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shrink analysis acting weird
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fishbulb
Member
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17. March 2007 @ 09:40 |
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the last few times ive run a dvd thru shrink, on the video preview the image will run for a second then pause, run then pause, etc. it does this all the way thru even in the encoding. anyone else seen this happen? it doesnt seem to be affecting the results. just seems to slow down the process. i uninstalled and reinstalled it but get same results.
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Senior Member
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17. March 2007 @ 10:17 |
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Sounds like something else is also running in the backround while shrink is doing it's thing stealing CPU time. Try to shutdown all running apps while using shrink.
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onya
Suspended permanently
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17. March 2007 @ 10:23 |
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Quote:
it doesnt seem to be affecting the results.
Try not to multitask when backing up any thing. Have you looked at windows task manager to see what else may be running?
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PacMan777
AfterDawn Addict
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17. March 2007 @ 12:16 |
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fishbulb
It sounds like something to do with system resources. How much RAM do you have and how much available RAM when running the Shrink program? Watch the Task Manager while running the program to see if you're running out of RAM. If that happens the system has to go to the hard drive for virtual memory and that slows down the PC.
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Senior Member
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17. March 2007 @ 17:32 |
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@fishbulb
Just to add to what I stated above (since I was in a hurry at the time), chances are that RAM and virtual memory aren't an issue, if they were you would of had problems way before now.
1) Make sure you're not running low on hard drive space, shrinking hard drive space can slow you down. If you have less than 8GB or so, try and get rid of useless junk on your hard drive to get some of it back.
2) Make sure you're drive isnt heavily fragmented, a hard drive that's got pieces of info scattered all over the place can slow things down. Defrag the drive using the utility that comes with XP or what ever app you may have.
3) Scan the drive for a possible virus and/or spyware (for spyware scans try lavasofts adware 6 or spybots search and destroy, which are free).
lavasoft
http://www.lavasoft.com/products/ad-aware_se_personal.php
Spybot S&D
http://www.spybot.info/en/index.html
Use task manager to see whats using CPU time, if its a app you recognize (you may of recently installed someting new???) and don't need it running all the time, disable it while using shrink (if it's safe to do so), then re-enable it when done.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 17. March 2007 @ 17:48
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fishbulb
Member
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17. March 2007 @ 20:27 |
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wow thanx for all the quick responses guys. i already do some of the things suggested tho. i defrag when needed. i run adaware and Spybot both regularly. i dont multitask. i have a 320 gb hard drive with about 94 gigs available right now. ive had less b4 and it worked fine. on that hard drive i keep only my movies but shrink is on my C drive. would that make a difference? its never been a problem b4. im just not sure if they need to be on the same hd or if it even matters. i dont kno much about RAM or virtual memory. i kno right now im running 42 processes, most of which i have no idea wat they are. so i dont kno if they r things i can remove from the list or not. but my cpu usage is usually around 0%-4%. also under physical memory the total = 458224, available = 148800, and system cache = 226560. i kno the available is probably really low. i just dont kno how to get it back up unless its by removing some of the processes that are running. anyway, hope this gives u guys something more to go on. thanx.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 17. March 2007 @ 20:28
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PacMan777
AfterDawn Addict
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18. March 2007 @ 01:45 |
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Having the program on your C: drive and your files on another should be no problem. A lot of people do it that way, including me. In fact I have 2 large drives with 2 partitions on each. I keep all the programming on a separate partition (C:) to help keep the fragmentation down from changing files. Appears you're up on your housekeeping, so you should be able to eliminate that. John was right to bring it up though, it's one of those things that need to be addressed if they're not. That takes us back to paging. That can be checked with the Task Manager.
If I only had 512MB of RAM, I would definitely be using virtual memory on the hard drive. The monitor (PF usage) and the Total don't exactly match, but that's what you're looking at for usage. Under Physical Memory (K), the Total there is the total amount of system RAM and Available is just that, how much RAM you have left available for the system to use. If the usage is above the amount you have, you're going to the hard drive for virtual memory. If close to the limit, the system may pause while it figures if it needs to start paging or not. To quickly eliminate this as a possibility, how much RAM do you have and what are the PF Usage and Total reading in Task Manager (under the Performance tab). John may well be right, but it's another of those things to be eliminated. Now that you know how, view Task Manager while watching the Preview and let us know what's happening.
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fishbulb
Member
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18. March 2007 @ 11:43 |
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it seems the problem was caused by my new antivirus program. so now i just turn it off while using shrink. but i still dont kno how to read the task manager exactly. im not sure wat looks good and wat looks bad. i'll try to include a screenshot to help anyone out who wants to give me some tips. and right now the only thing i have open is i.e. and my antivirus running. i have 512mb or RAM. and i dont kno wat virtual memory is exactly or how it differs from other memory. anyway, any help on this would be appreciated. thanx. well i just tried to add a snapshot of my task mngr. not sure how to do that. guess i need some help with that too. sorry.
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Senior Member
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18. March 2007 @ 12:11 |
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to take a screen shot have the task manager active then
hit Alt+PrtScn(if u have that key it should be aboove the Home key), then open Paint and paste, then save
Then u have to sign up for a free image hosting account like photobucket or any of the other.
Once u upload the pic to Photobucket copy the URL then paste it in the reply box then highlight it and click the image button(next to the quote button), thats it.
basically it should be like this (without the asterix)
[*img]http://i83.photobucket.com/albums/j287/cceebb/untitled.jpg[*/img]
"When I look at the smiles on all the childrens faces, I just know theyre about to jab me with something."- Homer Simpson |
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fishbulb
Member
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18. March 2007 @ 13:10 |
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yea i do the ctrl/alt/prntscrn thing. i just didnt kno i had to save it to something like photobucket. i'll do that later and post the image here. thanx.
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PacMan777
AfterDawn Addict
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18. March 2007 @ 13:18 |
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I can tell you already, 512MB of RAM on a healthy XP system with AV running isn't enough. Turning it off while using Shrink is a good idea. You diagnosed the low RAM amount by doing that. If I were you, I'd have another 512MB of RAM added. 1GB is about the minumum a person should have with XP, especially if they're going to be doing things like backing up DVD videos.
If you can't get a capture, just copy the info as it appears below the graphs under the Performance tab of the Task Manager, from the screenshot I supplied. Create the log so you only need to write in the numbers and do that while DVD Shrink is running. Include the reading from PF Usage.
If you don't mind toggling off the AV all the time while using Shrink the RAM you have should continue to work okay. Just use Shrink and no multitasking. I have a habit of using the net while the transcode is being done and I'd hate to be online without virus protection. That's asking for trouble.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 18. March 2007 @ 13:29
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fishbulb
Member
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19. March 2007 @ 18:00 |
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thanx pacman. ive heard different opinions on whether or not i need more ram. ive leaned toward adding another 512 to be honest. with as much as i do on this computer im sure it wont hurt. i used to use mcafee AV with no problems as far as shrink goes. but now i use etrust. uses less memory but for some reason i get that weird glitch in shrink with it on. luckily it has a snooze mode. which is very handy for ppl like myself who copy dvds/cds. i just set an amount of time i want it to shut down and when the time is up it starts back up. getting back to the ram, if i add another 512 to the one i already have does the computer just see it as a total of 1 gig, just as if i took out the 512 and added a single 1 gig card? thanx.
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onya
Suspended permanently
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20. March 2007 @ 04:07 |
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Quote:
if i add another 512 to the one i already have does the computer just see it as a total of 1 gig, just as if i took out the 512 and added a single 1 gig card?
Short answer is yes. A point to watch is to match up your existing stick of RAM. If you really want to go a step further, Remove the existing RAM and buy one or even two sticks of (1 Gig) faster RAM (not cheap though)
Here's a link to CPUZ, it's a freeware app that gathers your system info (memory included) IT's not the only one by the way, there are loads more similar or better.
http://www.cpuid.com/cpuz.php
EDIT: crap spelling
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 20. March 2007 @ 04:08
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PacMan777
AfterDawn Addict
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20. March 2007 @ 07:29 |
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fishbulb
Onya told you right. Yes is the simple answer. The PC just adds the new to the old. Matching sticks comes in where you're going to be using hypertreading or the like. I have 2x1GB matched performance RAM. Performance RAM isn't necessary unless you're building a performance system.
Here is a shot of what you're looking for in CPUZ, note the red boxes. This is for only one slot. There are 4 slots on my board with RAM in only slots 1 and 2. Without looking inside the PC, you can check all the slots and see what each lists.
The free version of SiSoft Sandra does a better job of collecting system info, but is also a bit more difficult to use if you're not familiar with it. It has more function than CPUZ.
This message has been edited since posting. Last time this message was edited on 20. March 2007 @ 07:30
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