PC constipated- help!

[rjb]

SC, I'm glad to see you've installed Chrome and like it well enough.
That makes life easier for me, as I'm writing this from a Chromebook.

I recommend you follow this link and install the h264ify extension to your Chrome browser:
https://chrome.google.com/webstore/d...ghkekgioiakgal

This makes Youtube stream video in a format your computer should be able to handle. Play some vids to see if performance has improved.

Now go ahead and disable the Shockwave Flash extension.

Assuming our screens are layed out the same way:
Click on the 3-bars at the far right of the toolbar ("Customize & Control Google Chrome").
About 2/3 down the menu, click "More tools", then "Extensions."
Scroll down and uncheck the "enabled" box for Shockwave Flash.

Try viewing videos with this configuration for a while. When you're satisfied that everything is still hunky-dory, go ahead and uninstall Shockwave Flash. You don't need no stinkin' Shockwave Flash. It's dead, gone, yesterday's news.

GL, rjb

PS- I don't like the wide-screen aspect ratio either.
It sucks for displaying full-page texts and drawings.

[Sea Chief]

It's perfectly useful and usable until you want to connect to the internet and do online stuff.
If you have stuff you can do off-line with it, then fine. As far as online, that is always evolving, and your machine can no longer keep up.
Maybe youtube has made some changes in the last 2 months that require more resources that you don't have.
If you want to stay online, you will need a newer machine. If not now, it's just a matter of time. A couple years ago I was still on dial-up and could get by. Now I'm on a 100 times faster connection, yet it only seems about twice as fast. There is so much more data on each page its insane. Video was something off in the "future" when XP came out. You won't be able to keep up with video or skype for much longer with an XP machine. The problems you are getting are proof of this.
And I hate widescreen too.

g1 you aren't the 1st the agree with me on the widescreen thing- a PC shop recentky I poked my nose into said exactly the same, in fact was mildly annoyed with them as I am whenenver I use Ma's to fix or update he antivirus.

I still dont understand why I need anything else than this. Ok I couldnt do skype.. but I've nnever used skype/ have no idea of it. Ok I cant do big-sneezes flight simulator pizza sessions (now come on thats funny- he's given me an 'infraction' for caling him big cheese!! poor lamb) but I dont do such mega-byte stuff either. Im very frugal with the www, and haven't or don't have any inclination to be anything else.

For 4 years Ive been using the same sites on this old XP square dell laptop. I dont have to wait to the next page (its 1,2,3 secs > there.. unlike 1-6 secs there with Ma's toshiba.. so in my eyes "mine's faster"! you cant disagree). I just have the thing on flat-out all most of the day mostly, inc overnight after Ive snoozed to cannibal holocaust; it runs like clockwork.

Why would I want to change it? prize it from my clammy sweaty hands you won't. And if you did, I'd go out & buy another for £30. If you gave me a widescreen, Id get in my car & drive to the sea. And then I'd throw it in the sea.

Thanks for the help chaps, SC.

[J M Fahey]

I still dont understand why I need anything else than this.

; it runs like clockwork.

Why would I want to change it?

Because it is:

PC constipated- help!

Why are you desperately calling help! otherwise?

Id get in my car & drive to the sea.

Cool !!!! PLEASE do !!!!!

And then I'd throw it in the sea.

**IT ??? **

You dissappoint me, just when I thought we had a solution to our problem

I bet I was not the only one.

Although thinking again, maybe you don't have a real problem after all, since you

Ive snoozed to cannibal holocaust

no big deal if you remember to snooze before the 23:15 minutes deadline

After all, who cares about how movies end? ... they are all the same

[John_H]

My PC is constipated please help its 'movements'. Old dell D600 XP (yes I know). IIRC 10gb HD + 500MB RAM.

Usually works tickety-boo for all I need eg hotmail, YTube, news, ebay, iplayer works tho never quite synced. IE nothing taxing.

Recently Youtube clips glitch, then all stop at 23.17.. weird. Also I get annoying pop ups regularly esp on YTube & eBay "shockwave.. blah blah..".

Any (helpful, not sarcastic &/ or mean please) replies much appreciated. Thx SC.

I congratulate you for nursing your old laptop along all these years. I gave up on my old Dell D610 about three years ago. It had double the RAM you have, and I think an 80 gig. hard disc. Windows had stopped supporting XP so security became an issue, and it was buggy, old, and slow.

This is the error msg I get,

"Warning: Unresponsive Plugin: Shockwave Flash may be busy or it may have stopped responding. You can stop the plugin now, or you can continue to see if the plugin will complete.

[Continue] [Stop plugin]"

Anyone familiar with this?

Yep, It's buggy, old and slow.

Ive googled the error mssg before the thread, read reams about do xy and z. But all i can see is my Adobe Flash player thing -is- up to date, so cannot update it (my adobe reader isn't, but that afaict isn't to do with "players".. and its far from easy to see how to update that anyway).

I have no idea what 'shockwave flash' means. Flash Gordon?

You refuse to research the problem, and then joke about it?

Im not sure what Im asking to enable.. what exactly? Im not clear on the flash player shockwave thing. I know the basics of a player is needed, but thats it/ this afraict is adobe flash. Ive no idea what shockwave is. Or what an html 5 is.

I just need to get the system I had, and have, ironed out. Nothing else: no changing to xyz system, or adding tens more GB, or getting a whole new PC.

Is there any simple steps I can take to eliminate the mssg, or make the flash player work properly?

Its been working absolutlely fine before (without any mention of the word "shockwave").. so its proven that I dont need any more than the 10Gb + 500MB I have. Yes in an ideal world Id have more, but I cant see why Id need it if it works.. as it has been for years totally fine until only ~2 months ago or so.

I'm sorry, but your computer has become obsolete.

I'm one of the grandkids. Serioulsy tho, I just dont know why anyone would wish to part with even $200 if it does the same as the XP one Im on here (IE does the same things I do on this/ I dont see any reason for myself doing anything more taxing than I do- I wouldnt suddenly start flight simulating or 'doing a games' or anything). In fact afaict, the eg you mention would likely have a wide-format screen making all text-based pages (8/10 I, or most Id say too use) significantly smaller than my square screen format, on which everything would be bigger and clearer to read (I know this as a fact from comparing to my Ma's modern toshiba I & she has to squint at to read- utterly hopeless/ I wouldnt put up with that for even a week it would drive me insane). Id honestly see it as a downgrade, regardless of the x5 or x10 GB size it would likely have.

This is degrading fast, and becoming very typical of your threads. Your lament falls on tired ears.

Hi g1. PC exactly the same.. now YTube stops at 23.08 i nstead of 23.17.

There must surely be a way of simply reverting back to how it was 2 months ago, without having to resort to the length of considering buying a new PC.

Re. the small text: yes I know there are magnifier things.. but my point was really re default/ stock form. To me it not an upgrade if the new PC is smaller on a basic text-based page (as most of the time we all look at on the www) than the prior PC. I call that a downgrade. I have enlarged Ma's text, but zooming in (as it effectively is) innevitably means a compromise in quality, images for eg are not sharp now. These wide format screens are a pathetic design I think for www (perfect -only- for films) & I wont have one in a month of sundays (main reason why I keep this fine old dell along with cost). A clear case of older = better.. like vinyl = better than cd, or cd = better than a download. No Q about it.

Other suggestions welcome. Why I get a shockwave mssg, or what on earth shockwave even is Ive no idea.. but I guesss its related to the flash player constipation. Thx SC.

I've never heard anyone complain that their display was too large. You can make the "window" any size you wish.

Could I have Chrome -and- firefox browser's downloaded.. then just choose close FF and open chrome for YTube/ plyaer stuff for eg? or would having chrome too overburden its memory banks.

Tbh Ive tried chrome & just dont like the format at all, unlike FF which I do (& runs perfectly smoothly getting me quicker from A site to B, or C page to D than my Ma's x10 more powerful toshiba.. leading me to think just having x10 more 'power' doesnt neccessarily = better performance, just mre capable/ IE more encompassing perhaps, but as do only untaxing stuff..)

Id rather not have a working player than get a x10 more powerful widescreen placcy modern capoota. me no likey. SC

I'm sorry, but your old computer is obsolete, and cannot effectively browse the internet anymore.

Hi rjb- it is a laptop. Is a PC a laptop? thought it was sorry if not clear. Anyway its a dell D600 with XP.

Battery is dead/ of no use even 5 secs (it was a refurb'd office LPC, cheap as chips but even with its minor issue- still unquestionably totally fabulous tbh, pref even to captain big-teee's fancy-schmanzy flight simulator one, as I envisage he has what with all his joysticks, screens & old pizza boxes & darkened windows already).

Yes, laptops are "Personal Computers". It's not a "minor issue", and for sure not "totally fabulous" Your computer is obsolete. Why are you attacking Terry?

Thanks g1 will go over your suggestions this week.. and try & implement them. I seem to recall I do get the odd update to which Ive always thought only sensible thing was 'yes please' rather than 'no way'. So maybe thats been my unstucking.

I did open rjb's link yes, but it was too complicated; I couldnt see any path to follow at all to do anything of purpose.

Gratefully, SC.

This looks remarkably familiar "but it was too complicated"

haha!! how can you get so upset?! how?!

I was the most gently-ribbing you, and you explode! absolutely hilarious big-tee(se.. oh how rude! oh how pathetic/ you get upset at that?! haha then I cant refer to you as anything else now, can I!).

I was joking that you should get one for goodness sake! (tho I still wouldnt have any wide one to mine as Ive said- square is far better, no Q about it, for text-based pages).. honestly such a sensitive soul big-teese.

Lighten up! name calling- honestly thats so utterly ridiculous. With a little boy's cartoon and a name like that.. & you get all upset at big-teehee, or big-teese ?! wow, what a man you are! hahahaha.

You just earned another infraction here.

But its perfectly useful thanks. Its absolutely superb, even with its tiny niggles. If you offered me one of big-cheeses (I can see his little face contort in a howling rage ) widey-schmidey, wizzy wang doodle tetrapods instead.. Id get up & throw it in the river. Honestly no way/ completely useless to me if Id be squinting and irritated in 2 mins flat, & the keyboard would be far inferior quality, & the screen would likely have a refelctive surface (-the- most stupid idea). No sense in any way shape or form that is a better laptop. No, thats much, much worse; this one I have is clear, big, is fast between sites & the pages that I use. What more do I need than that? nothing thanks.

Quit fooling yourself, and wasting everyone's time. Your old computer is unfortunately obsolete, and cannot effectively operate on today's internet.

[big_teee]

The last old square screen Laptop I had was my wife's Compaq Presario.
It would lock up on some firefox pages.
It would just sit there.
We passed it down to a small child to play word games on.
T

[rjb]

Hey SC,

Forget those nay-sayers.
Report back when you've got that Chrome extension installed (ref post #46).

[g1]

Isn't that pretty much the same extension that you recommended he try with firefox?
Because last time the response was "I did open rjb's link yes, but it was too complicated".

[elipsey]

turn off any automatic updates

I respectfully disagree. Turning off security updates is a false economy. If SC is going to get his credit card stolen to make his computer go faster, he might as well just buy better hardware. I agree with previous posters that more RAM is needed. This hardware configuration is marginal at best; however, some of us have to make do with what we have. If my hardware was not adequate and I couldn't afford better, I would probably start looking for a faster OS.

Just IMHO.

EDIT:

tickety-boo

Thank you SC for yet another delightful anglicism!

[big_teee]

I'm using the latest version of Firefox 45.
It uses HTML5 by default for Youtube.
Maybe all you need is a new Firefox version.
Mime type, is vp9, which is html5.
See Screen shot.

[g1]

turn off any automatic updates

I respectfully disagree. Turning off security updates is a false economy.

What does turning off automatic updates have to do with turning off security updates?
If you read that post, I stated to set it up so it asks first, rather than doing it automatically. This was mostly in the context of this scenario, partly because it's an XP machine, and partly because he is having issues.
Being in control of your updates means you can do them one at a time, and that enables you to undo it if you have a problem.
My personal preference is to be asked about all updates (op system or programs) no matter how new the machine. A lot of the flack about windows 10 is that it no longer allows notification of updates. Many people want to be in control of their machines. Additionally, for people who do not have an unlimited data plan, unwanted or unnecessary updates can cost money.
Anyway, I did not mean to imply in any way that people should turn security updates right off. Just the automatic delivery with no notification.

[big_teee]

Does XP still do updates, I thought it was unsupported?
T

[g1]

Maybe some associated stuff like internet explorer?

[Leo_Gnardo]

Does XP still do updates, I thought it was unsupported?
T

XP support ended 2014. I was given an old Compaq with XP, got all the updates up to the last when I fired it up last May. That's all she wrote, they ain't no mo'.

One of these days I may take a flyer & load it with a Lubuntu 15.04 disc I was given, what ya think Terry?

[g1]

I think you will still get the monthly "malicious software" scanner via windows update on XP.

[big_teee]

Sure load it up.
There are some versions that work good on old hardware.
You need to know if it is 32 or 64 bit.
You can put 32 bit software on both, but not 64 on a 32 machine.
DistroWatch.com: Put the fun back into computing. Use Linux, BSD.
Look down the right side of DW, it lists the top 100 linux Distros.
I've tried probably half of them, some work great, some I couldn't get to work at all.
GL,
T