Painfully slow

[watercool]

Hi all,
I have a Macbook Pro, bought new around 2 years ago. Just lately it has gotten very very slow. In every aspect, ie using software (mainly photoshop) and when using the internet.

I checked my disk space and I have just under HALF of my disk space left.
I've done some searches but I'm not very technical and need some help!

Any ideas on what I can do?

 

[raptor402]

Hi all,
I have a Macbook Pro, bought new around 2 years ago. Just lately it has gotten very very slow. In every aspect, ie using software (mainly photoshop) and when using the internet.

I checked my disk space and I have just under HALF of my disk space left.
I've done some searches but I'm not very technical and need some help!

Any ideas on what I can do?

How much RAM do you have (Apple > About This Mac)? Are you willing to shell out for an SSD?

 

[cheesyappleuser]

A good thing to do was run some benchmarks on your computer, but since you say your Mac is slow I'd start off with some HDD benchmarks.

 

[watercool]

Its OS X 10.6.8

4 GB 1067 MHz DDR3

I wondered if there was a way to see a list of biggest files on the computer?

Also, I changed my Photoshop preferences to be able to 'Undo' for a lot more times, it said it takes up more memory but does anyone know how?

 

[blueroom]

For Photoshop more RAM is desirable, and yes undos levels can take up loads of RAM.

 

[watercool]

I've just put it back down to 6. Does the Mac store old undo's?!

 

[jont-fu]

Consider installing OS X Mavericks. It is free and it did wonders to my 2009 Mac Mini. It has better memory management.

Installing a SSD drive would speed up your computer a lot, too, but they are still a bit expensive.

 

[johnnnw]

Probably running out of RAM and causing page outs.

Check the Activity Monitor and see what your free ram is when it gets really slow.

 

[watercool]

Its getting worse, it's taken me about 20 mins to get on to this page because everything is taking so long.

I've put a load of big image files on to my external HD but it's made absolutely no difference.

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[RVUnknown]

Use an app like FreeMemory (Its free I think). Or if the problem's still there maybe you should erase your laptop and install a fresh copy of an os on it. I clean-installed Mavericks onto my seldom-laggy Mountain Lion and right now I'm running without any lag.

 

[GGJstudios]

I wondered if there was a way to see a list of biggest files on the computer?

Having large files, or a large number of files stored on your drive will not affect performance, unless you're almost out of disk space. If you're having performance issues, this may help:

Performance Tips For Mac OS X​

Its getting worse, it's taken me about 20 mins to get on to this page because everything is taking so long.

You have a large amount of page outs, which indicate that you're maxing out your RAM. Begin by restarting your computer, then track your page out's under your normal workload, as page outs are cumulative since your last reboot.

 

[watercool]

Ahhh ok, that explains how I could use it this morning and it got worse and worse. I've now restarted and its working ok again.

 

[AlecMyrddyn]

Ahhh ok, that explains how I could use it this morning and it got worse and worse. I've now restarted and its working ok again.

Definitely looks like you are running low on RAM. If you can afford it, consider upgrading to 8 GB, you should be able to increase the number of undos that PS supports after doing so.

 

[watercool]

Think it would be wise to buy some extra RAM in the new year. Sorry to ask this complete newbie question but..how do I do that? Good place to buy from? I'm not keen on taking the mac apart myself.

 

[AlecMyrddyn]

Think it would be wise to buy some extra RAM in the new year. Sorry to ask this complete newbie question but..how do I do that? Good place to buy from? I'm not keen on taking the mac apart myself.

There are a few sites that can help identify the RAM you need and include installation instructions...

http://www.datamemorysystems.com
http://www.crucial.com
http://www.macsales.com

I don't know if any of them can ship to the UK reasonably, but they are good for looking up the specs of the RAM you need and how to install it so you can order it from somewhere local.

What's the exact model of MacBook Pro you have?

 

[Crzyrio]

I think this might be your HD speed. Instead of RAM you might want to consider an SSD. That will make a huge difference in speed, HUGE.

 

[AlecMyrddyn]

I think this might be your HD speed. Instead of RAM you might want to consider an SSD. That will make a huge difference in speed, HUGE.

Really? He has 4GB of RAM and his Activity Monitor showed that he was hitting swap pretty hard, and you focus on upgrading the HD to an SSD? I agree an SSD is a great upgrade, but when the reason the system is hitting the HD so hard is because it's low on RAM, you are treating the symptom, not the cause.

More RAM will prevent swapping, which means the HD speed is less of an issue.

OP, if you have the money to upgrade the HD to an SSD, it'll definitely help speed things up even more. But IMO, RAM will help you more for less money.

 

[Count Blah]

Yeah, what AlecMyrddyn said. More ram will help out tremendously with the OPs situation.

 

[goMac]

I think this might be your HD speed. Instead of RAM you might want to consider an SSD. That will make a huge difference in speed, HUGE.

According to the Activity Monitor screenshots, it's definitely the RAM.