CPU Utilization - 50% while doing nothing?

[Tanked]

Unless the Win98 SE system monitor is very innaccurate, I get about 50% utilization while sitting on the desktop; it DROPS to about 20% while running an MP3; and it DROPS even more while web browsing. Should I just ignore the silly thing?

 

[Tanked]

Bumpppp

 

[KennyH]

Which mobo are you using? Did you do a bios update?

 

[LuckyTaxi]

hmmm...virus scan?

 

[RSI]

Do you play many games?

-RSI

 

[sandorski]

Mine does that too, according to whatever monitor is used by the Litestep theme I'm running. Weird thing is, if I move my USB trackball the cpu utilization drops 10%. I think the cpu utilization monitors that we're using are inaccurate.

Just do what I do, run SETI and UD 24/7 and the monitor will correctly display 100% cpu utilization! 😀

 

[earthman]

What tasks do you have running? Try closing tasks and see if the value changes, if it does, you found the culprit. If you have MS offfice installed with Find Fast, that is an example of a notorious system hog.

 

[Coolone]

some viruses make your CPU compute useless stuff, you may want to do a scan

 

[madthumbs]

It "could" be caused by running ram at the wrong cas or CL setting.

 

[nightowl]

I think that the system monitor in Win9x is just inaccurate with faster processors. On my 233mmx the CPU usage idles around 0-3% when doing nothing. Now, on my Duron 650 with a fresh install of Win98 the CPU usage idles around 20-30%. Now, running under Win2k my Duron now idles around 1% CPU usage.

 

[nightowl]

I think that the system monitor in Win9x is just inaccurate with faster processors. On my 233mmx the CPU usage idles around 0-3% when doing nothing. Now, on my Duron 650 with a fresh install of Win98 the CPU usage idles around 20-30%. Now, running under Win2k my Duron now idles around 1% CPU usage.

 

[Tanked]

I have an Epox 8K7A+ with an Athlon MP 1.2 GHz...I have the latest BIOS and have done a virus scan. I was transferring files from another computer, and while it was transferring, CPU utilization DROPPED to about 50% (from 90% Idle), then when it finished transferring, utilization shot back up.