Why would a factor default reset netbook still be slow?

[AViking]

I can't figure this out. I have a netbook that I drag around. It's from 2010 and it's no speed demon but why is it slower than when I bought it for simple things like browsing the internet? It's painfully slow and basically not even useful for that anymore.

I have done a factory default reset. I experimented for a few days by not installing any windows updates to see how it did. I updated a few drivers. Different browers. It doesn't matter. It's crazy slow.

What is the problem here? I feel like there's some kind of software mechanism in place to slow down the computer and make it out of date when it should be able to handle basic tasks.

 

[serpretetsky]

You can run a scan on the hdd to see if it's starting to go bad.
Taskmanager tell you anything interesting?

Otherwise maybe websites have more and more dynamic content?

 

[SithSolo1]

Otherwise maybe websites have more and more dynamic content?

This.

Many websites have added additional flash based ad content and more images over the past few years. They'll choke anything with a weak cpu.

 

[serpretetsky]

if this is the case, try browsing the internet with a browser that supports disabling javascript and disabling plugins per website. Google chrome allows this by default.

 

[sm625]

The web has gotten much more bloated since 2010. And so have the web browsers. Firefox uses (ie wastes) at least twice as much memory than it did 4 years ago. 4 years ago when I got my CULV notebook it was great. That thing is also useless now. Ebay is especially bad. Dont go near that site without at least a 3 GHz i3.

 

[AViking]

Disabling Javascript definitely improves the speed since it looks like most websites are completely inundated in it. A site like CNN.com is just packed with little videos and crap.

Well it's not a flawless solution but I'll probably leave this stuff disabled just so that the netbook is useful.

 

[AViking]

What about this incredible lag while it loads or logs into websites? I don't remember it being like that at all. Facebook and google mail for example.

 

[mjd]

Facebook and gmail are a huge amount of the web programming language Javascript. Javascript is run by your local CPU. So, it goes along with the other theories in this thread.

Both of these sites have gotten bigger and harder to process (by your local CPU) in the last several years. And they're not going to get smaller and faster in the long term.

You could also be having internet congestion, but that's less likely.
Which model of netbook do you have?

-M

 

[AViking]

I have a Samsung N150. It's getting a solid 40Mbps wirelessly at home on a 1Gbps fiber line and it's not the internet.

When the internet was relatively new I did web design and we never dreamed of creating websites that would require a new computer every couple years. That's nuts.

 

[TeknoBug]

My 3 year old Netbook lags too, it has an AMD Neo CPU which doesn't seem to be up to standards today, even on a fresh install it can barely play Netflix smoothly even at just 1280x720 or 1366x768. My Dell Inspiron from 2006 with a Turion II 2.7GHz still kicks butt today but I gave that to my grandmother.

 

[capeconsultant]

This.

Many websites have added additional flash based ad content and more images over the past few years. They'll choke anything with a weak cpu.

True dat.

 

[ninaholic37]

What about this incredible lag while it loads or logs into websites? I don't remember it being like that at all. Facebook and google mail for example.

Try the mobile version of Facebook: http://m.facebook.com

When the internet was relatively new I did web design and we never dreamed of creating websites that would require a new computer every couple years. That's nuts.

Yup. Luckily forum designs haven't evolved too much over the last 10 years though.

 

[AViking]

Yeah a couple days of individually allowing plugins and java really shows what has happened. That's definitely the culprit. The computer is not a speed demon and only has 1 gig of memory but these websites bring the computer to its knees.