os x tiger busy desktop..

[s.macneill]

i'm a recent pc > apple switcher, so i'm still pretty new to everything. i've noticed lately that my desktop seems to be hanging doing something. i know this because my mouse is steadily as the spinning rainbow circle thing...(i hope you know what i mean ha). i cant click the apple in the upper left corner as it's busy. i really have to power it off and back up to resolve. now, during all this i'm able to open apps and use them regularly from the dashboard.

In windows i'd do the o'l control+alt+delete to see the process's, but i'm not sure what to do on os x. what would the proper troubleshooting process be for this? any way to kill off any processes that are stuck in a loop?

 

[barhar]

'In windows i'd do the o'l control+alt+delete to see the process's, but i'm not sure what to do on os x.' 'Command <option> <esc>' produces the 'Force Quit Applications' window.

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'... any way to kill off any processes that are stuck in a loop?' - 'Command <option> <esc>', select the 'not responding' process, in the 'Force Quit Applications' window, click on the 'Force Quit' button, and then click on the 'Force Quit' button of Apple's redundant 'Do you want to force ... to quit' drop down sheet.

Or, launch 'Activity Monitor' ('/Applications/Utilities/' folder), select the desired process (application), click on the 'Quit Process' toolbar button, and then click on the 'Force Quit' button of Apple's redundant 'Quit Process ... Do you really want to quit ... ?' drop down sheet.

 

[s.macneill]

that's pretty much exactly what i was lookin for.

Thanks!!

 

[fryke]

There's the "Activity Monitor" that shows what you mean, barhar.

s.macneill: When does this happen? After you've tried something specific or even _always_? Do you have a couple of hundred items on the Desktop? (Then it could be that the Finder tries to calculate something about the Desktop's icon layout. Happens to me sometimes...)