completes, then quit DU and return to the main menu. Select Restart from the Apple menu.
Restart your computer normally and see if this has helped any. Next do some maintenance:
For situations Disk Utility cannot handle the best third-party utility is Disk Warrior; DW only fixes problems with the disk directory, but most disk problems are caused by directory corruption; Disk Warrior 4.x is now Intel Mac compatible.
Note: Alsoft ships DW on a bootable DVD that will startup Macs running Snow Leopard or earlier. It cannot start Macs that came with Lion or later pre-installed, however, DW will work on those models.
Suggestions for OS X Maintenance
OS X performs certain maintenance functions that are scheduled to occur on a daily, weekly, or monthly period. The maintenance scripts run in the early AM only if the computer is turned on 24/7 (no sleep.) If this isn't the case, then an excellent solution is to download and install a shareware utility such as Macaroni, JAW PseudoAnacron, or Anacron that will automate the maintenance activity regardless of whether the computer is turned off or asleep. Dependence upon third-party utilities to run the periodic maintenance scripts was significantly reduced since Tiger. These utilities have limited or no functionality with Snow Leopard or later and should not be installed.
OS X automatically defragments files less than 20 MBs in size, so unless you have a disk full of very large files there's little need for defragmenting the hard drive.
Helpful Links Regarding Malware Protection
An excellent link to read is Tom Reed's Mac Malware Guide.
Also, visit The XLab FAQs and read Detecting and avoiding malware and spyware.
See these Apple articles:
          Mac OS X Snow Leopard and malware detection
          OS X Lion- Protect your Mac from malware
          OS X Mountain Lion- Protect your Mac from malware
          About file quarantine in OS X
If you require anti-virus protection I recommend using VirusBarrier Express 1.1.6 or Dr.Web Light both from the App Store. They're both free, and since they're from the App Store, they won't destabilize the system. (Thank you to Thomas Reed for these recommendations.)
Troubleshooting Applications
I recommend downloading a utility such as TinkerTool System, OnyX, Mavericks Cache Cleaner, or Cocktail that you can use for removing old log files and archives, clearing caches, etc. Corrupted cache, log, or temporary files can cause application or OS X crashes as well as kernel panics.
If you have Snow Leopard or Leopard, then for similar repairs install the freeware utility Applejack. If you cannot start up in OS X, you may be able to start in single-user mode from which you can run Applejack to do a whole set of repair and maintenance routines from the command line. Note that AppleJack 1.5 is required for Leopard. AppleJack 1.6 is compatible with Snow Leopard. Applejack does not work with Lion and later.
Basic Backup
For some people Time Machine will be more than adequate. Time Machine is part of OS X. There are two components:
1. A Time Machine preferences panel as part of System Preferences;
2. A Time Machine application located in the Applications folder. It is
    used to manage backups and to restore backups. Time Machine
    requires a backup drive that is at least twice the capacity of the
    drive being backed up.
Alternatively, get an external drive at least equal in size to the internal hard drive and make (and maintain) a bootable clone/backup. You can make a bootable clone using the Restore option of Disk Utility. You can also make and maintain clones with good backup software. My personal recommendations are (order is not significant):
1. Carbon Copy Cloner
2. Get Backup
3. Deja Vu
4. SuperDuper!
5. Synk Pro
6. Tri-Backup
Visit The XLab FAQs and read the FAQ on backup and restore. Also read How to Back Up and Restore Your Files. For help with using Time Machine visit Pondini's Time Machine FAQ for help with all things Time Machine.
Referenced software can be found at MacUpdate.
Additional Hints
Be sure you have an adequate amount of RAM installed for the number of applications you run concurrently. Be sure you leave a minimum of 10% of the hard drive's capacity as free space.
Add more RAM. If your computer has less than 2 GBs of RAM and you are using OS X Leopard or later, then you can do with more RAM. Snow Leopard and Lion work much better with 4 GBs of RAM than their system minimums. The more concurrent applications you tend to use the more RAM you should have.
Always maintain at least 15 GBs or 10% of your hard drive's capacity as free space, whichever is greater. OS X is frequently accessing your hard drive, so providing adequate free space will keep things from slowing down.
Check for applications that may be hogging the CPU:
Pre-Mavericks
Open Activity Monitor in the Utilities folder. Select All Processes from the Processes dropdown menu. Click twice on the CPU% column header to display in descending order. If you find a process using a large amount of CPU time (>=70,) then select the process and click on the Quit icon in the toolbar. Click on the Force Quit button to kill the process. See if that helps. Be sure to note the name of the runaway process so you can track down the cause of the problem.
Mavericks and later
Open Activity Monitor in the Utilities folder. Select All Processes from the View menu. Click on the CPU tab in the toolbar. Click twice on the CPU% column header to display in descending order. If you find a process using a large amount of CPU time (>=70,) then select the process and click on the Quit icon in the toolbar. Click on the Force Quit button to kill the process. See if that helps. Be sure to note the name of the runaway process so you can track down the cause of the problem.
Often this problem occurs because of a corrupted cache or preferences file or an attempt to write to a corrupted log file.

Download Speed On a mac

Hello All
Simple question !
Why the Download Speed on A mac slower than on A PC ? Or on OS X Than Windows
Many Users have this problem ..
I looked every where i tried every single method and suggestions
Changing DNS
Updating my router software AND SO ON
Nothing help !!
What is really confusing me is
I have windows operating system running on my mac "Vmware"
My internet concoction speed 4mb
when i download file on windows i get the full download speed 480 to 512
when i switch back to my mac i get maximum 350 !!
It's the same machine ?? Why !!
Thank you
Message was edited by: Rayan Albader

USB speed is limited to the speed of all the connected devices on the same bus. The bus is the portion of the computer's data traffic cop that connects several USB devices at once. Go to Apple menu -> About This Mac -> More Info to determine if there are any slower items connected to the same bus. Some USB ports may connect to a different bus under the USB section. If you want to see which bus a device has moved to after physically moving it, select Refresh from the View menu. Additionally some USB non-Apple devices may trip up if you put your machine to sleep either but closing the lid, or manually from the Apple menu, or automatically through the timer in the Energy Saver System Preferences. Some of these connection devices have latency issues. This means, they need a place to store their downloads before they come onto your computer. It may be their driver on the PC has settings to store something on the machine directly. Make sure your Mac isn't too full*:
http://www.macmaps.com/diskfull.html
- * Links to my pages may give me compensation.

What is the best and easiest way to speed up a Mac-MINI?

What is the best and easiest way to speed up a Mac Mini without adding memory?

I'd tried to reply yesterday to your question but for some reason it didn't go anywhere and I got a red message box in the Discussion post area with "error." After trying three times, including log-out, clear cookies from browser (and history) and back in, I still was unable to add my post with links to resources for your Mini, here. And the last time I tried that, the copied text also went missing as I found it gone after considering to make a Text document of it, for later posting.
Anyway, the http://iFixit.com site has guides on how to replace RAM in the computer you have. Note there are different models shown and from what I remember, yours is the last 'old look' Mini with an optical drive. The model after that is thin, a 2010 model with slot in front for discs; the next one has no internal optical drive.
RAM specs: 2 - 204-pin PC3-8500 (1066 MHz) DDR3 SO-DIMM (replace pair) up to 8GB total. Best price would be an online vendor of repute, once you know about what they sell for, you could ask a local mac expert if they could get you a better than retail price. I get ram from OEMPCworld and shipping is about $1. including insurance to my post office box, priority or 1st class. At about half retail. Crucial (website) offers parts, too; and so does OWC (other world computing).
In addition, I recommended checking into the build specs and quality of the OWC (esales) site for external enclosures with their own power supply, for hard disk drive; for storage and bootable clones on different partitions. And see about Bombiche Carbon copy cloner, it is a commercial product now, not donationware. I've used it successfully to make competely bootable clones on a suitable external HDD (drive should have own power supply, too) A 750GB HDD in a self-powered enclosure that can boot Mac OS X from a clone, is a good start on backing up your upgraded OSX in a way you can clone it back into an empty, wiped or new HDD inside the computer; and it can run from the external. You can't necessarily use a TimeMachine that way.
This should be your Mini -- check other indicators to be sure:
http://www.ifixit.com/Device/Mac_Mini_Model_A1283
A serial number lookup site such as the one I end up using because I had it bookmarked is OK: http://www.powerbookmedic.com/identify-mac-serial.php & also have mactracker http://mactracker.ca
Anyway, before I time out or exceed post content(?) This is not all I meant to write before.
Good luck & happy computing!

Boost the speed of my Mac or be used for the RAM?

HI
is there any way that i can use my 8GB memory stick to boost the speed of my Mac or be used for the RAM?

MBA has RAM soldered to logicboard. No upgrade possible.
Sorry.

How to see the file transfer speed on a mac

Hi, I'm kind of a beginner with a Mac, I have worked on windows for all this years and now I have a small dilema. Can someone please tell me how you can see the file transferring speed on a mac. When you copy and paste from one drive to another, or from time capsule to my mac, etc a dialog appears showing you a progress bar and the time remaining. I would also like to see the speed of the transfer. Is it posible to see this variable?

In windows - vista when you copy or paste a folder from one location to another in the file transfer pop-up you can see the speed of the transfer.(You must press the more details arrow on that pop-up). Does Leopard has any configuration for this kind of information.
I will try iGet and write here my feedback.

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add more speed to a mac book pro version 10.6.8

passat1,
which model MacBook Pro do you have, how much RAM is installed in it, what capacity internal disk does it have, and how much free disk space is available on it?

I'm looking for the read/write speeds for my Mac's.

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I think the feature is called Voice Over, and I think it's now compatible with Reader:
http://support.apple.com/kb/HT3598?viewlocale=en_US&locale=en_US

How to speed up a mac

How to speed up a Mac.

More information is required to begin addressing your question, much more. What specific model Mac Pro are you using?  (Apple) menu > About This Mac...
Whatever you do, do not download or install any product claiming to magically "clean up" or "speed up" or "optimize" your Mac. Without exception, they will do the opposite. If you already did, you found the problem. Fix it.
If it is only Web browsing that seems to be slower than it used to, that is often the result of such sites becoming ever more demanding of hardware and bandwidth. Short of paying for faster Internet service, buying additional memory, or a faster Mac, there is little you can do to cope with such so-called progress.
If you are experiencing general slowdowns or "freezes" unrelated to Internet activity, the problem may be related to your computer or the software you installed and is something you may be able to fix, or at least improve. Aside from hardware failures and software that you install, including OS upgrades, there is no reason that your computer should not work precisely the same as it did when it was new.
Without a more specific description it is difficult to provide specific guidance. Read the following to determine if something may apply to your concern:
General Mac maintenance: Tips to keep your Mac in top form
General purpose Mac troubleshooting guide: Isolating issues in Mac OS X
Creating a temporary account to isolate user-specific problems: Isolating an issue by using another user account
Memory limitations: Using Activity Monitor to read System Memory and determine how much RAM is being used
Identifying resource hogs and other tips: Runaway applications can shorten battery runtime, affect performance, and increase heat and fan activity
To identify potential hardware problems: Apple Hardware Test.
To resolve startup issues and perform disk maintenance, use Disk Utility.
Safe Mode or "Safe Boot" is a troubleshooting mode that bypasses all third party system extensions and loads only required system components. Read about it: Starting up in Safe Mode

How can I read the internet speed in a MAC?

How can I find the INTERNET SPEED in a MAC?

You typically use a free Internet Speed test. It does an upload and a download from a known site, bypassing certain configuration problems. Just do a search to find a dozen services eager to test with you (in exchange for the Ads on their pages).
Do not pay for this service, and DO NOT accept any CR@P they suggest you download to "fix" your speed. They cannot tell from outside whether you have problems, and none of the things you can download ever makes anything better.
If using Wi-Fi, one generally finds that the Wi-Fi part of the connection is the limiting factor.

How do i adjust iTunes playback speed on my mac ?

How do i adjust iTunes playback speed on my mac (OSX 10.10.2) ?
I'd like to play podcasts at 1.5x, without running them through a separate script.

I have not see mention of any way in iTunes itself.
Changing playback speed in iTunes - https://discussions.apple.com/message/11432266 - primarily for audiobooks but if you read the whole thread there is mention of ways to do this with other media.
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Is there anyway to speed up my mac?

When i open applications, it takes a really long time and eventually, the color wheel pops up. Also, applications force quit many times. My startup time is also extremely slow... Is there anyway to speed up my mac?
THANKS!!

Have a look here > http://www.thexlab.com/faqs/performance.html

Fan speed problem Power Mac G5 Dual 1.8 GHz PowerPC - please help

Please HELP, I have a fan speed problem with my Power Mac G5 Dual 1.8 GHz PowerPC
This is a NOT an Intel machine. I am running Mac OS X v10.5.8
Power Mac G5 - PowerMac 7,2 - Power PC 970 (2.2) - 1.8 GHz with 2 CPUs - L2 Cache (per CPU) 512 KB - Memory 8 GB - Bus Speed 900 MHz - Boot ROM version 5.1.5b1
I have included below Links to download a sound file (.m4a) that I recorded of the fan speed problem and both a .pdf and .spx files of my system profile.
download sound file
http://homepage.mac.com/rep3/filechute/myG5dualsFans.m4a
down load .spx file of my system preferences
http://homepage.mac.com/rep3/filechute/systemProfileREP3-G5dual.spx
down load .pdf file of my system preferences
http://homepage.mac.com/rep3/filechute/systemProfileREP3-G5dual.pdf
When did the fan problem start?
After I replaced the mother board on the computer.
Why did I replace the mother board?
Because the experts at apple agreed with my diagnosis that the major crash problems & kernel panics must have some thing to do with a logic board gone bad. They would not work on it, because this Power Mac G5 dual 1.8 GHz machine is now a legacy model.
What I have done to attempt to fix my fan speed problem? yes I checked the obvious things, here is a list:
1) yes I checked to be sure that the new mother board was the same part number as the original one, and that all things that were unplugged from the old mother board - were actually plugged into the new mother board.
2) all the fans work, I can see them spinning if I use a flashlight and look at them (cover on and off to get at some of them)
3) check all RAM to make sure: a) it was installed properly b) that the RAM worked using TechTool Pro c) even started the machine with only the original RAM that came with it.
4) I installed a Temperature monitor - to see if there was something reading as very hot inside that was causing the machine to continually run the fans at a high speed. No, no heat issues that I can see. Here are the reading from the sensors in degrees fahrenheit, 2009-10-11 16:11:01 -0500
CPU A Die Temperature: 75.7℉
CPU B Die Temperature: 81.5℉
Drive Bay: 68.9℉
Main Logic Board Air Inlet: 64.8℉
Main Logic Board Ambient: 73.6℉
Main Logic Board Backside: 76.3℉
Memory Controller Heatsink: 93.2℉
Processor Card A Ambient: 77.5℉
Processor Card B Ambient: 77.0℉
5) zapped the PRAM
6) followed the SMU reset instructions for
Power Mac G5 (Late 2004)
To reset the SMU on a Power Mac G5 (Late 2004) computer, simply do the following:
• Turn off the computer by selecting Shut Down from the Apple menu or by holding the power button until the computer turns off.
• Remove the power cord from the computer.
• Wait two minutes.
• Plug in the power cord.
• Turn on the computer.
7) followed the SMU reset instructions:
Resetting the Cuda/PMU
How to reset the PMU:
• If the computer is on, turn it off.
• Disconnect ALL cables from the computer, including peripherals and power.
• If possible, move the computer to a place where you are not standing on carpet.
• Open the case and ground yourself by touching part of the metal frame inside the computer.
• Find the Cuda or PMU button
• Press the Cuda or PMU button ONCE. Do not press the button more than once before starting the computer up again.
• Wait 10 seconds, then reconnect the cables you removed in step 2 and turn the computer on.
• If the computer still does not respond after resetting the PMU, the computer may require service from an Apple Authorized Service Provider.
8) ran disk utilities, repaired permissions
9) found a setting in the system preferences that a chat room person suggested had something to do with fan speed. In Energy Saver, under options, processor performance was set to highest, I set it to automatic - this did not change anything that I could tell - BTW I checked my other G5 (a single processor that works fine) that is the setting that that it is set to, and it is nice and quiet.
10) restarted the machine, ..
11) found a Fan Control System Update - but it did not install when I tryed to install it -
12) booted from OSX install disk and ran that disk utility
13) used OnyX to fix disk permissions, clear caches and temp items
Nope - still have the same high speed fan problem. ... PLEASE HELP!!
I have been reading in the MacInTouch reader reports - found this: some one said to use this - thermal re-calibration using the Apple Authorized Service Providers' disk - but that's not available, at least I can not find it - anyone? have an answer to finding this - or can do it for me? I am in Chicago.

The Genius at the downtown apple store said that because it's a "legacy machine" they would not work on it, .. so should I push them?
Well, I personally think that's ridiculous, I'd Push them, I'd call AppleCare & talk up the chain if need be... there the ones that have or should have that Disc... man o man... Personally I'll never visit an Apple Store again in my lifetime, maybe try an independent AASP if none of that helps!..
http://tinyurl.com/ykomqkn
Man-o-man, pop my cork before I explode on that one, if I had anything to do with it I'd close that store.

Hello ... I have a problem with a wifi connection speed on my mac pro ... the problem is that in one room the internet opening for the websites is extremely slow ... but when i move the mac pro somewhat to other location ... the internet speed increase

hello ....
my connection problem on my mac pro is :
that when i try to open a website on safari .... it delays ... and takes more than 30 seconds to open completely ...
but when i move the mac pro to another location ... its internet opening speeds up ....
also in one room ... web opening delays .... but on other rooms it is normal
so what can i do to solve this problem ....
Note : also when i hold it up and move in the same room ... the speed changes and somewhere speed up ... and in another location speed down ..
thanks for you all ...
Waiting for your support ... as quick as possible ...

WiFi signals get stronger the closer the machine is to the router and the less interference/blocking of the signal like via walls with metal in them or of thick concrete.
Since the signal emanates outwards in a sphere, your supposed to place the wireless router in a central location in the building so it covers all areas.
The power of the router also has a affect, if your router is old or something not that powerful like a Airport Express, it doesn't have the ability to filter out other signals or enough punch to get through walls etc. or cover a large area as effectively.
If you buy/have a powerful router of newer make and have issues where there is metal in the walls or thick concrete, then you can buy something like OpenMesh and by using Ethernet cables from the back of the router, extend the WiFi signal into other rooms and areas past the blockage.
https://www.open-mesh.com/

Weird "speed brake" on Mac Mini 2009 with Lion

Hi all,
this is bizarre: I have a Mac Mini from 2009 running Lion (with server).
For weeks (months?), it's been incredibly slow, spinning beachball of death and all.
When I look at the Disk Activity pane of Activity Monitor, for example when starting multiple applications, I peak at about 3.3 MByte/s... usually, the throughput (read or write) is no more than in the triple 100KByte/s range !
When I run Blackmagic DiskSpeedTest on the same drive, it consistently delivers around 55 MByte/s.
At first, I thought it was my Drobo slowing things down (as I can't get more than 5MByte/s out of that), so I deinstalled Drobo Dashboard completely, also removing Kernel Extensions, etc. But that wasn't the issue, apparently. Even when I eject the Drobo, performance doesn't get better.
Anyone have an idea what on earth this might be?
I would hate to have to reinstall my system, that would be a mound of work.
Thank you!
Best regards,
Hans

HDD failing? Do you have a second partition with OS X/Windows/Linux on the computer that you can run the speed tests from?
The speed may not actually be to do with the HDD, though. Speed tests sometimes are over-optimistic. It might be to do with apps running in the background, caching to disk, anything really.

Ridiculous speeds on my Mac

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