Solidworks now goes like a bomb!

After having many performance problems with Solidworks 200 sp 0.1, I have
found the cure(s), (for my system)!
It was to do with the services that were running on my pc.

1, Solidworks runs on the main C: drive.
2, Opened files are run on a second hard drive D:
Both are Raptor drives.

3, It was also to do with the services that were running on my pc.

What I did was to turn a lot of automatic services to manual.

Solidworks was taking around one minute, just to load up!
Now starting Solidworks and logging into Pdmworks, (which is on a server),
takes 12 seconds Max.

Also, the main assembly, (750 parts,260 sub-assemblies with multiple
configurations), that I am working on, which used to take 15 minutes to
FULLY load, now takes one minute and 55 seconds to FULLY load.

This speed increase, has also propagated itself to, working on all of the
documents as well.
I can actually work from the main assembly once more!
If someone knows how to export the services settings to a file, I will post
the file, with the settings that I have.

One very happy bunny here! )))))))

 

Pete,

This issue of numerous and often not needed Windows default services running
is something that all high level users of a CAD programs should be familiar
with. Of course this situation just gets worst as time goes by and you add
more stuff to your system. If you go out to your favorite search engine and
type in "Windows XP tweaks" you will find hundreds of sites that suggest
tweaks that should in some cases dramatically your performance. Sometimes
just tuning or tweaking simple things in the Control Panel are a starting
point. Graphics behavior, system restore, indexing, automatic backups, etc.
In other cases you might manually be directed to go in to the registry to
tweak settings. In others cases *.reg files are provided that will go in
and make registry changes for you. Needless to say an understanding of
backing up and restoring of registry files could be important in case of
problems.

Go out a fine a site that you like and become familiar with the
possibilities. Some of these sites can at times be way out of date. You
need to find one that has been recently updated to accommodate all the
Windows XP SP2 changes.

I like the BlackViper site. Below is a link on his site specific to
services. Good stuff !!!


http://www.blackviper.com/WinXP/servicecfg.htm

Good luck

 

You are forgetting that not all users know this, and even some of the high
level users, don't.
If we worked on the assumption, that every high level user, knows everything
about Solidworks and XP Pro, there would be no need for this newsgroup.
Even the high level users put questions, (and answers), here.
Some are dumb in some people's eyes, but are eye opener's for others.

Your link is a very good example, I wonder how many people knew about this?

Whilst many people will play with the settings in Solidworks, many are
loathed to fiddle with the OS setting's.
Some are not even allowed too, by their IT department.
Now if it can be shown, that a performance increase, can be gained, then
something good has come out of my post and we all gain.
It that not the reason for this newsgroup?

We all find our own way, but a little help along the way, is always
appreciated.
You just have to read the post's here to confirm that.

Now where is that "any" key??

 

I was just about to post a message about SW performance and I saw your post.
Boy, I'll tell ya, I'm my system must really be a mess then. I've got a
simply couple of assemblies with about 100 parts (most of which are feature
driven patterns) and the darn thing is nearly impossible to use. I have to
resort to hiding and supressing parts and sketches in order to be able to
work at the assembly level. In one notable instance, I was editing a part
sketch that had about 50 rectangles that were brought over from a sketch in
the main assembly (with relations). All I did was to create offset entities
and turn the source entities into construction lines. I had to sit there
and wait for about 30 seconds every time I edited something.

The system? 1.8GHz P4, 2GB RAM, separate system and data drives (SW
part/assy files on data drive), US$1,500 graphics card (NVidia Quadro
FX4000) with all the accelerations turned on and 128MB of system memory set
aside for textures. Oh, yes, WinXP Pro.

A few days ago someone posted a note about his company going to SW to work
on assemblies with 10K parts. With what I've seen and experienced to date,
I couldn't, for the life of me, imagine how anyone could possibly consider
using this program to work on projects of such complexity. The main source
of my concern comes from:

1- Slow performance

2- Ridiculous file size growth

3- Random crashing and loss of work

4- Significant penalty paid for not doing things a certain way (both in
performance and file size). Of course, since this may very well change from
version to version...what happens with 10K-part assemblies 5 versions from
today? This is of real concern. Can you trust your models to survive the
test of time? I guess you have to make not of and keep the SW version that
the models were created under in order to safeguard against problems.

5- Horrible lack of support for text-based features

6- Horrible lack of tools for image files (transparency being one example)

7- Random damage to parts/assemblies during work. Whole chains of
relationships and even sketches have been known to disappear/change. Just
search the archives.

8- eDrawings is useless except for impressing high-school kids

9- 2D drawing seems to be fraught with a similar degree of performance and
reliability issues.

10- No way (that I know of) to go back and forth between using multi-body
parts and assemblies. MBP's are a nice way to lighten the load when using
subassemblies. But, let's say that you need to pull-in the real assembly to
check alignment/form/function/whatever. The whole thing blows-up in your
face and you have to re-mate/fix it in the master assembly. Not good.
What's the point.

11- Probably a few more things that I have yet to learn.


Don't get me wrong. I am getting work done. But, it'd sure have been nice
to have paid a lot less money for what --at times-- feels like a science
experiment rather than a program that could find safe use by organizations
working on complex designs with more than three parts.

I know that AutoCAD is not a 3D modeller, but I can't help but compare SW to
ACAD in terms of robustness, reliability and plain-old getting work done.
I've been using ACAD since version 1.2 (it used to come in 8inch floppies!)
and I, frankly, don't remember the program crashing for no reason after
version 1.4 or so. It has never blown-up in the middle of a job and lost
the work for that session (SW has) and files don't grow exponentially 'cause
you add some text here and there. In general, ACAD runs and feels like a
tool you can rely on. And I have, for years. It will take a long, long
time --and a few more service packs-- before SW can feel the same way. It
sure makes pretty pictures though.


To return to the topic.

Can someone list the tweaks that most reliably improve SW performance to a
significant extent? Pete's assy going from a 15 minute load to <60sec is
definetly significant. Being able to actually work at the assembly level
with a 750 part assy, is significant. Surely this couldn't be attributed to
using different/faster drives. The load time quoted is 15-fold improvement.
Not to mention the performance.

-Martin

 

I too would like to know which services cause such dramatic increases.

Corey

 

Sean Dotson posted something like this to the mcad forums but I can't find
it now.

Sean, you there?

Richard

 

To export settings so we can see them, at the top of the window is a menu
called Action. Under that pick Export List. I found that the default tab
delimited text file seemed to work the best, and this file can then be
opened in Excel to make it a bit more readable.

You can also take a few screen shots to capture the settings.

I'm quite curious to see what you have done to achieve such dramatic
differences, and what the other ramifications are.

WT

 

I'm glad to hear that other high level user's, do not know what services to
turn off.
I will export my setting's tomorrow, (Tuesday in the UK), being it's on the
work's PC, and post it here.

I have added a few more parts, including Toolbox parts, and the time lag is
not significant.

But, and a big BUT here, "fully" constraining toolbox parts, also speeds the
assembly up.
Most toolbox parts have auto constraints, but the norm is 2 per item.
Take a bolt for example, you get a coincident and a concentric, this allows
the bolt to turn in the hole that it mated too.
One bolt is not too bad, but add 50 or more nuts, bolts and washers and it
does slow MY assembly down.
Now what I did, was to constrain the sketch of the nuts, bolts and washers,
(using a parallel constraint), also.

Added to this I also constrained the flange sketches, in my all sheet metal
parts.

Bit of an overkill?, maybe, but I got the real slowness, after adding the
sheet metal sub-assemblies, so this was my clue.
I know someone will disagree with me, (as always), but this is my 2 cents
worth and it works for me.

Pete

 

Here is my work pc services, setting's:-

I also have a csv or a xls file, it you would like it emailed to you.




Name,Description,Status ,Startup Type,Log On As
Alerter,Notifies selected users and computers of administrative alerts. If
the service is stopped, programs that use administrative alerts will not
receive them. If this service is disabled, any services that explicitly
depend on it will fail to start.,,Disabled,Local Service
Application Layer Gateway Service,Provides support for 3rd party protocol
plug-ins for Internet Connection Sharing and the Windows
Firewall.,Started,Manual,Local Service
Application Management,Provides software installation services such as
Assign, Publish, and Remove.,,Manual,Local System
Automatic Updates,Enables the download and installation of Windows updates.
If this service is disabled, this computer will not be able to use the
Automatic Updates feature or the Windows Update Web
site.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Background Intelligent Transfer Service,Transfers files in the background
using idle network bandwidth. If the service is stopped, features such as
Windows Update, and MSN Explorer will be unable to automatically download
programs and other information. If this service is disabled, any services
that explicitly depend on it may fail to transfer files if they do not have
a fail safe mechanism to transfer files directly through IE in case BITS has
been disabled.,,Manual,Local System
ClipBook,Enables ClipBook Viewer to store information and share it with
remote computers. If the service is stopped, ClipBook Viewer will not be
able to share information with remote computers. If this service is
disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,,Disabled,Local System
COM+ Event System,Supports System Event Notification Service (SENS), which
provides automatic distribution of events to subscribing Component Object
Model (COM) components. If the service is stopped, SENS will close and will
not be able to provide logon and logoff notifications. If this service is
disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,Started,Manual,Local System
COM+ System Application,Manages the configuration and tracking of Component
Object Model (COM)+-based components. If the service is stopped, most
COM+-based components will not function properly. If this service is
disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,,Manual,Local System
Computer Browser,Maintains an updated list of computers on the network and
supplies this list to computers designated as browsers. If this service is
stopped, this list will not be updated or maintained. If this service is
disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Cryptographic Services,Provides three management services: Catalog Database
Service, which confirms the signatures of Windows files; Protected Root
Service, which adds and removes Trusted Root Certification Authority
certificates from this computer; and Key Service, which helps enroll this
computer for certificates. If this service is stopped, these management
services will not function properly. If this service is disabled, any
services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
DCOM Server Process Launcher,Provides launch functionality for DCOM
services.,Started,Automatic,Local System
DHCP Client,Manages network configuration by registering and updating IP
addresses and DNS names.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Distributed Link Tracking Client,Maintains links between NTFS files within a
computer or across computers in a network domain.,Started,Automatic,Local
System
Distributed Transaction Coordinator,Coordinates transactions that span
multiple resource managers, such as databases, message queues, and file
systems. If this service is stopped, these transactions will not occur. If
this service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will
fail to start. ,,Manual,Network Service
DNS Client,Resolves and caches Domain Name System (DNS) names for this
computer. If this service is stopped, this computer will not be able to
resolve DNS names and locate Active Directory domain controllers. If this
service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,Started,Automatic,Network Service
Error Reporting Service,Allows error reporting for services and applictions
running in non-standard environments.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Event Log,Enables event log messages issued by Windows-based programs and
components to be viewed in Event Viewer. This service cannot be
stopped.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Fast User Switching Compatibility,Provides management for applications that
require assistance in a multiple user environment.,Started,Manual,Local
System
Help and Support,Enables Help and Support Center to run on this computer. If
this service is stopped, Help and Support Center will be unavailable. If
this service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will
fail to start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
HTTP SSL,This service implements the secure hypertext transfer protocol
(HTTPS) for the HTTP service, using the Secure Socket Layer (SSL). If this
service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,,Manual,Local System
Human Interface Device Access,Enables generic input access to Human
Interface Devices (HID), which activates and maintains the use of predefined
hot buttons on keyboards, remote controls, and other multimedia devices. If
this service is stopped, hot buttons controlled by this service will no
longer function. If this service is disabled, any services that explicitly
depend on it will fail to start.,,Disabled,Local System
IMAPI CD-Burning COM Service,Manages CD recording using Image Mastering
Applications Programming Interface (IMAPI). If this service is stopped, this
computer will be unable to record CDs. If this service is disabled, any
services that explicitly depend on it will fail to start.,,Manual,Local
System
Indexing Service,Indexes contents and properties of files on local and
remote computers; provides rapid access to files through flexible querying
language.,,Manual,Local System
IPSEC Services,Manages IP security policy and starts the ISAKMP/Oakley (IKE)
and the IP security driver.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Logical Disk Manager,Detects and monitors new hard disk drives and sends
disk volume information to Logical Disk Manager Administrative Service for
configuration. If this service is stopped, dynamic disk status and
configuration information may become out of date. If this service is
disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Logical Disk Manager Administrative Service,Configures hard disk drives and
volumes. The service only runs for configuration processes and then
stops.,,Manual,Local System
McAfee Framework Service,Shared component framework for McAfee
products,Started,Automatic,Local System
Messenger,Transmits net send and Alerter service messages between clients
and servers. This service is not related to Windows Messenger. If this
service is stopped, Alerter messages will not be transmitted. If this
service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,,Disabled,Local System
MS Software Shadow Copy Provider,Manages software-based volume shadow copies
taken by the Volume Shadow Copy service. If this service is stopped,
software-based volume shadow copies cannot be managed. If this service is
disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,,Manual,Local System
Net Logon,Supports pass-through authentication of account logon events for
computers in a domain.,,Manual,Local System
NetMeeting Remote Desktop Sharing,Enables an authorized user to access this
computer remotely by using NetMeeting over a corporate intranet. If this
service is stopped, remote desktop sharing will be unavailable. If this
service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,,Manual,Local System
Network Associates McShield,,Started,Automatic,Local System
Network Associates Task Manager,,Started,Automatic,Local System
Network Connections,Manages objects in the Network and Dial-Up Connections
folder, in which you can view both local area network and remote
connections.,Started,Manual,Local System
Network DDE,Provides network transport and security for Dynamic Data
Exchange (DDE) for programs running on the same computer or on different
computers. If this service is stopped, DDE transport and security will be
unavailable. If this service is disabled, any services that explicitly
depend on it will fail to start.,,Disabled,Local System
Network DDE DSDM,Manages Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) network shares. If this
service is stopped, DDE network shares will be unavailable. If this service
is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to start.
,,Disabled,Local System
Network Location Awareness (NLA),Collects and stores network configuration
and location information, and notifies applications when this information
changes.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Network Provisioning Service,Manages XML configuration files on a domain
basis for automatic network provisioning.,,Manual,Local System
NT LM Security Support Provider,Provides security to remote procedure call
(RPC) programs that use transports other than named pipes.,,Manual,Local
System
NVIDIA Display Driver Service,Provides system and desktop level support to
the NVIDIA display driver,Started,Automatic,Local System
Performance Logs and Alerts,Collects performance data from local or remote
computers based on preconfigured schedule parameters, then writes the data
to a log or triggers an alert. If this service is stopped, performance
information will not be collected. If this service is disabled, any services
that explicitly depend on it will fail to start.,,Manual,Network Service
Plug and Play,Enables a computer to recognize and adapt to hardware changes
with little or no user input. Stopping or disabling this service will result
in system instability.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Portable Media Serial Number Service,Retrieves the serial number of any
portable media player connected to this computer. If this service is
stopped, protected content might not be down loaded to the
device.,,Manual,Local System
Print Spooler,Loads files to memory for later
printing.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Protected Storage,Provides protected storage for sensitive data, such as
private keys, to prevent access by unauthorized services, processes, or
users.,Started,Automatic,Local System
QoS RSVP,Provides network signaling and local traffic control setup
functionality for QoS-aware programs and control applets.,,Manual,Local
System
Remote Access Auto Connection Manager,Creates a connection to a remote
network whenever a program references a remote DNS or NetBIOS name or
address.,,Manual,Local System
Remote Access Connection Manager,Creates a network
connection.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Remote Desktop Help Session Manager,Manages and controls Remote Assistance.
If this service is stopped, Remote Assistance will be unavailable. Before
stopping this service, see the Dependencies tab of the Properties dialog
box.,,Manual,Local System
Remote Procedure Call (RPC),Provides the endpoint mapper and other
miscellaneous RPC services.,Started,Automatic,Network Service
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) Locator,Manages the RPC name service
database.,,Manual,Network Service
Remote Registry,Enables remote users to modify registry settings on this
computer. If this service is stopped, the registry can be modified only by
users on this computer. If this service is disabled, any services that
explicitly depend on it will fail to start.,Started,Automatic,Local Service
Removable Storage,,,Manual,Local System
Routing and Remote Access,Offers routing services to businesses in local
area and wide area network environments.,,Disabled,Local System
Secondary Logon,Enables starting processes under alternate credentials. If
this service is stopped, this type of logon access will be unavailable. If
this service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will
fail to start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Security Accounts Manager,Stores security information for local user
accounts.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Security Center,Monitors system security settings and
configurations.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Server,Supports file, print, and named-pipe sharing over the network for
this computer. If this service is stopped, these functions will be
unavailable. If this service is disabled, any services that explicitly
depend on it will fail to start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Shell Hardware Detection,,Started,Automatic,Local System
Smart Card,Manages access to smart cards read by this computer. If this
service is stopped, this computer will be unable to read smart cards. If
this service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will
fail to start.,,Manual,Local Service
SSDP Discovery Service,Enables discovery of UPnP devices on your home
network.,Started,Manual,Local Service
System Event Notification,Tracks system events such as Windows logon,
network, and power events. Notifies COM+ Event System subscribers of these
events.,Started,Automatic,Local System
System Restore Service,Performs system restore functions. To stop service,
turn off System Restore from the System Restore tab in My
Computer->Properties,Started,Automatic,Local System
Task Scheduler,Enables a user to configure and schedule automated tasks on
this computer. If this service is stopped, these tasks will not be run at
their scheduled times. If this service is disabled, any services that
explicitly depend on it will fail to start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper,Enables support for NetBIOS over TCP/IP (NetBT)
service and NetBIOS name resolution.,Started,Automatic,Local Service
Telephony,Provides Telephony API (TAPI) support for programs that control
telephony devices and IP based voice connections on the local computer and,
through the LAN, on servers that are also running the
service.,Started,Manual,Local System
Telnet,Enables a remote user to log on to this computer and run programs,
and supports various TCP/IP Telnet clients, including UNIX-based and
Windows-based computers. If this service is stopped, remote user access to
programs might be unavailable. If this service is disabled, any services
that explicitly depend on it will fail to start.,,Manual,Local System
Terminal Services,Allows multiple users to be connected interactively to a
machine as well as the display of desktops and applications to remote
computers. The underpinning of Remote Desktop (including RD for
Administrators), Fast User Switching, Remote Assistance, and Terminal
Server.,Started,Manual,Local System
Themes,Provides user experience theme management.,Started,Automatic,Local
System
Uninterruptible Power Supply,Manages an uninterruptible power supply (UPS)
connected to the computer.,,Manual,Local Service
Universal Plug and Play Device Host,Provides support to host Universal Plug
and Play devices.,,Manual,Local Service
Volume Shadow Copy,Manages and implements Volume Shadow Copies used for
backup and other purposes. If this service is stopped, shadow copies will be
unavailable for backup and the backup may fail. If this service is disabled,
any services that explicitly depend on it will fail to start.,,Manual,Local
System
WebClient,Enables Windows-based programs to create, access, and modify
Internet-based files. If this service is stopped, these functions will not
be available. If this service is disabled, any services that explicitly
depend on it will fail to start.,Started,Automatic,Local Service
Windows Audio,Manages audio devices for Windows-based programs. If this
service is stopped, audio devices and effects will not function properly. If
this service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will
fail to start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Windows Firewall/Internet Connection Sharing (ICS),Provides network address
translation, addressing, name resolution and/or intrusion prevention
services for a home or small office network.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Windows Image Acquisition (WIA),Provides image acquisition services for
scanners and cameras.,,Manual,Local System
Windows Installer,Adds, modifies, and removes applications provided as a
Windows Installer (*.msi) package. If this service is disabled, any services
that explicitly depend on it will fail to start.,,Manual,Local System
Windows Management Instrumentation,Provides a common interface and object
model to access management information about operating system, devices,
applications and services. If this service is stopped, most Windows-based
software will not function properly. If this service is disabled, any
services that explicitly depend on it will fail to
start.,Started,Automatic,Local System
Windows Management Instrumentation Driver Extensions,Provides systems
management information to and from drivers.,,Manual,Local System
Windows Time,Maintains date and time synchronization on all clients and
servers in the network. If this service is stopped, date and time
synchronization will be unavailable. If this service is disabled, any
services that explicitly depend on it will fail to start.
,,Disabled,Local System
Wireless Zero Configuration,Provides automatic configuration for the 802.11
adapters,,Disabled,Local System
WMI Performance Adapter,Provides performance library information from WMI
HiPerf providers.,,Manual,Local System
Workstation,Creates and maintains client network connections to remote
servers. If this service is stopped, these connections will be unavailable.
If this service is disabled, any services that explicitly depend on it will
fail to start.,Started,Automatic,Local System

 

Please send the file and I will pull it into something a bit more readable.

WT

 

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1759,1768298,00.asp

Kind of interesting timing - PC Mag just put this one out today that, among
other suggestions, describes some of the services that you can turn off.

WT

 

I can't remember who posted this but these are the services to disable
for a typical CAD workstation:

Routing and Remote Access
Alerter
Application Layer Gateway Service** (only if firewll is not used)
Application Management
Background Intelligent Transfer Service
ClipBook
COM+ System Application
Distributed Link Tracking Client
Distributed Transaction Coordinator
Help and Support
IMAPI CD-Burning COM Service** (only if do you not use the cd-rw xp
record suport)
IPSEC Services
Logical Disk Manager Administrative Service
MS Software Shadow Copy Provider
Net Logon
NetMeeting Remote Desktop Sharing
Network DDE
Network DDE DSDM
Network Location Awareness (NLA)
NT LM Security Support Provider
Performance Logs and Alerts
Portable Media Serial Number
QoS RSVP
Remote Desktop Help Session Manager
Remote Procedure Call (RPC) Locator
Remote Registry
Removable Storage
Server
Smart Card
Smart Card Helper
SSDP Discovery Service
System Restore Service
Telnet
Themes
Uninterruptible Power Supply
Universal Plug and Play Device Host
Volume Shadow Copy
Windows Image Acquisition (WIA)
Windows Installer
Windows Management Instrumentation Driver Extensions
Wireless Zero Configuration
WMI Performance Adapter
Fast User Switching Compatibility ** (only if fast user shiching is
not used or the machine have one user only)
Protected Storage
Windows Time
TCP/IP NetBIOS Helper
Task Scheduler
Secondary Logon
Print Spooler ** (only if the pc do not have or use a printer)
Indexing Service
Error Reporting Service
Computer Browser
Internet Connection Firewall (ICF) / Internet Connection Sharing (ICS)

Have Fun!

I haven't tried all of these at one time so use at your risk.

Malcontent

 

This seems like a very dangerous list.

I mean, disabling services like "Removable Storage", "Universal Plug and
Play Device Host", "COM+ System Application" or "Windows Installer" seems
like an invitation to experience a boatload of trouble rather than fix
anything.

Is this list for real or is it a cruel joke?

-Martin

 

If you want performance and keep track of what you disable, you ought
to be able to re-enable anything you need, so I don't see this as a
problem.

In fact, I think Pete's original comment shows just how P... POORLY MS
Windows is designed and setup. If a user absolutely must have all
available CPU cycles for a job, there should be a "one-click" toggle
the use can set up to disable all non-essentials & re-enable the same
set.

The true fact is MS has slighted users of its OS by limiting its
programming efforts (on security most notably) so it could build-up
tens of billions in profits

I will try disabling things once I format my new HD and put on a new
WinXPSP2 OS on it.

Bo

 

Martin,
See my disclaimer at the end of the post. "Use at your own risk"
I've tried most of the services with no ill effects with the exception
of Universal Plug and Play Device Host. When I stop that service, I
can't open drives or folders in explorer.

Malcontent

BTW, I have an XI Computers AMD64 machine if that matters.

 

I saw that. Sorry, the "cruel joke" comment wasn't aimed at you...just a
general statement...I was saying "do we really have to do all of this?"

It's amazing how much junk these computers are running without the user
having any control or idea of whether or not they are necessary. Gone are
the days of having 100% control of the CPU, I guess.


-Martin

 

Two words:

LInux
DOS

 

Given that some countries and government administrations are committing
to a NIX in one form or another, the handwriting is on the wall.

I personally think that MS has failed as a developer of an easy to use,
consistent, bug-free, OS. I simply can't remember the last time I
crashed OSX or program. SolidWorks crashed WXP yesterday.

Bo

 

I agree with you Bo. It is amazing what we have to put up with in MS windows.

OSX is a dream to work with - especially multitasking. If I try and run
more than one program at a time in XP (with 3.2 P4 + 1MB ram) you
really feel it - things can stop responding and feel like it is locked
up. In fact, I often have killed processes that were "application not
responding" because I thought it had locked-up... only to learn that
when a program in windows is "not-responding", it simply means wait a
few hours - maybe - it is actually OK. Great interface and positive
user feedback!

Meanwhile on OSX I have 8+ applications open, internet radio, burning a
DVD, checking my email, websites, and you cannot feel an obvious
performance hit - all on a 2.5 year old 800mhz processor with 768kb
ram. Ill take OSX UNIX any day. (+++ my PowerBook actually performs
faster than it did 2 years ago due to the ever improving OSX. I cannot
say my PC is any faster with SP2...)

Anyway, SW is not on Unix, and we just have to wait until the market
shifts further to see if SW will do anything about it.

Daniel

 

Shame that solidworks does not work on Suse