Slow, older Macbook

5 yr old macbook 4.1 is verrrrry slow. how can I speed it up?

Open Disk Utility and click on the boot volume, in this picture it's Macintosh HD
Then click on the hard disk selection and check the SMART status. Anything other than verified indicates a failing hard drive
Finally, open Activity Monitor and from the drop down menu select All Processes and look through the list for something eating up a lot of CPU%

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Very slow older macbook pro

Okay, so part of the answer is in the subject - this is an older machine. A late 2008 MBP 15" 8 GB of ram. It's a 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo. (MacBookPro5,1)
I'm running 10.9.5. I wish I hadn't upgraded to 10.9 - it's seemed much slower since, but I understand that downgrading is not advisable, and even before the upgrade it was sluggish.
I don't expect this machine to be lightning quick, but it lags at seemingly random times. It takes applications a long time to launch (I timed MacJournal at 21 seconds). Mail.app seems to be particularly slow.
The thing that got me to post was that I received a "new" computer at the university office where I work. It's an iMac, 2.4 GHz Core 2 Duo, like mine but with only 4 GB of ram, running 10.9, like mine. It FLIES compared to mine. I realize there are differences between an iMac and a MBP that probably make the iMac a faster machine overall, but the difference between the two is like night and day. So I'm wondering what steps I should take to troubleshoot my MBP?
I have a 500 GB hard drive with 200 GB free space.
Thanks in advance for any help!
Nathan

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Hardware Information: ℹ️
    MacBook Pro (15-inch, Late 2008) (Technical Specifications)
    MacBook Pro - model: MacBookPro5,1
    1 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2-core
    8 GB RAM Upgradeable
        BANK 0/DIMM0
            4 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok
        BANK 0/DIMM1
            4 GB DDR3 1067 MHz ok
    Bluetooth: Old - Handoff/Airdrop2 not supported
    Wireless: en1: 802.11 a/b/g/n
    Battery: Health = Check Battery - Cycle count = 407 - SN = W0152028A6G1A
Video Information: ℹ️
    NVIDIA GeForce 9600M GT - VRAM: 256 MB
        Color LCD 1440 x 900
    NVIDIA GeForce 9400M - VRAM: 256 MB
System Software: ℹ️
    OS X 10.9.5 (13F34) - Time since boot: 7:35:7
Disk Information: ℹ️
    Hitachi HTS725050A9A364 disk0 : (500.11 GB)
        EFI (disk0s1) <not mounted> : 210 MB
        Macintosh HD (disk0s2) / : 499.25 GB (195.11 GB free)
        Recovery HD (disk0s3) <not mounted> [Recovery]: 650 MB
    MATSHITADVD-R   UJ-868
USB Information: ℹ️
    Apple Inc. Built-in iSight
    Seagate Expansion Desk 4 TB
        EFI (disk3s1) <not mounted> : 315 MB
        WirelessDrive (disk3s2) /Volumes/WirelessDrive : 4.00 TB (639.60 GB free)
    Apple, Inc. Apple Internal Keyboard / Trackpad
    Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver
    Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub
        Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller
Configuration files: ℹ️
    /etc/hosts - Count: 14
Gatekeeper: ℹ️
    Mac App Store and identified developers
Kernel Extensions: ℹ️
        /Applications/Toast 10/Toast Titanium.app
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        /Applications/Transmit.app
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        /Library/Extensions
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        /Library/Parallels/Parallels Service.app
    [not loaded]    com.parallels.kext.prl_hid_hook (7.0 15106.786747) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.parallels.kext.prl_hypervisor (7.0 15106.786747) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.parallels.kext.prl_netbridge (7.0 15106.786747) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.parallels.kext.prl_usb_connect (7.0 15106.786747) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.parallels.kext.prl_vnic (7.0 15106.786747) [Click for support]
        /System/Library/Extensions
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    [not loaded]    com.avid.usb.mboxmini.driver (1.0.4) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.kensington.trackballworks.driver (1.1.1 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]
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    [not loaded]    com.mice.driver.Wireless360Controller (1.0.0d12 - SDK 10.8) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.mice.driver.WirelessGamingReceiver (1.0.0d12 - SDK 10.8) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.mice.driver.Xbox360Controller (1.0.0d12 - SDK 10.8) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.master (5.8) [Click for support]
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    [not loaded]    com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.panther (5.8 - SDK 10.-1) [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.snowleopard (5.8 - SDK 10.6) [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.paceap.kext.pacesupport.tiger (5.8 - SDK 10.4) [Click for support]
        /Volumes/WirelessDrive/from blue maxtor/unison downloads/mac apps/- Toast Titanium 7.0.1+sn./Toast Titanium 7.0.1/Toast Titanium 7.01.app
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Startup Items: ℹ️
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    PACESupport: Path: /Library/StartupItems/PACESupport
    Startup items are obsolete in OS X Yosemite
Launch Agents: ℹ️
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    [not loaded]    com.adobe.AAM.Updater-1.0.plist [Click for support]
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    [loaded]    com.adobe.SwitchBoard.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.ambrosiasw.ambrosiaaudiosupporthelper.daemon.plist [Click for support]
    [running]    com.cleverfiles.cfbackd.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.google.keystone.daemon.plist [Click for support]
    [running]    com.iobit.AMCDaemon.plist [Click for support]
    [running]    com.mice.360Daemon.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.microsoft.office.licensing.helper.plist [Click for support]
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    [running]    com.parallels.desktop.launchdaemon.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    PACESupport.plist [Click for support]
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    [running]    com.amazon.cloud-player.plist [Click for support]
    [running]    com.c-command.SpamSieve.LaunchAgent.plist [Click for support]
    [not loaded]    com.iobit.MacBoosterMini.plist [Click for support]
    [loaded]    com.valvesoftware.steamclean.plist [Click for support]
    [running]    ws.agile.1PasswordAgent.plist [Click for support]
User Login Items: ℹ️
    TextExpander    Application Hidden (/Applications/TextExpander.app)
    Dropbox    Application (/Applications/Dropbox.app)
    TrackballWorksHelper    Application (/Library/PreferencePanes/TrackballWorks.prefPane/Contents/Resources/TrackballW orksHelper.app)
    EvernoteHelper    Application (/Applications/Evernote.app/Contents/Library/LoginItems/EvernoteHelper.app)
Internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
    o1dbrowserplugin: Version: 5.41.0.0 - SDK 10.8 [Click for support]
    Unity Web Player: Version: UnityPlayer version 4.1.2f1 [Click for support]
    Default Browser: Version: 537 - SDK 10.9
    iLokClientHelper: Version: 3.6 - SDK 10.5 [Click for support]
    Silverlight: Version: 5.1.30514.0 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]
    FlashPlayer-10.6: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]
    Flash Player: Version: 16.0.0.305 - SDK 10.6 Outdated! Update
    QuickTime Plugin: Version: 7.7.3
    googletalkbrowserplugin: Version: 5.41.0.0 - SDK 10.8 [Click for support]
    SharePointBrowserPlugin: Version: 14.3.2 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]
    iPhotoPhotocast: Version: 7.0 - SDK 10.8
    JavaAppletPlugin: Version: Java 7 Update 51 Check version
User internet Plug-ins: ℹ️
    Picasa: Version: 1.0 [Click for support]
Safari Extensions: ℹ️
    Add To Amazon Wish List
    ClickToPlugin
    Evernote Web Clipper
    Evernote
    1Password
    AdBlock
    Awesome Screenshot
Audio Plug-ins: ℹ️
    Avid CoreAudio: Version: 10.2.0.68 - SDK 10.6 [Click for support]
    CallRecorder: Version: v2.5.10 - SDK 10.8 [Click for support]
    EcammAudioLoader: Version: 1.0.3 - SDK 10.8 [Click for support]
    DVCPROHDAudio: Version: 1.3.2
3rd Party Preference Panes: ℹ️
    A Better Finder Preferences [Click for support]
    Flash Player [Click for support]
    hueyPRO [Click for support]
    TrackballWorks [Click for support]
    Mbox Mini [Click for support]
    Perian [Click for support]
Time Machine: ℹ️
    Skip System Files: NO
    Mobile backups: ON
    Auto backup: YES
    Volumes being backed up:
        Macintosh HD: Disk size: 499.25 GB Disk used: 304.14 GB
    Destinations:
        Seagate Backup [Local]
        Total size: 1.50 TB
        Total number of backups: 111
        Oldest backup: 2012-07-09 06:02:13 +0000
        Last backup: 2015-04-21 17:59:31 +0000
        Size of backup disk: Excellent
            Backup size 1.50 TB > (Disk size 499.25 GB X 3)
        Data [Network]
        Total size: 3.00 TB
        Total number of backups: 101
        Oldest backup: 2013-11-04 08:49:28 +0000
        Last backup: 2015-04-22 21:00:05 +0000
        Size of backup disk: Excellent
            Backup size 3.00 TB > (Disk size 499.25 GB X 3)
Top Processes by CPU: ℹ️
         7%    WindowServer
         7%    Mail
         6%    Google Chrome Helper(30)
         5%    com.apple.coremedia.videodecoder
         3%    launchd(4)
Top Processes by Memory: ℹ️
    2.41 GB    Google Chrome Helper(30)
    731 MB    kernel_task
    287 MB    Mail
    238 MB    iTunes
    205 MB    Google Chrome
Virtual Memory Information: ℹ️
    181 MB    Free RAM
    7.34 GB    Used RAM
    0 B    Swap Used
Diagnostics Information: ℹ️
    Apr 22, 2015, 10:27:42 AM    Self test - passed
    Apr 22, 2015, 10:10:46 AM    /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/EvernoteHelper_2015-04-22-1010 46_[redacted].crash
    Apr 21, 2015, 03:36:36 AM    /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/com.culturedcode.thingsreminde rs_2015-04-21-033636_[redacted].crash
    Apr 20, 2015, 03:49:37 AM    /Users/[redacted]/Library/Logs/DiagnosticReports/com.culturedcode.thingsreminde rs_2015-04-20-034937_[redacted].crash

Do I need antivirus software for OS X 10.7.2? Have had Symantec NAV 11, but wonder if it slows older MacBook Pro (2007?), is necessary, is advisable.

I have a 2007 MacBook Pro with OS X 10.7.2. I have used Symantec NAV 11 in the past, but now they offer version 12 with considerably more security built-in, including firewalls. I'm worried about speed, since my computer has been slow. Is an anti-virus program necessary or advisable, or is it advisable to go without, and why? Thank you!

AV software is NOT necessary and NOT advised. They usually do more harm than good, in fact. I would remove it.

Using my boot hard drive from an older Macbook pro into a new one?

Hi,
I put my hard drive from my older Macbook pro 15" 2.16 Ghz Core2 Duo computer (Mac 10.6.4) into my new Macbook pro 2.4 GHz (2010) as my boot drive. Since then I've upgraded to 10.6.6 and everything seems fine.
My concern is that since my OS was installed on a different computer, I might not have all the proper drivers for my new machine. Can this be the case? Does the OS install all drivers for all models all the time? Sometimes I wonder if my graphics card drivers are installed because it seems slower than I expect, but the graphics card shows up in System Profiler.
Thanks!
Jason

You can resolve that by installing the 10.6.6 Combo Updater instead of the smaller incremental updater.
+BTW, you should never use a version of OS X that's older than the version that shipped with the computer.+

Optimising for two cores on an older macbook

I use an older macbook with snow leopard (not sure how old, but it has two cores) and I'm trying to get the most out of it as I can, because at times things run slowly (ever since I got SL, iTunes has been running prohibitavely slowly, Safari tends to freeze every so often and I use Sibelius, which can slow things down a lot during playback). I noticed that only the left side of my computer got hot when I was using it. I don't know much about the anatomy of a macbook, so would this be because that's where both cores are? Only the left fan tends to run (I use an application that allows me to control fan preferences), so it appears that only the left side is doing much. Now, I understand that the right side is probably all taken up by the CD drive, but if it isn't, would there be any way of fiddling with the software to enable both cores to be working away so things aren't so slow?

RAM is Random Access Memory. It looses its contents when you shutdown your Mac or loose power.
Storage, or for you, is your hard disk. Some newer systems have Solid State Disks (like a very fast USB Thumb drive ). It remembers its contents even when there is no power.
Virtual Memory is a trick that allows the computer to pretent it has more RAM than really exists, by allowing parts of a program's active data to be written to disk when not being used (paged out) and read back into RAM when it is needed again (paged in). You pay a price in time while waiting for the much slower disk to pageout/pagein data. This is a very simplified description of Virtual Memory, as it is far more complex and has uses beyond just allowing a small amount of RAM to run much larger programs.
As den.thed says, if you can add more RAM it is the best way to improve the performance of your current system. Check out Curcial.com and MacSales.com as 2 well recommended Mac RAM vendors. You can get instructions on how to replace the RAM from these sites and iFixIt.com
Another option is to consider the age of your Mac and decide is trying to improve its performance is worth it vs just buying a new Mac. Adding RAM is much cheaper, but will it make you happy, or will you then go out and buy a new Mac shortly afterwards?
Another performance enhancement that may NOT be worth the investment, would be replacing the current slow hard disk drive with a solid state disk drive, or getting a conversion kit that replaces the DVD drive with a solid state disk. The solid state disk would make loading programs faster, as well as any pagein/pageout activity would be faster. But the cost is such that you are starting to get closer to the cost of a new Mac which would come with lots more RAM and much faster CPU. So you have to figure whether such an investment is really worth it.

Cannot load backup onto older MacBook Pro

I own a early 2008 MacBook Pro and my mom owns a early/late 2011 MacBook Pro. Mine has recently been showing signs of slowing down a little bit and my mom asked if I wanted to switch computers since I will be going back to school and she rarely uses hers. Well we both backed up our computers on the AirPort Time Capsule and wiped our computers. Everything from my 2008 laptop loaded fine onto her 2011 laptop but when she went to load everything from her volume on the AirPort Time Capsule, it cannot find the volume. Is this because all of her files are going onto an older MacBook Pro? Both are updated to the newest software and everything. Anyone have any idea what is going on and how we can "Find" her backup and load it onto the 2008 computer? Thanks!

Mavericks can have issues. I presume you are attempting to migrate the infomation.
First mount the TC hard disk on the older computer in finder. You might need to do it manually. ie Go, Connect to server if the computer is having trouble seeing the TC drive at all.
Then it might not easily find the backup. Please ensure you have ipv6 turned on to link-local.
You also can have permissions issues. This can become very problematic.
In the end you may need to manually restore files, by mounting the sparsebundle in finder.
See Pondini Q17.. but please do read from 14-16 so you understand it.
http://pondini.org/TM/FAQ.html
Also the stuff on the home page about migrate is important albeit it is not up to Mavericks.
http://pondini.org/TM/Home.html

How to connect an older MacBook Pro with mini VGA port to HDMI?

I have an older MacBook Pro with a female mini VGA port. I would like to watch movies which have been downloaded to my laptop on my flat screen TV. Newer MacBook Pros have a mini DisplayPort for which Belkin makes a cable to use; however, I have not been successful in finding either an adapter or converter to use with my older laptop.
FYI. Am currently using Leopard but am upgrading to Snow Leopard.

I believe you naeed the Apple ADC to DVI adapter.

How do I uinstall Yosemite? It's not compatible with my older MacBook Pro, and I can't connect to my printer or use safari

How do I uninstall Yosemite? It's not compatible with my older MacBook Pro and I can't connect to my printer or access Safari

How to Downgrade OS X Yosemite Back to OS X Mavericks

I have an older macbook circa 09 and purchased a new macbook pro 2012. The older one has been backed up to an older time capsule. How do i move the files to my new macbook?

I have an older mackbook pro circa 2009, i thought it died on me it just went completely black. I later found out just a bad battery i purchased a new one in the interim. Now that i have discovered the problem i bought an older time capsule and backed up the older macbook i now want to transfer my personal files to my new macbook pro to maintain one personal mackbook. How can i move the files from my time capsule to my newer macbook pro?
thank you in advance for your help!!

http://manuals.info.apple.com/en_US/iphone_user_guide.pdf

I have an older macbook pro and the hard drive is starting to go (making loud noises). i tried to back up to an external hard drive (my passport essential se) using time machine and the computer keeps shutting down. suggestions to complete backup please?

I have an older macbook pro and the hard drive is starting to go (making loud noises). i tried to back up to an external hard drive (my passport essential se) using time machine and the computer keeps shutting down. the same thing happens when just trying to save my pictures from iphoto to a flash drive. suggestions to complete backup please?

Sounds like you'll need to access that drive while it is not booted. You need to replace it anyway, so do that, then one way or another (ext enclusure, et), access it and copy files.
If you keep trying to boot it, you might kill it for good and not get your files, so just swap it out first.

How do I disable airplay on an older macbook pro?

I have an older macbook pro (model is mid-2010) with Mountain Lion installed.
When my Apple TV is on, my computer keeps trying to connect to it via Airplay. But Airplay is not supported on my macbook pro and the sound stops working.
How do I disable my Mac from connecting to Airplay?

Do this test with the Apple TV on:
If you go into System Preferences > Sound > Output, which line is selected?
If the Apple TV is selected, can you select Internal Speakers? Will it stay on?
With Internal Speakers selected, do you get any sound output?

How do I restore a Time Machine backup from a newer MacBook Pro to an older MacBook Pro?

My MacBook Pro is in the shop and am using my older MacBook Pro in the meantime. I want to restore my older computer with the lastest backup from my newer computer, but I'm not able to see/access the backups from my newer computer - I can only see the backups from my old computer. Any suggestions?

That is probably due to the older computer being too old.
You can do a manual restore to a USB drive plugged into the computer. Then select the files you want.
See pondini Q14-17 on restore.
http://pondini.org/TM/FAQ.html
Particularly 16 and 17.
You tend to migrate from older to newer computer and OS.. and it is not going to work the other way around.

I have an older Macbook pro with a dvi output and I want to watch movies on my tv. I have a dvi to hdmi cable but the only image I get on my TV is my desktop background. None of my movie players with appear on the TV screen. What am I doing wrong?

I have an older Macbook pro with a dvi output and I want to watch movies on my tv. I have a dvi to hdmi cable but the only image I get on my TV is my desktop background. None of my movie players with appear on the TV screen. What am I doing wrong?

Hi Maryan,
Open System Preferences > Displays > select the window for you external monitor > click on the Arrangement tab and check the box next to Mirror Displays. It may be slightly different in Lion, but the idea is the same.

How do you connect an older macbook pro to your TV?

I have an older macbook pro and trying to find out what cable to buy to hook it up to my tv with an hdmi cable. i think its DVI but i dont know if its male, female. any help?

See -> About AirPlay Mirroring in OS X.
And you need to update your system software to Mountain Lion or later.
Good luck,
Clinton
MacBook Pro (15” Late 2011), OS X 10.??, 16GB Crucial RAM, 960GB M500 Crucial SSD, 27” Apple Thunderbolt Display

Video chat from older macbook pro (ichat) to new macbook pro

How can I video chat from an older macbook pro (2011) to a new macbook pro with retina second gen

You can't - but you can use FaceTime on the iPad and FaceTime on the Mac running Lion.

Slow, older Macbook

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