Why does my computer keep working?

[IS]

Why is it that when I don't do anything for about 3-5 minutes my computer
goes to work and won't stop until I move the mouse or start doing some
activity?
The light starts blinking it starts making the sound it makes when it works,
like when it's launching programs etc.
I just finished scanning it for viruses and there is nothing there.
XP home.

Thanks.

IS.

 

[Yves Leclerc]

Download, install and run Ad Aware 6. This to check to see if a spyware
(programs that the user does not know had be installed or running) program
is on your system.


Y.

 

[Art Sheppard]

Go to Control Panel, and open Program Scheduler - if there are any programs
listed, Right Clock on the Icon, and select Properties. Under the Settings Tap,
look and see if the program has a 5 Min. idle time delay. if it does that is the
program that starts winning after the system is idle for 5 Min. Many anti virus
and indexing programs start running when the system is idle. Moving your mouse
causes the program to stop running, and it will restart when your system is idle
for 5 Min.
I hope this helps.
/art

 

[Alex Nichol]

Why is it that when I don't do anything for about 3-5 minutes my computer
goes to work and won't stop until I move the mouse or start doing some
activity?
The light starts blinking it starts making the sound it makes when it works,
like when it's launching programs etc.

There are two system services that will wait for a few minutes of
idleness, and then set about their job, which involves hard disk
activity.

One is the 'Search Indexing'. This is to speed up searching for
'documents' on a basis of the text in them: if you are not a serious
office doing this on a large library of documents, turn it off. Go to
Start - Search, scroll the box down on the left to 'change preferences'
and click on 'Without Indexing Service'

The other is the 'prefetch' system, reorganising placement of files on
the disk so that the programs you use most load more quickly - leave
that one going