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Level 1

5 points

Buying a new iMac

Hi All

I am considering buying a new iMac, my old iMac is now 6 years old and getting a bit slow and clunky. It had 2GB RAM as standard and last year I upgraded to 4GB RAM, the Max it will take. This helped initially but the machine is now getting very slow and clunky again.

I am considering a new 21.5-inch: 2.7GHz model with 8 GB of Ram as standard (2 x 4GB RAM) but I am considering ordering it with the optional 16GB RAM but can anyone tell me if the RAM in these new models can be upgraded in the future to more than 16GB and what the Max RAM would be on this new current model?

I also see that there is a forthcoming upgrade to the OS system - 'Maverick' - so, would it be worth waiting to buy a machine with Maverick already installed, or would the upgrade be easy later on if I bought a new model now?

Many thanks.

Dave

Posted on Sep 9, 2013 1:47 AM

79 replies

Lexiepex

Level 6

14,102 points

Sep 10, 2013 5:18 AM in response to Matchless350

In SystemPreferences/Users choose LoginItems Tab:

Remove all entries there (with the minus sign underneath), when necessary you can put them in again later.

Do you need Adobe Version Cue CS2? If not uninstall it (it is in SystemPreferences as a separate applet).

Was ist Kodak AIO????

I advise to remove RealPlayerPlugin (in HDD: /Library/InternetPlugins folder), and the MozillaPlugin.

Now restart.

See how it goes, and post a new Etrecheck list.

Matchless350 Author

Level 1

5 points

Sep 10, 2013 7:21 AM in response to Lexiepex

Kodak AIO is my Kodak "All In One" printer, so I guess that's OK.

Followed your instuctions (above) and one thing I have noticed straight away is that the Mac switches users much more quickly now, it used to take a while. Anyway here is the latest Etrecheck list:

Hardware Information:

iMac (20-inch, Early 2008)

iMac - model: iMac8,1

1 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2 cores

4 GB RAM

Video Information:

ATI Radeon HD 2400 - VRAM: 128 MB

System Software:

Mac OS X 10.6.8 (10K549) - Uptime: 0 days 0:8:47

Disk Information:

ST3250820AS Q disk0 : (232.89 GB)

(null) (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 200 MB

Macintosh HD (disk0s2) /: 232.57 GB (130.56 GB free)

USB Information:

Apple, Inc. Keyboard Hub

Primax Electronics Apple Optical USB Mouse

Apple, Inc Apple Keyboard

Apple Inc. Built-in iSight

Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver

FireWire Information:

Thunderbolt Information:

Kernel Extensions:

Problem System Launch Daemons:

[not loaded] org.samba.winbindd.plist

Problem System Launch Agents:

[failed] com.apple.Kerberos.renew.plist

Launch Daemons:

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist

Launch Agents:

[loaded] com.kodak.BonjourAgent.plist

User Launch Agents:

[loaded] com.adobe.ARM.202f4087f2bbde52e3ac2df389f53a4f123223c9cc56a8fd83a6f7ae.plist

[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Annual Opt.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Firmware Updater.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Software Updater.plist

User Login Items:

None

3rd Party Preference Panes:

Flash Player

Internet Plug-ins:

Flash Player.plugin

FlashPlayer-10.6.plugin

Flip4Mac WMV Plugin.plugin

Google Earth Web Plug-in.plugin

iPhotoPhotocast.plugin

JavaAppletPlugin.plugin

NPDjVu.plugin

PrintDialogExt.plugin

QuickTime Plugin.plugin

User Internet Plug-ins:

Bad Fonts:

None

Top Processes by CPU:

5% EtreCheck

3% syslogd

1% WindowServer

1% KodakAiOBonjourAgent

0% DirectoryService

0% WebProcess

0% Microsoft Entourage

0% SecurityAgent

0% blued

Top Processes by Memory:

152 MB WebProcess

57 MB Microsoft Entourage

53 MB WindowServer

37 MB Safari

29 MB mds

20 MB EtreCheck

16 MB SystemUIServer

16 MB Dock

16 MB Finder

12 MB coreservicesd

Virtual Memory Statistics

3.01 GB Free RAM

575 MB Active RAM

199 MB Inactive RAM

238 MB Wired RAM

185 MB Page-ins

0 B Page-outs

Lexiepex

Level 6

14,102 points

Sep 10, 2013 8:41 AM in response to Matchless350

Hi Matchless:

if you have no special interest in these two:

NPDjVu.plugin

PrintDialogExt.plugin

you could also move them out the InternetPlugins folder.

Looks rather healthy for the hardware resources now.

If you still have a "sluggish" behaviour come back here. But for now you should be good at least until a new computer and probably longer. As you see the 8GB RAM should enough enough, but 16GB will not hurt of course: it will be good for a long time I guess, like R-C-R 's observation indicates.

nbar

Level 5

7,019 points

Sep 10, 2013 1:28 PM in response to Matchless350

download the Google Update Uninstaller

Matchless350 Author

Level 1

5 points

Sep 10, 2013 11:44 PM in response to nbar

And what will the Google Update Uninstaller achive?

seventy one

Level 7

27,430 points

Sep 11, 2013 12:04 AM in response to Matchless350

I really don't see the point in buying a new computer with less than maximum RAM.

Facilities are changing at a rapid pace; your investment in a new machine is not inconsiderable; the difference in price is not that great.

I agree that if someone's budget is really stretched there may be some grounds to consider the option ... new computer or wait ... but I would advocate borrowing the difference.

< Off topic > Hi Lex. Have you spotted that there is a Harleydavidson user name. Now, that is something to conjure with. 😁 All the same, a Matchless 350 is an excellent bike.

Lexiepex

Level 6

14,102 points

Sep 11, 2013 12:32 AM in response to seventy one

Hi seventy one, do you remember our "age" bet? we are too old to dream of a long gone past...😁

Matchless350 Author

Level 1

5 points

Sep 11, 2013 12:55 AM in response to Matchless350

On the subject of Google, I have also experienced another, possibly related, problem and I will try and explain.

When doing a search in Google for, lets say 'Matchless', I get a list of results, lets say I choose to view Images and I get a page of all the Images for Matchless. I click on an Image and that opens a Black 'Sub-Page' opening with a larger version of the Image, plus a few examples of similar Images. If I then decide it's not the image/Web Page I want, I click on the original smaller Image to close the 'Sub-Page' and carry viewing the presented images.

Now, if I decided to change my search criteria from say 'Matchless' to 'Norton' in the Search Text Box at the top of the page and click the Search Button, I get images for 'Norton' however, when I click on an Image I get a Blank Black 'Sub-page' opening with no Images etc. just a blank 'Sub-Page'. I then find I have to click the Refresh symbol in the Search Text Box at the top of the page to get a Larger Image and a few smaller Images etc. to appear in the 'Sub-Page'.

I hope that makes sense.

I have also noticed that, now and again when this happens, the Browser/Google page freezes and I cannot scroll or go back via the Back Button and I have to close and reload the Browser/Google page and start again.

Any ideas?

By the way, I use Safari.

I wish I understood the intricacies of computers as much as I understand the workings of classic motorcycle engines...😉

Lexiepex

Level 6

14,102 points

Sep 11, 2013 1:26 AM in response to Matchless350

"Now, if I decided to change my search criteria from say 'Matchless' to 'Norton' in the Search Text Box at the top of the page and click the Search Button, I get images for 'Norton' however, when I click on an Image I get a Blank Black 'Sub-page' opening with no Images etc. just a blank 'Sub-Page'. I then find I have to click the Refresh symbol in the Search Text Box at the top of the page to get a Larger Image and a few smaller Images etc. to appear in the 'Sub-Page'."

That is not "normal", after arriving at the norton page you shouldn't have to refresh the search.

What extensions/plugins do you have in Safari? disable them all (in Safari/Preferences/Extensions) and Quit Safari then restart, same "issue". If not enable one extension, and see if it returns, if not the next one, etc. Quit/Restart Safari after each change.

Matchless350 Author

Level 1

5 points

Sep 11, 2013 2:00 AM in response to Lexiepex

Hi Lex

There are no extentions in Safari/Preferences/Extensions.

It doesn't happen all the time but when it does it's really annoying.

By the way, I notice that there is Flash Player in System Preferences/Other, should this be there? We removed the other two items that were there - Adobe Version Cue CS2 and Flip4Mac WMV.

Lexiepex

Level 6

14,102 points

Sep 11, 2013 3:01 AM in response to Matchless350

- For a lot of sites you need Flashplayer.

- Flip4Mac makes it possible to play wmv on the mac. It is harmless, but you can instead install Perian, which makes more extensions available for play on the mac. Support for Perian has stopped but the latest version (1.2.3) works very good, http://perian.org. This comes in the same place where flip4mac was.

- I still have no idea what causes the "google issue", I can not reproduce it. Do you have the latest version of Safari (although it is not that, I think). To "refresh" the OS and Safari, you could download the Snow Leopard Combo update (if you can find it) from the Apple sites and install it, even when you are on the latest update, it will refresh the os, or you redownload the latest security update (http://support.apple.com/kb/HT5806) for SL.

Or you download the latest version of Safari (SnowLeopard) and reinstall it (http://support.apple.com/kb/DL1569).

- run a new Etrechack for me.

Lex

Matchless350 Author

Level 1

5 points

Sep 11, 2013 3:15 AM in response to Lexiepex

One thing I have noticed today, after all the mods we've done, is that switching between users has got so much quicker, previously when I switched between uses it took ages with just the 'Purple Star' screen showing for a while before my desk top page loaded. Now its almost instant. It doesn't 'Swing' from user to user like to used to but pops open, if you know what I mean. Anyway, here is the latest Etrecheck page:

Hardware Information:

iMac (20-inch, Early 2008)

iMac - model: iMac8,1

1 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2 cores

4 GB RAM

Video Information:

ATI Radeon HD 2400 - VRAM: 128 MB

System Software:

Mac OS X 10.6.8 (10K549) - Uptime: 0 days 3:32:54

Disk Information:

ST3250820AS Q disk0 : (232.89 GB)

(null) (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 200 MB

Macintosh HD (disk0s2) /: 232.57 GB (130.5 GB free)

USB Information:

Apple Inc. Built-in iSight

Apple, Inc. Keyboard Hub

Primax Electronics Apple Optical USB Mouse

Apple, Inc Apple Keyboard

Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver

FireWire Information:

Thunderbolt Information:

Kernel Extensions:

Problem System Launch Daemons:

[failed] com.apple.suhelperd.plist

[not loaded] org.samba.winbindd.plist

Problem System Launch Agents:

[failed] com.apple.Kerberos.renew.plist

Launch Daemons:

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist

Launch Agents:

[loaded] com.kodak.BonjourAgent.plist

User Launch Agents:

[loaded] com.adobe.ARM.202f4087f2bbde52e3ac2df389f53a4f123223c9cc56a8fd83a6f7ae.plist

[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Annual Opt.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Firmware Updater.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Software Updater.plist

User Login Items:

None

3rd Party Preference Panes:

Flash Player

Internet Plug-ins:

Flash Player.plugin

FlashPlayer-10.6.plugin

Google Earth Web Plug-in.plugin

iPhotoPhotocast.plugin

JavaAppletPlugin.plugin

QuickTime Plugin.plugin

User Internet Plug-ins:

Bad Fonts:

None

Top Processes by CPU:

5% EtreCheck

3% syslogd

1% WindowServer

0% KodakAiOBonjourAgent

0% Microsoft Entourage

0% Microsoft Word

0% mds

0% WebProcess

0% Safari

0% blued

Top Processes by Memory:

442 MB WebProcess

168 MB Microsoft Word

78 MB WindowServer

78 MB Microsoft Entourage

53 MB Safari

53 MB mds

36 MB Finder

20 MB coreservicesd

20 MB SystemUIServer

20 MB Preview

Virtual Memory Statistics

2.08 GB Free RAM

1.16 GB Active RAM

499 MB Inactive RAM

279 MB Wired RAM

273 MB Page-ins

0 B Page-outs

yashact

Level 1

0 points

Sep 11, 2013 4:27 AM in response to Matchless350

Matchless350 wrote:

OK, I have now run the EtreCheck as recommended and the list is very long, most of it means nothing to me, so here goes:

Hardware Information:

iMac (20-inch, Early 2008)

iMac - model: iMac8,1

1 2.4 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU: 2 cores

4 GB RAM

Video Information:

ATI Radeon HD 2400 - VRAM: 128 MB

Startup Items:

AdobeVersionCueCS2 - Path: /Library/StartupItems/AdobeVersionCueCS2

System Software:

Mac OS X 10.6.8 (10K549) - Uptime: 0 days 3:12:2

Disk Information:

ST3250820AS Q disk0 : (232.89 GB)

(null) (disk0s1) <not mounted>: 200 MB

Macintosh HD (disk0s2) /: 232.57 GB (130.52 GB free)

USB Information:

Apple Inc. Built-in iSight

Apple, Inc. Keyboard Hub

Primax Electronics Apple Optical USB Mouse

Apple, Inc Apple Keyboard

Apple Inc. BRCM2046 Hub

Apple Inc. Bluetooth USB Host Controller

Apple Computer, Inc. IR Receiver

FireWire Information:

Thunderbolt Information:

Kernel Extensions:

Problem System Launch Daemons:

[not loaded] org.samba.winbindd.plist

Problem System Launch Agents:

[failed] com.apple.Kerberos.renew.plist

Launch Daemons:

[loaded] com.adobe.fpsaud.plist

Launch Agents:

[loaded] com.kodak.BonjourAgent.plist

User Launch Agents:

[loaded] com.adobe.ARM.202f4087f2bbde52e3ac2df389f53a4f123223c9cc56a8fd83a6f7ae.plist

[loaded] com.google.keystone.agent.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Annual Opt.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Firmware Updater.plist

[loaded] com.kodak.KODAK AiO Software Updater.plist

User Login Items:

N067U_ButtonManager

N124U_ButtonManager

CrossOver CD Helper

CNQL1213_ButtonManager

N067U_ButtonManager

N124U_ButtonManager

3rd Party Preference Panes:

Adobe Version Cue CS2

Flash Player

Flip4Mac WMV

Internet Plug-ins:

Flash Player.plugin

FlashPlayer-10.6.plugin

Flip4Mac WMV Plugin.plugin

Google Earth Web Plug-in.plugin

iPhotoPhotocast.plugin

JavaAppletPlugin.plugin

Mozillaplug.plugin

NPDjVu.plugin

PrintDialogExt.plugin

QuickTime Plugin.plugin

RealPlayer Plugin.plugin

User Internet Plug-ins:

Bad Fonts:

None

Top Processes by CPU:

5% EtreCheck

2% syslogd

1% WindowServer

0% Microsoft Entourage

0% fontd

0% Microsoft Word

0% WebProcess

0% System Events

0% coreservicesd

0% LaunchCFMApp

Top Processes by Memory:

172 MB Microsoft Word

164 MB WebProcess

115 MB iTunes

78 MB Microsoft Entourage

74 MB Safari

57 MB WindowServer

20 MB Finder

20 MB mds

20 MB EtreCheck

16 MB SystemUIServer

Virtual Memory Statistics

2.43 GB Free RAM

897 MB Active RAM

425 MB Inactive RAM

283 MB Wired RAM

286 MB Page-ins

0 B Page-outs

Any ideas?

watch out!

if hackers see this theyll hack it till its too dangerous

Lexiepex

Level 6

14,102 points

Sep 11, 2013 6:19 AM in response to yashact

I don't think so. Your name has been incorrectly spelled perhaps : t instead of k ? 😀

MichelPM

Level 10

80,980 points

Sep 11, 2013 8:23 AM in response to yashact

After having the assistance and going through your system to help speed it up some, even with no Page in or outs, I still believe that the additonal installation of another 2 GBs of RAM may still help your iMac.

OS X, by itself, can use between and up to 2-4 GBs of RAM to run smoothly, quickly and efficiently

And OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard is capable, at times, of eating up all of 3-4 GBs of RAM.

Having 2 GB of extra RAM in there is good for running more processes or giving running applications some additonal RAM when it is needed.

This is entirely up to you. Replacing one of the 2 Gb RAM modules with a 4 GB module would help with some background tasks and processing.

Correct and reliable Mac RAM can be purchased from online Mac RAM sources Crucial memory or OWC (macsales.com).

Here's OWC's link to the 4 GB RAM module.

http://eshop.macsales.com/item/Other%20World%20Computing/6400DDR2S4GB/

Good Luck!

Buying a new iMac