Help!

[JanieB]

I recently purchased PTE. I've seen many slideshows, and decided to try my hand at creating some. I tried the trial version in the past, and it was quick and easy to use.

I have a different computer than the one I was using before, so I downloaded the program again. This time, the program runs extremely slow. For example, if I hit the Project Options button, it takes forever for the dialog box to pop up.

I tried uninstalling it, then reinstalling it. I tried older versions of the program. I tried turning off all other programs running at the same time. Nothing seems to make a difference.

I'm using Windows 98, and I have 128 mb of RAM. I'm not sure what other information you might need to know.

If anyone has any suggestions, I'd really appreciate it.

Janie

[nobeefstu]

Welcome Janie ,

First Thought :

Do you have some other programs that used to function normally and now RUN unreasonably slow also ?

Have you done all your WIN98 UPDATES and etc. WIN 98 CD initial install comes packaged with some "old versions" of IE and various other files.

[JanieB]

Hi nobeefstu,

All other programs are running normally.

WIN98 Updates? I'm not sure I've ever done that. I just recently got DSL, so that will make it a lot easier to do. I did just update IE recently though. Do you think that will help?

[nobeefstu]

Janie ,

There is a WIN 98 service pack 1 ... which contains fixes for the 98 CD release. The Win 98 SE CD has that sevice fix included ... so its patch is not required.

Make sure also all your DX (Direct X) files are also newer/current for your OS. You may also need the DX MEDIA FILES update pending what DX version you install.

These may not be creating your problem ... but you might as well get all your critical / system updates to assure proper functioning of your PC.

[Robert]

did you check your hd for virus and trojan

Robert

[JRR]

Just a thought or two...

Is 128mb RAM perhaps the issue ?

I would expect it to be an issue once a show was running, but maybe it is at the front end as well.

Another thought, have you tried RESTARTing the computer just before using PTE in case there is something hogging some resources after closing down some software.

I find my computer feels better if I restart it after using PhotoShop on some very large files. Not sure if PhotoShop is my problem, or other downloaded software, or just my computer....

[JanieB]

OK, all WIN98 updates are current (wooo hooo for DSL!). This hasn't changed the way PTE runs.

To JRR:

The slideshow I created runs fine. It's only the program itself that's slow. Even the cursor movement is sluggish when the program is up (but not if it's minimized and I'm working in another program). I have tried restarting the computer, then running PTE. That doesn't help. I haven't even considered trying to install PhotoShop with only 128 mb of RAM. One computer at work has double the RAM, and even so, PS barely runs correctly.

I'll check for viruses next.

Thanks for the suggestions. Any other ideas?

[nobeefstu]

JanieB

Strange issue ... since this seems only to be occurring with PTE that you know of

2 Things to Check some basic RUNNING PROCESSES :

1-Do a CTRL-ALT-DEL key action to see what PROCESSES are RUNNING prior to opening the PTE program ... then do the same key action after you open PTE ... verify any addition processes that shouldnt be running ... besides PTE.

2- Do a right click of My Computer (desktop ico) and verify in your System Properties/Performance that indeed 128 mb RAM is installed and reconized.

Well figure this out some how.

Note :

If things seem to look acceptable ... uninstall PTE (again) completely. Reboot/and do a ScanFile (Error Checking Status). Reinstall PTE ... but this time to a different location than your previous attempts.

[Guest guru]

Janie, I agree with Nobeefstu.

I wish only add a little suggestion: when you press Ctrl + Alt + Del, verify also the CPU usage and Memory usage.

It's very important, in my opinion, to uninstall PTE and reinstall it in a different path (e.g. C:\PicturesToExe instead of C:\Program Files\PicturesToExe). During the setup process you can choose any path.

[JanieB]

Checked System Properties, 128 MB RAM is working.

Did ctrl+alt+del - no additional programs were started after I started up PTE.

Uninstalled program, restarted computer, ran Norton WinDoctor (not sure what ScanFile is, it's not in my accessories). One error...fixed. Reinstalled to a different path.

Still the same problem.

Guru, I have Norton System Doctor...that will tell me CPU usage. But what am I looking for, when I ctrl+alt+del? I'm not sure I understand what you mean.

The program works as it is. Maybe I should just get used to working v e r y v e r y sloooowly.

[Guest guru]

You're right, Janie... Under Win 98, Task Manager doesn't show CPU and memory usage.

You can use Norton System Doctor (not Win Doctor) to see CPU Usage (under Sensors > System) and Used Cache (under Sensors > Performances).

P.S. - Since I have Italian version of Norton, the terms I used can be different - I tried an English translation, but I'm not quite sure about them!

[quietstorm]

Janie..

Try this too..sometimes this works with memory problems in Win98(SE)

add or change this to the system.ini and let windows manage the Virtual Memory!

[vcache]

MinFileCache=0

MaxFileCache=16384

[386enh]

ConservativeSwapfileUsage=1

MinSPs=8

Also have a utility for Win98 that displays CPU, physical memory, and swap file usage from CoolBeans if you are interested in it! (Much as I hate to "advertise" other software on other sites)

The link is :

http://www.barcin.net/downloads/sysinf02.zip (847 kb)

Hope these will help you

Bart

[alrobin]

Janie,

When all else fails, try de-fragmenting your HD.

[nobeefstu]

Yes

What Al mentions can sometimes resolve the most annoying quiks OS play on us Users.

Being that you have done a new OS install ... several new programs and updates ... its a good practice to DeFrag more often during these installations. Best to space out your new installs over several sittings and DeFrags ... this way its sorts things out more in a progressive manner, which helps to isolate troubleshooting issues. Some programs need to be installed proior to some others ... to make them function properly.

Question :

When you initially install PTE (to wherever) ... does the install also go unusually slow and with sluggish mouse movement ?

When you just double click to OPEN a .pte file extention (which should open by default in PTE main interface) .... is the slowness/sluggish still existing ?

You may want to try and download a new " PTE installer " from the website and try installing again. Anything that might work ... maybe your previous/ copies of PTE installer are somewhat creating your issues.

[JanieB]

Hi Everyone,

I usually defrag every couple of days. Did it again last night.

When I installed PTE, it went incredibly fast. No problems whatsoever. I tried double clicking a .PTE file. (I went through Windows Explorer to open it). It opened up the PTE program, which is when everything slowed down.

Actually, I think the problem may be with my processor. I was watching the CPU usage, and when I start using PTE it spikes up, sometimes as much as 99%. So perhaps that's the problem.

Quietstorm, your suggestion sounds...complicated. I'm not sure I know enough about computers to even find system.ini, let alone change it. That sounds like maybe a BIOS thing?

[Leif]

I tried double clicking a .PTE file. (I went through Windows Explorer to open it). It opened up the PTE program, which is when everything slowed down.

And does the same thing happen if you go the other way, i.e. open the .PTE file in PicturesToEXE instead of double clicking on it?

[Igor]

JanieB

I really apologize for this strange problem!

Please let me know:

1) Did it ever work quickly?

2) Please can you temporary turn off (5-10 minutes, during time of testing) all resident utilities such as Norton Anitivirus, Norton Internet Security, Norton Utilities? And check up PicturesToExe again.

3) Can you allow us to send you special test variants?

My email address is igor@wnsoft.com

Thanks,

[Guest guru]

After this Igor's reply, there are actually few things to say. But I wish to reassure Janie about the health of processor. When you start a program - almost all programs - the CPU usage jumps usually an instant to 100%, then comes down again to normal values. This is quite normal.

[JanieB]

Ta Da!! I got it working right. Apparently, something was running in the background that was hogging resources. I thought I had turned everything off before, but maybe I missed something.

So thank you all for your help. I'm off to create some slide shows now!

[Igor]

Thanks for good news