Firefox Runs Slow on Snow Leopard

I have the most recent version of Firefox. I read another thread where it was recommended to update Java. Since I've done that, Firefox has worked well, but I've only been using it for a few mnutes..

I also just performed the 10x faster tweek and it's flying!

I wanted to do a clean install, but at the last moment I got lazy and didn't feel like re-installing/setting-up my computer from scratch, so I just did the update over Leopard.

Oh yeah, how do I add quotes from the post I'm replying to? The only option I have is "Reply;" there's no "quote" button.

Thanks a bunch,

-Adam

WZZZ wrote:

Should have nothing to do with the speed of Fx. And I would strongly recommend keeping Java disbabled, as it is constantly being exploited. The latest version may not yet have been exploited, but it, doubtless, will be.

Disable from Tools>Addons>Plugins.

Very few sites require it and for a site you absoutely trust, you can reenable it.

I disabled Java. What's your view on Divx? A friend of mine got a virius while streaming a movie in Divx format; I disabled it right after I heard his bad news.. anyways, thanks again for that 10x tweak. Firefox is running better than ever, which means I'll hopefully never have to open Safari again!

ds store wrote:

Then erase and install 10.6, it will perform faster (fresh installs do that)

How to erase and install Snow Leopard 10.6

I was checking out this thread and was reading about "MacTracker" and using the app to make sure you're using the correct Snow Leopard Install disc for your specific Mac. I didn't bother downloading the app because my MacBook Pro came w/ Leopard and there's only one version of Snow Leopard for sale in the Apple Store.. so I assume that I must be using the correct disc.

Anyways, I'm still having some lag issues, especially w/ web browsing and Firefox. I guess I'll try deleting/re-installing it. I really don't wanna go through the hassle of a clean install.

Oh yeah, I just wanted to add that ever since the upgrade to SL I've been having lag issues when multitasking. For example, if I'm streaming something on my web browser and then open a media player, the stream will start to lag. This never happended before the upgrade. I'm assuming that I have no choice but to run a clean install.

WZZZ wrote:

Sounds like you may not have enough RAM. You may have the minimum according to the system requirements for Snow, but that is bare bones and may not be sufficient for the situation you are describing. When this is happening check in Activity monitor for Memory (free available, Page outs and Swap used) Also check the CPU tab to see if something's hogging that.

I have 4GB of RAM. I opened several different Apps while watching the Activity Monitor and I always have atleast 1.7Gb of Free Memory, 1.2GB Page outs and 122MB Swap used.

WZZZ wrote:

Also see what happens with Fx opened in Safe Mode. Hold Option (alt) key at open. Will run with all extensions disabled. Ignore directions in link for opening in Windows.

http://support.mozilla.org/en-US/kb/troubleshoot-firefox-issues-using-safe-mode

What's Fx?

WZZZ wrote:

Also check Page ins. If Page outs are 10% or more of Page ins, that generally suggests you need more RAM. Off the top, 1.2GB for Page outs sounds like a lot.

Have you tried another browser to see if it's slow from that?

I have 12GB RAM installed. 4GB was sufficient for me in 10.6 until I started running several memory intensive apps concurrently.

Page ins always stays @ 1.31GB and Page outs always stays @ 1.29GB. I want to put more RAM in, but I only have 2 slots w/ 2GB chips.. so I'd have to buy two 4GB chips to upgrade, which is proabably alot of cash. I'm saving up to buy a new laptop, but that won't be happening for a while, so I gotta get this machine running like it did before the upgrade to SL. I did notice that the Shockwave Flash plug-in spikes to 80-120 %CPU when starting up in Fx. When doing the same stuff on Safari, the Flash Player only hits 60-70 %CPU and drops back down quicker (we're talking seconds, but enough to be noticeable).

WZZZ wrote:

You can get decent, reasonably priced memory at OWC. And it is known to be Mac compatible. But you definitely need more RAM. If you don't get more, then you must be careful about what applications you have open and run concurrently.

http://eshop.macsales.com/shop/apple/memory/?utm_source=eshop&utm_medium=navbar& utm_campaign=Memory

I checked out OWC and for some reason they say that for my version, MacBookPro4,1 that I can only go as high as 6GB of RAM. I was under the impression that it was atleast 8GB (2 - 4GB chips). I thought that you weren't supposed to mismatch the chips, like having on 4Gb and on 2GB.

I have the 667 MHz DDR2 SDRAM; I noticed that the speed has increased as well as the DDR3 now. How many times quicker is the DDR3 compared to DDR2?

Firefox seems to be my biggest problem since the upgrade. I use this computer for music recordings and use Pro Tools, which runs just as quick as before. That was my biggest concern pre-upgrade, especially since the version I have isn't officially compatible w/ SL.. but that's just because they never did the compatibility test. Some people have told me that my ver of PT runs fine on SL, but might have a problem installing on it.. this is why I was hesitant to do the clean-install. I think that it would be an instant fix.