08-12-2006, 11:35 AM

My Powerbook is running osX 10.4.7. and Safari 2.0.4(419.3). I just installed the latest update of Firefox. They are both running so incredibly slow that I have to post this on my PC. The Powerbook and PC (Gateway laptop) run off the same wireless Linksys router connected to a PC desktop.

This problem just started about 2 weeks ago. Before that the Mac was fast. I searched this forum and only found questions about the OSX running slow. And the answers I did find on this and other sites all say the same thing, 'clear history, cookies, icons folder, and so-on. I installed SafariSpeed and that helps a little but only after I've already visited the site. On first load it is still unbearably slow.

So, could this be a problem between the router and my Powerbook? Like I said, the Gateway is fast and Firefox runs great off the same router.

Sorry for the long read, and thanks for any input. This is really driving me nuts ! I would rather be using the MAC!!

08-12-2006, 11:42 AM

Repair your disk premissions.

08-12-2006, 12:11 PM

Originally Posted by macdillon

Repair your disk premissions.

Wow. I should have tried that first. Thank you! What exactly does that do?

08-12-2006, 12:44 PM

When you say SLOW are you talking about the loading speed of sites you visit? How much slower is the Mac Vs the PC. A minute? Seconds?

08-12-2006, 12:51 PM

Originally Posted by dtravis7

When you say SLOW are you talking about the loading speed of sites you visit? How much slower is the Mac Vs the PC. A minute? Seconds?

Yeah, the loading speed. It is/was about 30 sec slower where the PC was pretty much instant. I just did the disk permissions and that seemed to help both browsers. Still isn't quite as fast as it used to be.

08-12-2006, 03:20 PM

Try getting rid of firefox, does that speed up safari?

08-12-2006, 06:06 PM

Well it turns out it actually isn't faster since repairing the disk permissions... at first it seemed to help a little but I jumped the gun.

I don't actually have Firefox installed, I just open the installer, and run it off the icon (when it tells you to drag it to Apps folder) then I eject Firefox when I'm done. So, technically, I don't think it's installed.

I'm really starting to think this has more to do with my Airport Extreme. Does anybody know of any tricks with them? All the other computers in my house load the internet at normal speeds, and at school my Mac is just as slow.

08-12-2006, 07:04 PM

If you think it might be the Wireless, can you hook your Mac up with a Cat-5 cable direct and see if it speeds up at all? That would tell you if it was the Airport or not.

08-12-2006, 08:57 PM

Whenever there are speed problems with a wireless setup, the first thing you should do is to powercycle your setup.
If you aren't sure how to do this or even what it is, do a search on the forum as there are quite a few threads that explain it.
:black:

08-12-2006, 10:24 PM

Originally Posted by dtravis7

If you think it might be the Wireless, can you hook your Mac up with a Cat-5 cable direct and see if it speeds up at all? That would tell you if it was the Airport or not.

o.k. I hooked it up directly with cat5 cable and it is still slow. Are there other tweeks for Safari that might work? Did anybody else ever have problems with Safari running slow? What worked for you?

I will search the powercycle thingy too...

08-15-2006, 02:15 PM

Just a quick update, It is still running terribly slow and I even tried Opera which proceeded to crash. Could it be the computer itself? Sometimes Finder seems to lag a little. Is there something comparable to defragging on the mac?

08-15-2006, 02:17 PM

Originally Posted by 5litreLX

Just a quick update, It is still running terribly slow and I even tried Opera which proceeded to crash. Could it be the computer itself? Sometimes Finder seems to lag a little. Is there something comparable to defragging on the mac?

Opera 9? I use it all the time and it's very stable. Something is wrong somewhere.

08-15-2006, 02:20 PM

Open up activity monitor and see what your memory and processor usage is saying

08-15-2006, 03:00 PM

Originally Posted by dtravis7

Opera 9? I use it all the time and it's very stable. Something is wrong somewhere.

Actually I was running Opera 6, but have since downloaded 9.01. It seems to be a lot faster. I also downloaded that little Stay Secure browser widget. it says Safari is currently more vulnerable than IE. Does Opera offer a Bookmarks Bar like Safari? Man, I really liked Safari too. My favorite browser so far. I might be able to get used to Opera though, especially if it continues to run fast.

08-22-2006, 11:39 PM

Just wanted to update this post. Turns out it was my wireless router. I had a Linksys WRT54G which I had problems with in the past. I tried to do a firmware upgrade and sure enough it completely locked it up. I called Linksys and they determined the router was shot. So I bought a Belkin Pre N (pn# F5D8230-4) and WOW! What a difference! Now I can enjoy Safari again...