[chickenmommy]

I have googled the problem and tried the suggestions found. Problem is it still takes approximately 3 minutes for the little window with shutdown choices to pop up. Not terribly long, just long enough to wake me back up while waiting to shut down to go to bed. A little aggravating. I am running windows xp. I am also loaded with pictures at the moment that I haven't moved to disks yet. Could that slow it down?

ETA: It runs fine otherwise, quick and responsive.

 

[Rocky Fields]

Hey.

You may have too many programs open behind the scene. Cut down on how many programs automatically open at bootup.

RF

 

[pixelphotograph]

what Operating system are you running? XP VISTA OSX
if windows go to the start bar
go to Accessories
go to RUN
click on run
type "msconfig" without quotes
a window will pop up called the System Configuration
go to the STARTUP tab and vclick it
see what all is starting up when you start windows most of this if not all could be shut down or unclicked this can also help when shutting down.
If you could post a list of what all is running that would help and I can tell you what is safe to uncheck.

 

[chickenmommy]

OK, you asked for it. Here is the list. I looked a while ago and found it is written in clingon or something other than english. There is a bunch of it, too.
HPWuSchd2
PDVDServ
pctspk
DSentry
Hpi_monitor
atiptaxx
ati2mdxx
Apoint
AcctMgr
InCD
GoogleDesktop
jusched
ccApp
ashDisp
qttsk
Reader_sl
DSAgnt
Smartdesltopcalender
exec
Googletoolbarnotifier
ctfmon
nzspc
CfgWiz
Google Updater
HP Digital Imaging
HP Inage Zone Fastload
Kodak easyShare software
Microsoft Office

That is all of it. I do see a couple I recognize, but the majority is a big WHAT?

 

[naturewoman]

I'm running an old system with Win 98se on it. It is so bogged down, it won't shut down until I delete all temp files and most cookies, and even then, it sometimes goes into a wait mode.

In my case, it's just an outdated slow and overloaded system. I'd suggest getting those photos backed up and off the hard drive.

BTW, what advise did you get from googling it?

 

[chickenmommy]

Naturewoman,
here is one of the suggestions. I have no option of clear page file at shutdown so this one was a no go. Found at this website:

http://windowsxp.mvps.org/slowshutdown.htm

Some points to improve the shutdown times

Start Registry Editor and navigate to the following key:

[HKLM\SYSTEM\CurrentControlSet\Control\Session Manager\Memory Management]

Set ClearPageFileAtShutdown value to 0

Or, using Group Policy Editor [for Windows XP Professional]

Click Start, Run and type Secpol.msc
Click Local Policies | Security Options
In the right-pane, set Shutdown: Clear virtual memory pagefile to Disabled

However, this setting is not the only cause for slow shutdowns. Non-responsive programs and Services also contribute to slow shutdowns. If the problem is seen recently after installing a third-party driver or software, try a System Restore rollback to see if that resolves the slow shutdown problem.

The other suggestions on this page were for problems I am not having.

And at this site:
http://www.windowsnetworking.com/articles_tutorials/Troubleshooting-Windows-Shutdown.html

Probably the second most common shut down problem for Windows XP is that the shut down takes an excessive amount of time to complete. To understand why this happens, you must remember that the Windows operating system is not a single program, but rather a collection of individual services. Each of these services must be stopped during shut down. Therefore, a glitch related to any one of the services may prolong the shut down process or cause the shut down process to fail completely.

Many people have claimed that the Nvidia Driver Helper Service (used with Nvidia video cards) causes extremely slow shut downs. However, this is one of those cases in which an updated video driver usually solves the problem. Other people have mentioned that disabling the terminal services greatly expedites the shut down process. The Terminal Services are used for remote assistance, remote desktop, and fast user switching. If you do not use any of these features, then the Terminal Services can be safely disabled. You can access the services console by entering the SERVICES.MSC command at the Run prompt.

Another potential cause of slow system shut downs is that Windows contains an option to erase the system’s virtual memory and system hibernation cache at shut down. These security features are disabled by default because they take a long time to complete, and cause the system shutdown to look like it has frozen. Although these features are disabled by default, some privacy software will enable it.

To determine whether or not these features are enabled on your PC, enter the GPEDIT.MSC command at the Run prompt to load the Group Policy Editor. Now, navigate through the console tree to Computer Configuration | Windows Settings | Security Settings | Local Policies | Security Options. At this point, locate the Shutdown: Clear Virtual Memory Pagefile option in the column to the right and verify that it is disabled, as shown in Figure C. If this option is enabled, you can disable it by double clicking on the setting and choosing the Disabled option.

For all the info - click the link. It will take up too much space here.

I just googled slow shutdown and got a bunch of possibilities but most list problems I am not having like lingering on closing a particular program or error messages of some sort.

 

[snv1492]

You are loading just about everything on your computer at start up. You can uncheck everything I highlighted in red in the msconfig start up tab.

OK, you asked for it. Here is the list. I looked a while ago and found it is written in clingon or something other than english. There is a bunch of it, too.
HPWuSchd2
PDVDServ
pctspk
DSentry
Hpi_monitor
atiptaxx
ati2mdxx
Apoint
AcctMgr
InCD
GoogleDesktop
jusched
ccApp
ashDisp
qttsk
Reader_sl
DSAgnt
Smartdesltopcalender
exec
Googletoolbarnotifier
ctfmon
nzspc
CfgWiz
Google Updater
HP Digital Imaging
HP Inage Zone Fastload
Kodak easyShare software
Microsoft Office

That is all of it. I do see a couple I recognize, but the majority is a big WHAT?

After you deselect these in msconfig and reboot for the first time, a window will popup. Check the box and hit ok.

You might also have one or several viruses. 'qttsk' looks like a virus (it might be related to quicktime, but I don't think so), and 'exec' doesn't look good.

I can see you are running Norton anvitvirus. Update it and do a complete scan of your system.

You should probably also defragment if you haven't lately. You can do that by opening My Computer, RIGHT-clicking on the C: drive icon, and clicking properties. Defragementing is under the Tools tab.

here is one of the suggestions. I have no option of clear page file at shutdown so this one was a no go.

This is not the problem. The pagefile is cleared after the logoff window opens and you choose shutdown.

 

[Rocky Fields]

Hey.

I recommend you totally REMOVE the Google toolbar. It causes some computers to bog down.

RF

 

[donsgal]

OK, you asked for it. Here is the list. I looked a while ago and found it is written in clingon or something other than english. There is a bunch of it, too.
HPWuSchd2
PDVDServ
pctspk
DSentry
Hpi_monitor
atiptaxx
ati2mdxx
Apoint
AcctMgr
InCD
GoogleDesktop
jusched
ccApp
ashDisp
qttsk
Reader_sl
DSAgnt
Smartdesltopcalender
exec
Googletoolbarnotifier
ctfmon
nzspc
CfgWiz
Google Updater
HP Digital Imaging
HP Inage Zone Fastload
Kodak easyShare software
Microsoft Office

That is all of it. I do see a couple I recognize, but the majority is a big WHAT?

I would start by removing all things Google which is notorious for slipping a lot of "information" back and forth on the internet without you knowledge. That should help some.

Have you considered a restore from a previous restore point when the machine was faster. *note from the experienced*. They SAY that using the restore will NOT change programs installed recently -but it WILL. So make sure you have all the software you need to reinstall after a restore just in case it goofs it up.

That is the only solution I can come up with.

 

[naturewoman]

I have a question...when you say booting up at start-up, do you mean all the software on her list above is actually launching (like it's open on her desktop, or in her task bar), or is it just launching a shortcut?

 

[snv1492]

I have a question...when you say booting up at start-up, do you mean all the software on her list above is actually launching (like it's open on her desktop, or in her task bar), or is it just launching a shortcut?

Some programs completely start at boot up and run in the background, like antivirus software. Some load a small utility to help programs load faster. For example, adobe usually installs a program that preloads acrobat so that when you click on a PDF, is opens immediately. Microsoft Office does the same thing. These little utilities rob resources, and if you are not opening hundreds of PDFs or Microsoft documents, they don't benefit you any. Most people don't mind waiting the 5 or 10 seconds it takes to load Office or Acrobat for the first time. Also, after you close your PDF or Office file, those utilities continue to run if they are enabled at startup, unless you manually stop them in the task manager.

 

[naturewoman]

Thanks!

 

[chickenmommy]

I cleared out all the stuff that you said to clear out, and even removed some programs that I never use. Defrag often and use Avast, not Norton anymore because it was slowing down the computer too much. I have the tasks set to do all the maintenance during the day while I am away and leave the computer on, so I know all the maintenance gets done regular. I do have some things that I clicked to turn off and when all was done they were still working on their own. A complete virus scan says that there are almost 400 files that are password protected and can't be scanned and a few others that are corrupted and can't be scanned. It is shutting down like it should right now, but I think I need to see about those corrupted files and get rid of or fix them. Wish I could remember what they are so I could list them. I know one was a music match player. Beyond that--it's gone right out of my head right now for some reason. Thanks for the help so far. I know I will be back. Hope it is later than sooner!

Lesa

 

[Gary in ohio]

You might also check out http://www.tweakxp.com/article37045.aspx for help on shutdowns. Also why not just shutdown and walk away who cares how long it takes, machine should turn itself off, monitor can be turned off before the machine is down.

 

[chickenmommy]

You might also check out http://www.tweakxp.com/article37045.aspx for help on shutdowns. Also why not just shutdown and walk away who cares how long it takes, machine should turn itself off, monitor can be turned off before the machine is down.

Because I am waiting for the little window of choices of what I want to do. Shutdown, standby, hibernate, etc. When I walk away before that, it just goes away and the computer stays on. I know I can walk away after I make that
choice.

ETA:Thanks for the link, I'll see if it is something I can use.

 

[pixelphotograph]

qttsk is a trojan and needs to be removed you need to run a free program like spysweeper, spybot, adaware or some other free trojan removing program to see if you can find it and get rid of it. You computer could be infected with more junk we dont know about and that can surely slow down your system.

 

[pixelphotograph]

you could probably use a registry cleaner as well to clean things up that usually helps make your computer run a little faster as well.
Check downloads.com for a free registry cleaner that will run on your version of windows.

 

[naturewoman]

Pixelphotograph...thank you for your post on how to check for stuff that starts up at boot up. I just turned off my epson ink monitor status software, which causes my system to start up with a system error about half the time I turn it on...I have to actually power down the system to clear it every time. I can't even turn it off without a power down. Maybe now that won't happen any more.

 

[pixelphotograph]

glad it helped