scrolling and typing delay issues - thiking video card

[mojave08]

So 1 of the workstations here in the office is a late 2005 Quad core PowerPC G5 running 4 gigs of RAM.

The user is starting to complain about delayed scrolling and typing. At first i thought it was just Word but after investigating further i discovered that it happens in Numbers as well. what i also discovered is that it starts to happen as the documents grow and get "heavier".

So at first i thought RAM. but 4 gigs is pretty good. I then did some testing of my own and found that 1 monitor experienced the issue way more intensely then the other using the same document. So now I'm thinking video card.

Before i go and spend 100 to $200 on a card i wanted to through this out there and see if anyone else has any thoughts??

any thoughts / advice appreciated

thanks

 

[skinniezinho]

cooling issues?either from the video card or the computer?try this
Have you repaired permissions and so?

 

[MacHamster68]

open the PowerMac and look for leaks as quickly as possible , dont just look for the green liquid, look for what looks like white dust where the heatsink and processor join

http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/systems/G5_CoolantLeak_Repair/G5_CoolantLeak_Repair_p1.html

 

[mojave08]

i had cooling issues with that machine in the past and have hit it with a data vac already. so if anything in that picture was there is probably isn't anymore.

It use to sound like a jet plane taking off every once in a while. after the vacuum that stopped.

I will crack her open and take a peak anyway.

thx

edit: ok so apparently it does still do the "jet plain thing" but no where near as frequently. Im going to open it up in a little bit.

edit2 - i see no evidence of a coolant leak. no rust. no moisture. no "white rice". nothing out of the ordinary as far as that goes

 

[CubeHacker]

Did this just start happening recently? Do you have another G5 mac of similar caliber around to test the same document on? Its possible that its simply the G5 getting bogged down due to the complexity of the file, and is "normal".

 

[mojave08]

Did this just start happening recently? Do you have another G5 mac of similar caliber around to test the same document on? Its possible that its simply the G5 getting bogged down due to the complexity of the file, and is "normal".

I do have 1 machine with similar specs i will try it on. The big difference on the other machine is it has a ton more RAM.

I'll see what happens...


edit: so no issues on the other "similar" machine. Differences in specs:
Machine in question:
2.0 Quad core G5
1 Gig Bus speed
4 Gigs RAM

"similar" machine tested:
2.5 Quad core G5
1.25 Bus
10.5 Gigs RAM

perhaps my original thought of not enough RAM?

 

[Nameci]

If the file is too big, the system will write to your disk instead of your ram which could not accomodate it anymore. Take note it takes more time to access the data on a spinning platter than on the transistor on the ram.

 

[mojave08]

yea understood

I'll check the paging files again although i didn't see anything out of the ordinary last time i checked the activity monitor but i am little new to this stuff so maybe i misinterpreted or didn't look at it at the right time.

I'll add another 4 gigs of RAM - even if its not it it cant hurt

 

[CubeHacker]

Also keep in mind that there is no such a thing as a 2.0ghz quad core Powermac G5. All 2.0ghz models were either dual CPU or dual core - but either way only 2 cores. Thus, a 2.5ghz Quad G5 will have twice the amount of cores, not even taking into account the extra 500mhz on each core. Now whether or not this makes a difference depends on how multithreaded your application is.

 

[mojave08]

Also keep in mind that there is no such a thing as a 2.0ghz quad core Powermac G5. All 2.0ghz models were either dual CPU or dual core - but either way only 2 cores. Thus, a 2.5ghz Quad G5 will have twice the amount of cores, not even taking into account the extra 500mhz on each core. Now whether or not this makes a difference depends on how multithreaded your application is.

ya know what.. you right (but u already knew that)

i could have sworn i saw 2.0 Quad core when i looked up the ID. but it is in fact only a dual core... hmm... maybe im just asking too much of the old girl