My 2003 IMac is soooo slow. Please help!!

J

Junami

Registered
I have a hige problem with my IMac. About a year it started slowing down to the point that it sometimes takes up to 5 minutes to open a program such as illustrator CS.
I already deleted all the programs as well as files that I don't need anymore but nothing really.
If anybody knows what I need to do or delete in order to make this computer go back to normal please let me know.

It is a 1GHZ G4 IMac (the lamp) with 256MB Memory and it has 10.3.9 on it.

Thank you
Anna
 
How often do you maintenance the computer (repair permissions and empty cache files, etc) ?

You ram is too low. Although, you have seen a progressive decline in performance. A clean system and new Ram!!
 
Well, I believe you gave yourself the problem for your slowdowns when you described your Macintosh specs. 256 MB is way too low for running OS X, especially if you're working with Adobe CS apps. I would recommend upgrading to 1 GB if you can (if not more). As for the RAM type that you'll need, open up System Profiler to see the specs on your RAM (PC2700, PC2100, PC-133, etc. depending on the revision of your iMac G4) and then purchase that type of RAM for your Mac. You can purchase from here.
 
Powermac: Honestly not often. Is there a software that I could use that would be the "clean-up" and maintenance? If so any recommendations?

Nixgeek: That would make sense. I have to say I was a little surprised when I just saw that I only have 256 I always that I had 500+.
How do I open the system profiler. I found it put it won't open?
Also when I buy the extra ram...can I install it myself? If so do you know how?

THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR HELP
 
Junami said:
Nixgeek: That would make sense. I have to say I was a little surprised when I just saw that I only have 256 I always that I had 500+.
How do I open the system profiler. I found it put it won't open?
Also when I buy the extra ram...can I install it myself? If so do you know how?
Click to expand...

Both 1 GHz iMAc G4 models (15" 1 GHz or 17" 1 GHz, the former released about 6 months before the latter) can only accept up to 1 GB of RAM which should be plenty. Depending on which of the two mentioned iMacs you have, you might need PC2700 RAM (on the 15" model) or PC2100 memory (on the 17" model). While you could use PC2700 memory on one that takes PC2100 thanks to their backwards compatibility, it's best not to mix and match memory of different speeds of RAM. BTW, DDR memory is not forward compatible if I recall correctly, meaning you can't use PC2100 memory on a computer that takes PC2700 RAM or higher. This site has more information on the subject. I would recommend buying two 512 MB modules for the total of 1 GB of RAM and make sure they are exactly the same brand and model. There are 1 GB kits that bring two 512 MB modules at reasonable prices. Check here for the type of RAM (PC2100 or PC2700) you need and then head to NewEgg or OWC (mentioned in my previous post) for some good pricing. :D

As for installation of the RAM once you've purchased it, check the following link for step by step instructions:

http://www.xlr8yourmac.com/systems/iMac_g4/imacg4_takeapart.html

Let us know how it turns out! :)
 
If System Profiler won't open, it could additionally mean that something's wrong with permissions. The slowness of the computer can really be anything. I'd do the following things:

- Repair permissions. Open Disk Utility and repair permissions on your main drive.
- Do the Onyx stuff.
- Make sure you have more than 2 GB free disk space on your main drive.

And yeah, 256 MB RAM is very low for serious work.
 
Thanks for the addendum, fryke. I got so caught up with explaining the RAM issue I forgot about the System Profiler question. :o
 
iMac G4 17" 1GHz can use up to 1.5GB of ram. (Feb to Sept 2003)
Any iMacs after that one can use up to 2GB of ram.
 
bobw said:
iMac G4 17" 1GHz can use up to 1.5GB of ram. (Feb to Sept 2003)
Any iMacs after that one can use up to 2GB of ram.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the clarification, bobw. I guess I mislooked the total RAM when checking Low End Mac.
 
Hi Everybody,

thank you so much for all your advice.

Bobw: I bougt my mac March 2003. Is there a way I can find out up to how much I can upgrade my memory?

Nixgeek: Thank you so much for all the RAM info. I will order it today.

By the way I found System Profile....I was first looking in my HD under system until I realized it is under "about this mac"

Thank you so much
 
Oh and I found the memory info:

Size: 256 MB
Type: DDR SDRAM
Speed: PC2100U-25330

Anything that I need to look out for when I by the additional card?
 
Yes. I think those had actually _two_ RAM slots with different RAM types. At least one of the lamp iMacs I had to support did have that... However, I'm not quite sure whether that changed much between lamp models.
 
I just read that I can only upgrade to 1GB. Could I just replace the 256MB Memory Card that I have now with a 1 GB card or can I only add another card?
 
If you have two slots, you can leave the memory already in there and add a 1GB stick. As I said, you can use 1.5GB in this machine.
 
Hi Bob,

I'm just a little confused, because on the apple website it says that you can upgrade the first generation of the 17 inch 1 GHZ IMac to 1 GB.
 
Read the specs on it here:

http://lowendmac.com/imacs/imac17b.html

Although they don't do a good job of describing the RAM scenario, you have the option to upgrade to 1 GB using the user-accessible SO-DIMM slot. Apparently, there's another slot that takes a normal 184-pin DIMM up to 512 MB. This gives you a possible total of 1.5 GB of RAM as bobw mentioned.
 
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