Slow IDE

[David Taylor]

I'm doing my first real project in VB.NET (2003 version) and first kudos to
Microsoft for moving VB towards a much richer language...it's taking a bit
of getting used to, but it seem to be a much better language and has
features that were "missing" in VB6 (multithreading, decent registry access,
etc - without APIs). However, with all that "richness" the IDE runs at a
snails pace...this being my first project, I'm frequently hitting F1 and
wait seemingly forever for the IDE to popup help about my selected topic.
Or I do a search...and wait....and wait....and wait...finally it displays a
topic...click on something for more info...and its more wait...and
wait....etc. I know my machine isnt the fastest...but it wont become archaic
for at least a few more months. (Dell 1.3GHz P3 with 512MB RAM and about
15GB of free disk space). I've defragged, but its still so slow...any other
suggestions for speeding it up (other than a new machine)?

 

[Peter van der Goes]

I'm doing my first real project in VB.NET (2003 version) and first kudos to
Microsoft for moving VB towards a much richer language...it's taking a bit
of getting used to, but it seem to be a much better language and has
features that were "missing" in VB6 (multithreading, decent registry access,
etc - without APIs). However, with all that "richness" the IDE runs at a
snails pace...this being my first project, I'm frequently hitting F1 and
wait seemingly forever for the IDE to popup help about my selected topic.
Or I do a search...and wait....and wait....and wait...finally it displays a
topic...click on something for more info...and its more wait...and
wait....etc. I know my machine isnt the fastest...but it wont become archaic
for at least a few more months. (Dell 1.3GHz P3 with 512MB RAM and about
15GB of free disk space). I've defragged, but its still so slow...any other
suggestions for speeding it up (other than a new machine)?

This may well seem like a silly question, but did you do a complete help
install to your local hard drive, install only the engine to access articles
on CD or DVD, or select the web-based help?
If the first, a really fast hard drive (at least 7200 RPM with 8 Meg cache)
would help if you're using an older, slower model. Another thing to check is
the DMA setting for the IDE controller. Is all drive access slow, or just VS
Help? If all access seems slow, check to be sure your IDE controller is set
for "DMA if Available" and that a DMA mode has been selected.
If you're searching for articles on CD or DVD drive, the IDE controller DMA
setting could also be a factor there. Obviously, if it's web help, your PC
isn't the primary factor .