February 20, 2006 9:20 AM PST

Mac OS X 10.4.5 (#5): Slow Finder interface operation -- possible fixes; Confirmation for network slowness fix; more

by CNET staff

Slow Finder interface operation -- possible fixes Users continue to report painfully slow Finder operation after the update to Mac OS X 10.4.5.

MacFixIt reader Diana Seago writes:

"I am experiencing a very slow finder after the installation of OS 10.4.5. Seems to take forever to get anywhere. I am running a 2 GHz PowerPC G5 flat panel with a gig of ram."

Another reader adds:

"I am experiencing slow finder response with the spinning beach ball, 10.4.5 on a 12" G4 powerbook and my 800 MHz G4 iMac -- sometimes 15 seconds or more before functioning."

"This is killing me too. Even with a clean system install, the preview in column view is horribly slow -- 2-3 minutes for the beach ball to stop spinning."

Axel Schmieder corroborates:

"I experienced the same problem, slowly Finder needs a relaunch and is often in 'wheel-action' for long times. It's really awful. I tried a lot of workarounds, but nothing's really worked to avoid or improve those slowdowns."

Possible fix for slowness in column view In some cases, the slowness can be caused by the Finder's preview function when using column mode. There are two methods you can use to disable this functionality, possibly improving Finder navigation times.

Click on a file and wait for its preview to appear, while in Column mode. When the preview appears, close close the disclosure triangle. The Finder remembers the current state of the disclosure triangle, and won't try to preview every file any more.

Turn off previewing in column view altogether using the Show View Options item (under the "View" menu) in the Finder.

Another fix: Turn off Quartz 2D Extreme Although Quartz 2D Extreme is disabled by default in Mac OS X 10.4.5, some readers report that the graphics drawing component is re-enabled for some reason, potentially causing performance issues.

Quartz 2D Extreme can be disabled using the Quartz Debug utility, which is included with XCode, installed by the Apple Developer Tools disc included with all currently shipping Macs and Tiger retail packages.

You can also change this setting by opening the following file:

com.apple.windowserver.plist located in /Library/Preferences (using a text editor like BBEdit)

Look for the line that says "Quartz2DExtremeEnabled" and set the value to NO.

MacFixIt reader Stefan writes:

"I had similar problems while scrolling through long lists in finder windows - even on my G5 Quad.

"After some investigation I found that Quartz 2D Extreme was switched on. After switching it off, Finder's speed was back to normal."

Restart Some users have found that simply restarting resolves a number of the performance issues apparent subsequent to the Mac OS X 10.4.5 update.

Confirmation for network slowness fix Users continue to report degraded network performance under Mac OS X 10.4.5, and success with our previously published workaround that involves turning off IPv6 capabilities in the Network pane of System Preferences.

One reader writes:

"After reading today's MacFixit about the IPv6 settings, I checked my office computer and IPv6 was set on 'Automatic.' I turned IPv6 off and immediately noticed that I was making an initial connection to Internet sites much quicker than before. I'm a college prof, and I've gotten used to clicking on a URL and then waiting 2 or 3 seconds for the connection to initiate. I had assumed that it was due to heavy campus use of off campus network connections. After turning off IPv6, I was connecting almost immediately after the mouse click."

In order to change this setting, open System Preferences and click on your currently used interface (Ethernet, AirPort, etc.). Click on the TCP/IP settings for the interface -- at the bottom if you see a button which says 'Configure IPv6...' click that and set it to "Off." Press the Apply Now button.

Meanwhile, some users are still reporting network slowness after applying this fix.

MacFixIt reader Stef Segers writes:

"I saw your article about the slow network. I tried IPv6 off but didn't help out. I am copying now 2 GB over the network. After 5 hrs it's still not finished."

Brightness control issues A few users are reporting issues using brightness control under Mac OS X 10.4.5. One reader writes:

"Since upgrading to Mac OS X 10.4.5 my G4 iMac 800Mhz has behaved odd in regards to brightness control.

"The large transparent icon overlay showing the current brightness (one would see if using a PowerBook keyboard F1/F2 keys) is displayed. The display shows minimal brightness regardless of ambient light in the room.

"Bringing up System Preferences -> Displays and attempting to increase brightness works, but then immediately reverts to minimal brightness regardless of the checkbox setting for 'Automatically adjust brightness as ambient light change.' The slider also moves all the way to the right when the mouse is released."

Screen redraw issue in InDesign, GoLive Users continue to report screen redraw issues under a variety of Adobe applications under Mac OS X 10.4.5.

One reader writes:

"After selecting (hi-lighting) text that has a baseline shift applied with the type tool and then clicking off that text a black bar remains just above the text box.

"This bar disappears after changing the view by zooming in or out.

"Steps to reproduce bug: