Eric Mack On-Line

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

Wednesday, June 1st, 2005

I've noticed my Tecra M4 getting slower and slower -- to the point where it's difficult to even use a stylus or a mouse. I first noticed this in MindManager. (I've done the routine AV scans, AdAware scans, etc.)

Suspecting software to be the culprit, I've experimented with a variety of options. I found a post about some known issues with MindManager in Pen mode. Lately, I've been experimenting with CPU speeds. What I've found, while inconclusive, makes me wonder if the M4 CPU, when running in a power efficient mode (I'm actually not trying to save power - just keep the fan quiet) slows down considerably. Is anyone experiencing a similar problem?

Before I reload the OS and the dreaded spamware that comes with the M4 preload, I want to rule out anything obvious (and, possibly self-inflicted) such as CPU settings, or specific applications.

I've got a client demo in a few days, and I want to make the best impression possible. Right now, I'm not there. :-(

Posted at 03:19:00, PST in Tablet PC Mind Mapping

Discussion/Comments (11):

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

Eric,

I feel for you witth the pending reload and spam hunt/annihiliation sorte to solve the new problem. Can you ghost your drive when you get it where you want it this time, so the next time it happens you don't have to start at the beginnng again? (Notice the assumption that this is not the last rebuild in your future?)

Bob

Posted at 06/01/2005 16:48:31 by Bob

re: Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

Bob, I actually have several ghosts from interim steps, and I might test them, should I decide to start over. If I decide to start fresh, I may go ahead and do a complete reload from scratch -- not because I'm into pain, but because I want to intimately understand the experience. In the event that I recommend a TPC to a client I want to know exactly what I'm getting them into.

Overall, and despite my misfortunes, I remain optimistic about the Tablet PC and the M4. I wish it were easier to get to where I want to go, but I went into this with my eyes open. I'm not surprised.

Posted at 06/01/2005 18:05:22 by Eric Mack

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

Eric, when the slowdown occurs has the power management by chance slowed the CPU speed unexpectedly? I had a similar problem on the Sony u750 and finally determined the Pentium M power management was throttling the CPU to half speed. I had to use the Vaio Advanced Power Management to keep the CPU speed set to maximum. I used a free utility, CPU-Z, to track in real time which led me to the problem.

Posted at 06/01/2005 20:51:26 by James Kendrick

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

Hi Erik

I indeed find sometimes difficulties while/after having run MMon my M200 where the cursor starts lacking behind, whole system seems to be in a dozy mood.

What does TaskManager say?

EnjoyLife&ShareIt,

Marcus M Sommer

Posted at 06/01/2005 21:17:29 by Marcus M Sommer

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

Hi Erik,

Have exactly the same problem (on my M200).

When I plug the laptop in (and the power profile changes to full everything, including CPU speed) MindManager wakes up and is usable. If the laptop isn't plugged into the mains, and the power profile sets the CPU speed at a lower level, MM becomes nearly unusable.

There is a suggestion on the Mindjet Website relating to graphics resolution ({ Link } ) which you could try

cheers

Nick

Posted at 06/02/2005 0:13:38 by Nick

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

I remember reading somewhere (I wish I could remember, as I'd give you the link) about the ink program gradually consuming more and more memory over time. Something about it wouldn't release memory? From what I remember, people found that rebooting solved the problem temporarily, but it came back and grew worse the longer they kept the system running (in-between rebooting). I agree looking into the power management settings may help address some of the issue.

Posted at 06/02/2005 7:06:18 by Michael Willits

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

I'd concur with Nick. I've tried using MM on my M4 without the unit plugged in and it's mollases-slow. Plug it in and it perks right up. To me that screamed CPU stepping. By switching the profile, it came back to life.

Chris

Posted at 06/02/2005 8:26:50 by Chris Brandt

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

DOES THIS PROBLEM ONLY OCCURS WITH MINDMANAGER OR WITH ALL THE APPLICATIONS??

Posted at 06/02/2005 10:16:09 by Ahmed

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

Ditto what most everyone has said. Recent tabletPC podcast mentioned that the priority of the task that drives the stylus processing needs to be set high with some applications. Heavy graphic applications were mentioned that set their own priority high (under the covers) and the stylus processing task can't get any CPU cycles. They mentioned a script that had been written using AutoHotKey or something like that. This script would bump the stylus task up. Also heard that MSFT is aware of the memory leak with the stylus and is working to develop a fix. James Kendrick would know about the AutoHotKey script (it was he and Marc Orchant that talked about it on their podcast). Let us know if you find it to be something different.

Posted at 06/03/2005 11:26:58 by Walter

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

I've had similar problems on the M-205. This could be power management related, but there is a definite flaw in the Tablet PC OS in the TabTip.exe process. Microsoft is aware of a memory leak issue, but has not yet addressed it. More info from February here: { Link } My guess is that this is really a combination of issues: CPU stepping, power management and the memory leak on the key inking process.

Posted at 06/03/2005 20:02:17 by Kevin C. Tofel

Tablet PC Slowdown on the M4?

I had a similar problem on my M200 (two months old), and I ended up sending to Toshiba and they replaced the hard drive. I was told that over one third of the sectors on the drive were marked as bad.

Posted at 06/05/2005 22:16:51 by Roger Wichmann

Discussion for this entry is now closed.