Vista start menu lag....

[Ataraxia]

I still can't figure this out, have done various reformat and reinstalls, and it seems to come down to be a Vista problem. A fresh install of Vista has a very responsive start menu, but as I install more and more things, the start menu slows down!

Specifically, it is the All programs menu that slows down. When I mouse over items, or move cursor up and down, it doesn't respond very fast, and clicking on them usually has a 1 second delay.

This is driving me nuts, I mean... I have one of the most powerful laptops you can buy. (Core 2 Duo 2.0, 1.5 gb RAM, 7200 RPM drive, Mobility X1700, Readyboost etc)... and I get Start menu lag? What the hell is going on Microsoft?

 

[egale]

Ah the Start Menu lag. I suffer(ed) from that as well. One of the tips I received was to turn of indexing and Aero and all of the eye candy even though my machine should be powerful enough. It actually worked and the start menu became quick again.

I then started adding things back one by one hoping to find the setting or settings that were slowing things down. Unfortunately, I couldn't do it. I was able to add everything back and the start menu was still quick. A few minutes later it was slow again.

Now that I have had Vista installed for a while, the start menu is ok. I have re-enabled everything but have limited indexing. It seems like it takes a long time for Vista to index things and set up internally whatever it does. Eventually, it stops doing things that are resource hogs and your system starts behaving normally.

So I have no real solution only theories. In any case, my system is useable now. The only slowdown I find is that IE7 much slower than Firefox or Opera.

 

[Jaxidian]

It was unbearable with the betas and RCs. Full release is tons better, but by no means good. Unfortunately, I suffer from the problem still and I have no fix for it. 🙁

 

[Ataraxia]

Guys I found a fix... Install Vista 64 bit!

Oh my god... this thing FLIES compared to 32 bit. I am absolutely shocked, to be honest. It boots up a bit slower but literally everything is faster. Internet Explorer 64 bit (and 32 bit) loads pages INSTANTANEOUSLY... that is just insane.

I'm running Vista 64 bit Business, not going back! All my drivers work (no dedicated sound drivers, but Windows HD drivers sounds just fine).

 

[granny52]

I was given this tip on another forum & it worked really well.
Right click on start button>Properties>Start Menu>Customize
and deselect 'highlight newly installed programs'

I had also forgotten to reinstall the dual core optimizer for my AMD board, so not sure which one made the most difference, but now my start menu & subfolders open instantaneously.
Hope this helps.

 

[Pabster]

Originally posted by: Ataraxia
Guys I found a fix... Install Vista 64 bit!

Oh my god... this thing FLIES compared to 32 bit. I am absolutely shocked, to be honest. It boots up a bit slower but literally everything is faster. Internet Explorer 64 bit (and 32 bit) loads pages INSTANTANEOUSLY... that is just insane.

I'm running Vista 64 bit Business, not going back! All my drivers work (no dedicated sound drivers, but Windows HD drivers sounds just fine).

Yep. I encourage people to try x64 before dismissing it out of hand. Vista is really the first 64-bit OS to get it right. The driver support is superb.

As for HD Audio, I assume you have a Realtek chip? If so, Google around. Realtek has released several updated drivers for Vista (including x64) and they work great.

 

[HardWarrior]

Originally posted by: granny52
I had also forgotten to reinstall the dual core optimizer for my AMD board, so not sure which one made the most difference, but now my start menu & subfolders open instantaneously.
Hope this helps.

I've seen at least some indication that the optimizer isn't compatible with Vista. I've got it installed and haven't noticed any problems, yet.

 

[brownox]

I was given this tip on another forum & it worked really well.
Right click on start button>Properties>Start Menu>Customize
and deselect 'highlight newly installed programs'

I had also forgotten to reinstall the dual core optimizer for my AMD board, so not sure which one made the most difference, but now my start menu & subfolders open instantaneously.
Hope this helps.

I came here with the original problem listed in the forum, granny52's simple answer worked immediately.
Thanks.

 

[DirkGently1]

User Key: [HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Control Panel\Desktop]
Value Name: MenuShowDelay
Data Type: REG_SZ (String Value)
Value Data: 0-999 (milliseconds)

Always used this although i find it unnecessary on Win 7.

 

[BonzaiDuck]

. . . . .
This is driving me nuts, I mean... I have one of the most powerful laptops you can buy. (Core 2 Duo 2.0, 1.5 gb RAM, 7200 RPM drive, Mobility X1700, Readyboost etc)... and I get Start menu lag? What the hell is going on Microsoft?. . . . .

Did somebody miss this? Or do I not know what I'm talking about?

Sure -- the 64-bit OS opens up a bottleneck, and that's why I'll never return to any 32-bit OS.

But VISTA has bloat. Regardless the "minimum" hardware specification for running it, you'd best have something more than 1.5 GB RAM.

With 2 GB, I concluded that it was a slug. 4 GB is a whole different ball-game. What are the memory limits of that laptop?