Naked Science Forum
Non Life Sciences => Geek Speak => Topic started by: PmbPhy on 28/11/2014 21:51:20
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The title states the problem. It's really bad. The computer's only a few months old too. I ran Norton and Malwarebytes Anti-Malware and cleared all problems and its still a problem. How do I find out what the problem is and fix it? The keyboard is wireless and I think it started when I started using the new keyboard. Or at least it got severe at that point.
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What programs are you experiencing the problem with? Are you surfing the web at the time?
I have the problem with some websites. It is annoying because one website puts the "return" out of order. Personally, I believe that FLASH is very very inefficient.
Anyway:
How much memory do you have?
Are you running a 64 bit operating system?
Do you hear the hard drive thrashing during these episodes?
Bring up your memory manager and check how much free memory you actually have vs swap usage. Also check the CPU usage.
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What programs are you experiencing the problem with? Are you surfing the web at the time?
It happens with all software e.g. the web, MS-Word, e-mail, etc.
Anyway:
How much memory do you have?
16 GB Ram
Are you running a 64 bit operating system?
Yes. Windows 8.1. My computer says of itself
"System Type: 64-bit Operating System, x64-based processor"
Do you hear the hard drive thrashing during these episodes?
No. It's very quite.
Bring up your memory manager and check how much free memory you actually have vs swap usage. Also check the CPU usage.
It says 15.2 GB usable.
My old system was very slow like this and my computer guy told me it was because I have so little RAM. So when I was deciding on what computer to buy I decided to buy one with as much RAM as possible.
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Hmmm
It sounds like you have more than enough memory.
Are the letters actually appearing on the screen, or is it skipping letters? If you think it is the keyboard, it never hurts to try a generic corded keyboard.
What about CPU load? If you have a multi-core CPU, is one core getting slammed?
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Topic: computer problem - severe delay between typing and it . It's really bad. The computer's only a few months old too. ... How do I find out what the problem is and fix it? The keyboard is wireless and I think it started when I started using the new keyboard. Or at least it got severe at that point.
That sounds like the computer could be busy (swamped) doing something else in the background, e.g. trying to download Windows updates , ( it can get stuck in a loop doing that ).
+1 for CliffordK's suggestion to have a look at what the CPU is doing, via Windows "resource monitor (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_Monitor)" , [ when only looking at thenakedscientists webpage the CPU should average below 5% , unless the computer is doing something else in the background ] .
Microsoft's instructions on how to see the "resource monitor"...
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows7/open-resource-monitor
[ I'm assuming you've tried new batteries in the wireless keyboard ]
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That sounds like the computer could be busy (swamped) doing something else in the background, e.g. trying to download Windows updates , ( it can get stuck in a loop doing that ).
That was the first thing I checked and it was all very small.
+1 for CliffordK's suggestion to have a look at what the CPU is doing, via Windows "resource monitor (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_Monitor)" ,
I have Windows 8.1 which doesn't have a resource monitor. Windows 7 comes with it, not the one I have.
[ I'm assuming you've tried new batteries in the wireless keyboard ]
The keyboard is only a few weeks old. Besides the problem is intermittent. If it was the batteries then it'd be a constant problem.
Thanks anway. :)
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+1 for CliffordK's suggestion to have a look at what the CPU is doing, via Windows "resource monitor (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_Monitor)" ,
I have Windows 8.1 which doesn't have a resource monitor. Windows 7 comes with it, not the one I have.
OK , Windows 8 does have "Task Manger" which shows a CPU graph ...
[ Invalid Attachment ]
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Task_Manager
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows7/open-task-manager (http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows7/open-task-manager) [ press "Ctrl+Shift+Esc" keys simultaneously, then click on "performance" tab to see CPU graph].
[ I've got a computer with windows 8 , (not 8.1) , and I'm certain it does have resource monitor , but I'm not using it at the moment so I can't check ...
" Resource Monitor ... Included with Windows Vista, Windows 7, Windows 8 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Resource_Monitor)" ]
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I've been Microsoft-Free for quite some time. But, they'd have to seriously break things if the task manager was removed.
Try Ctrl-Alt-Delete, and see if you get an option for task manager.
Of course, real-time monitoring is only important when the problem is actually occurring.
If the problem is intermittent, it still could be either the keyboard, or your PC just thinking it is too busy to listen to you. Your antivirus might also be triggering a system scan or something too.
You should have the task manager screen that RD posted, as well as the "processes" tab that will give you memory usage and CPU usage for each process. You used to be able to customize the displayed columns to show things like file access.
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I've been Microsoft-Free for quite some time. But, they'd have to seriously break things if the task manager was removed.
Try Ctrl-Alt-Delete, and see if you get an option for task manager.
Of course, real-time monitoring is only important when the problem is actually occurring.
If the problem is intermittent, it still could be either the keyboard, or your PC just thinking it is too busy to listen to you. Your antivirus might also be triggering a system scan or something too.
You should have the task manager screen that RD posted, as well as the "processes" tab that will give you memory usage and CPU usage for each process. You used to be able to customize the displayed columns to show things like file access.
I've been using Task Manager all along. I thought that RD was talking about a special program called "resource manager" which I don't have.
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wherever you're getting the CPU graph from, this is what one looks like when the computer is idle ...
[ Invalid Attachment ]
If CPU is spending most of the time above say about 15% then it's actively doing something, which will be listed in "processes" tab of task manager.
In my case the CPU would have to be constantly at about 50% before my computer would ignore the keyboard.
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I've been using Task Manager all along. I thought that RD was talking about a special program called "resource manager" which I don't have.
It's not important , but there's a link to "resource monitor" in the small-print on the Windows 8 "task manger" ...
[ Invalid Attachment ]
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In any case none of this has led me to solve the problem. Thanks anyway guys.
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This seems useful - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2665220
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This seems useful - http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2665220
That cure is specific to Internet explorer {8} : it wouldn’t explain keyboard sluggishness on software which does not require an internet connection , like MS-Word.
The point of looking at the CPU was to see if it is constantly running very high (~50%) when it should be idle ( below 5%).
If the CPU is not high when the wireless keyboard is unresponsive I’d try a wired keyboard , or a virtual on-screen keyboard, which Windows 8 does have built-in ...
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-8/type-with-the-on-screen-keyboard (http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-8/type-with-the-on-screen-keyboard)
If a wired or the on-screen keyboards work OK then the problem is specific to the wireless keyboard.
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That cure is specific to Internet explorer {8} : it wouldn’t explain keyboard sluggishness on software which does not require an internet connection , like MS-Word.
It was too complicated for me to follow anyway. Thank you my good man. :)
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The point is that you need to do some sleuth work.
If the problem first started occurring when you installed the wireless keyboard, then unplug the wireless and plug a wired keyboard back in, and see if the problem continues.
If it is unrelated to the keyboard, then you'll need to start evaluating what your computer is doing when it should be listening for keyboard responses.
That "fix" you found probably won't hurt. Just follow the "fix it for me" links.
I find with my habits of opening multiple windows that Firefox ends up taking way more memory than it should, and drags my whole computer to a halt. But, I don't have 16 GB of RAM (maybe my next PC).
Windoze updates can be a culprit if the problem is intermittent, especially if it occurs at about the same time every day. I often turn off my auto updates then manually run them every few months. Your antivirus and anti-spyware programs can also be set to do updates or scans at the wrong time of day too.
Most of these issues will show up in your task manager, either as high memory usage, high CPU usage (which can be a single core pegged), or high disk usage.
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... I often turn off my auto updates then manually run them every few months.
Rather than turning updates off there is another option ...
"check for updates but let me choose whether to download and install them " ,
which is my preference , you get a notification telling you updates are available, but no update/s is/are downloaded until you authorise it ...
http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/change-windows-update-installation-notification (http://windows.microsoft.com/en-gb/windows/change-windows-update-installation-notification)
When the new Windows 8 computer was first attached to the internet it would have several months of updates to catch up on , 100's of megabytes of data.
The default setting is to download all updates automatically , without asking your consent. My suggestion is change windows update setting to "check for updates but let me choose whether to download and install them " , then only select a few updates from the backlog to download one go, a few tens of megabytes, ( a digestible amount ) , rather than attempting to download the entire backlog, 100's of megabytes, of updates in one go, ( which it could choke on ).
You should install all the recommended updates Microsoft sends you , as they fix security vulnerabilities.
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You should install all the recommended updates Microsoft sends you , as they fix security vulnerabilities.
You mean they didn't fix all of the security vulnerabilities a decade ago with Windows XP?
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Do you have a good solid wired internet connection fibre optic to be preferred, have you tried any other operating systems such as windows 7 or even olde worlde XP and have you reverted to a wired keyboard wireless ones can be a bit eccentric.
How about an on screen keyboard is that any better.
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Do you have a good solid wired internet connection fibre optic to be preferred, ..
There's nothing wrong with the hardware. I was a very good electronics technician in my day and the entire system is brand new. I know the hardware is fine.
have you tried any other operating systems such as windows 7 or even olde worlde XP and have you reverted to a wired keyboard wireless ones can be a bit eccentric.
I don't have any other operating system than Windows 8.1. I have to find out what's wrong with it now because in case it happens again I need to know what to do. I'll try a hardwired keyboard and see what happens.
How about an on screen keyboard is that any better.
Impossible. That'd require buying a monitor that allows the user to do that.
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How about an on screen keyboard is that any better.
Impossible. That'd require buying a monitor that allows the user to do that.
You don't need a touch screen monitor to use an on screen keyboard .
You can use a mouse-cursor to operate the onscreen keyboard that comes with windows 8, see the microsoft link ... http://windows.microsoft.com/en-GB/windows-8/type-with-the-on-screen-keyboard which shows a video of the on-screen-keyboard, ( about 1 minute into the video ).
Not suggesting you use the on-screen-keyboard permanently , it's just a way of testing if your keyboard problem is specific to the wireless keyboard , if that is the case it won't occur with the on-screen-keyboard if you use a wired mouse or touch-pad to move the cursor to press the on-screen keys.
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You don't need a touch screen monitor to use an on screen keyboard .
I see. I was unaware of that. Thanks.
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Bluetooth is dodgy at the best of times, particularly in a heavily bluetoothed environment or in the presence of cell phones. In the case of a wireless keyboard I suspect there is a lot of handshaking and parity checking to ensure that the computer is displaying what you think you wrote, so it can be very slow in the presence of noise. We have interesting problems with "wireless radiography" where the image receptor is trying to shift several megabytes to the display whilst the surgeon (it's always a surgeon) is trying to book his golf appointment.
Or does the text appear in chunks? That would suggest some other function is taking priority within the computer. HD porn transmissions from the Vatican can load the RAM and damage your mind.
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alancalverd
I get the impression that you are in the medical profession, Do you find it frustrating and wish that like we who only work with computers you could do a complete reformat and start again on the patients ?
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Medical physics, actually.
Not frustrating - at least not in the labs and clinics, though admin is another matter. I find the processes of life, disease, injury, healing and death very interesting. If I thought we could just switch off and reboot when things go wrong, I'd lose the thrill of the chase and the intellectual exercise of balancing risk and benefit.
You can rework a hip implant if it malfunctions, and the equation is fairly straightforward, but should you rework a functional cochlear implant because the next generation has a superior performance, or because the external hardware is obsolete? Indeed given the probability of obsolescence - I am older than the transistor, never mind the integrated circuit, and I was well into my thirties before digital signal processing became feasible - is it ethical to implant an electronic device in the cochlea of a profoundly deaf 2-year-old?
Rebooting the brain, however, does seem to work. I'm presently intrigued by the story of a woman whose vestibular system was destroyed but has learned to balance and walk again by some kind of reprogramming, intially by an accelerometer, and now it seems by recognising neural baroreceptor signals.
None of which is helping Peter improve his typing speed!
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None of which is helping Peter improve his typing speed!
Predictive typing is faster ...
http://www.beingbrunel.com/predictive-text-in-word/ (http://www.beingbrunel.com/predictive-text-in-word/)
but creates new types of errors ... http://fanappic.com/15-most-hilarious-auto-corrects-gone-wrong/ (http://fanappic.com/15-most-hilarious-auto-corrects-gone-wrong/)
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I apologise for drifting too much off track
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I'm trying to fix it using this: http://support.microsoft.com/kb/2665220#LetMeFixItMyselfAlways
However it says:
For 32-bit Internet Explorer on 32-bit Windows or 64-bit Internet Explorer on 64-bit Windows
installations:
...
For 32-bit Internet Explorer on 64-bit Windows installations:
...
How do I determine which of these I'm running?
It also says
3. Create a new DWORD called
iexplore.exe
and set its value data to 0x00000000(0).
How do I do this?
It also says this as well
If after creating the registry key you want to re-enable connectivity events, set the value for
iexplore.exe
to 0x00000001(1).
Again, how do I do this too? Thanks.
Thanks for your help everyone. It's been a pleasure. :)
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If after creating the registry key you want to re-enable connectivity events, set the value for
iexplore.exe
to 0x00000001(1).
Again, how do I do this too? Thanks.
You're asking how to modify the windows registry (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Windows_Registry) , which is critical to the computer's operation : if you modify the wrong thing in the registry the computer can become totally inoperable.
It shouldn't be necessary to modify the registry to solve your problem.
Modifying "iexplore.exe" relates to Internet Explorer internet browser,
any modification there won't fix problems encountered on other programs like Microsoft word-processor.
If you must modify the registry, the tool to do that is regedit (http://support.microsoft.com/kB/256986) , but IMO do not change anything in the registry : risk without benefit in this case.
That your computer is not paying enough attention to the keyboard sounds like it is busy doing something else, if that is the case it should show up in "processes" tab of task-manager as a process using a lot of CPU , ( say constantly at about 50% CPU even when the computer should be idle ).
If the CPU is not running high then it's probably a problem specific to the wireless keyboard , this Microsoft page looks relevant ...
Troubleshoot response failures in wireless keyboard or mouse
http://support.microsoft.com/kb/838398
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Thanks, RD. I'll take your advice and leave it alone. I don't want to mess with that stuff for fear of really messing it up.
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Have you checked the settings for the keyboard "typing stroke delay"(basically speed and repeat speed-hold down) in the control panel for the keyboard. You may need to first install the keyboard driver for the OS to properly understand it, as much the transmission terminal.
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I am sorry to butt in but was just wondering, PmbPhy what is your hard drive? Is SSD or the older type?