Can anyone suggest how to prevent interference to the audio stream from, say, iplayer, youtube or spotify when I use the mouse or keyboard on other applications or to browse. This happens irregularly but with increasing frequency, causing duplication of notes and jumping etc. For example, using iplayer (on Chrome), I get sporadic interference to the stream if I use the browser at the same time.
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Depends on the OS and computer you use. Way back about 10 years ago most home computers weren't so fast and this sort of thing happened a lot, with buffering delays and other problems. Most modern computers, paticularly if they have processors like Intel's i3 , i5 or even i7, should hardly be strained by streaming audio. Even the previous generation core duo processors are usually fast enough. Some notebook computers, using chips like the atom, may struggle a bit.
Otherwise check your internet connection and broadband speed - for example using www.speedtest.net. You could also increase the buffer size if you know how to.
I hardly worry about this sort of thing now using my iMac running 10.6 and using core duo processors.
It is possible you may have problems with some windoze OSs, though in fairness you shouldn't if your system is powerful enough and in good order. -
pilamenon,
Has this always been the case with iPlayer on your PC?
If not, when did it start playing up?
Does the same thing happen when you use a different browser, say IE or Firefox (for iPlayer and browsing)?
Did you install any new software, or did something happen immediately before iPlayer began to have these glitches?
Have you done a virus scan and a malware scan?
Have you looked at what processes are running and using up the processing power?
This is how:
- Right click on an empty area of the taskbar
- Select "Start Task Manager"
- Click on the "Processes" tab
- Clicking on the CPU heading will sort the processes in order of CPU usage.
- (You might have to click twice to get the heaviest usages at the top).
Your PC should be OK to use with iPlayer unless it is very old or very slow. I have just tested Radio 3 iPlayer on a 7 year old Thinkpad laptop (single core Pentium M 1.6 GHz) and it works fine. There are no glitches when I browse or use my mouse.Last edited by johnb; 28-07-12, 15:35.Comment
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Thank you both very much for your replies. I don't think it is the broadband speed, this is a fairly recent problem, it used to work fine with iplayer. But as well as the audio problem something else is frequently slowing down the browsers so although I have McAfee running all the time, am not convinced how effective it is. Can't think of any recently installed software. Will try your suggestion, John. It may be that the PC is on its way out - after about nine years.
Update - I did processes check - System Idle Process is way out in front, fluctuating in the 90s. Is that normal? What do you advise for malware scan? I have Spybot and one or two others.Comment
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If System Idle at 90% indicates that only 10% of the processing capacity is being used so the power of your PC isn't a problem. I am assuming you looked at this while iPlayer was running. (Having said that the stats don't seem to take hard drive activity into account.)
As the problem only developed recently it is probable that it is due to either a software change on your PC (including malware) and/or broadband speed issues.
Have you run the speed test that Dave suggested?
Can you do a system restore to a date before the problem started?
I am always slightly nervous about System Restore. I always expect something to go wrong (so I always do a system backup beforehand) but it has always worked perfectly.
If the glitches occur when you move your mouse and do nothing else (i.e. you don't click on anything) this suggests the problem isn't wholly a broadband speed issue.
In general - you do need to bear in mind that PC's don't last indefinitely and, after sorting out your current problems, it would be a good idea to sort out a replacement PC. In the mean time it would be wise to regularly backup your own files as hard drives do eventually fail.Comment
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OK, thanks again. I've done a broadband speed test, using the site you suggested, Dave - gave me 6.53Mbps - BT claims it should be closer to 8.00.Originally posted by johnb View Post
I think I'll also try a back-up and system restore as John suggested. Don't have the money to replace the PC at the moment!
Do you have any recommendations for good anti-malware programmes?Comment
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There are many anti malware/spyware tools. I'd suggest using AVG - look for the free version - you'll probably be offered a free trial version which shuld last for a couple of weeks, though don't feel obliged to try it. ZoneAlarm and Avast are also OK, or you can check out more at http://anti-virus-software-review.to...om/index2.html. You shouldn't have to pay to get something good enough.
If you've previosly installed other AV software you may get conflicts, so might be best to either temporarily disable or uninstall.
One other possibility is a bad driver. Have you installed or connected any new devices lately? I don't have any really good advice about finding good/compatible drivers. The suggestion to do a systen restore if you have good restore points is a good one.
If all else fails, for standard drivers just delete them, and Windows should reinstall them on the next reboot. You may feel that's being rather brave though.Last edited by Dave2002; 30-07-12, 15:14.Comment
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Another thing - download CCleaner - a very useful tool. Then use the Registry Scan option. I usually keep running a Scan/Fix cycle until clear - usually takes 2 or 3 attempts. After that your machine should tun faster, at least for a while.Comment
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A line rated at 8Mbps will, in practice, achieve a maximum of 7Mbps so your 6.53 is very close to the maximum possible on your line.Originally posted by pilamenon View PostComment
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Really anything 4 Mbps or above, if consistent, should be more than good enough. For audio streaming even lower rates can work satisfactorily. It's worth checking the rates periodically to spot if any faults or problems develop.Comment
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I'll second your suggestions. I use AVG Home (free) and CCleaner. Once a month I use Microsoft's own on-line malware detector as well. I use CCleaner after un-installing software every time; it also has an excellent cookie management system allowing one to keep some cookies (the ones with log-in information, for example) and delete others.Originally posted by Dave2002 View Post
However, I suspect one of your installed programs is hogging resources. My computer occasionally produces exactly the same noises as yours does on iPlayer - in my case it happens when Dell's own computer health program is running.Comment
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I have also taken advantage of AVG's free use of their PC Tune Up software - you can use it freely just the once.
Read about it here:
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If we're also considering tune up etc., then I use Power Defragmenter - free from Mark Russinovich (could be worth following him - http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussinovich/ ), plus also Page Defragmenter. If the hard drive is scrambled up, then there can be big problems with page thrashing etc. It's worth trying to reduce the possibility of any such problems by running tools like this. Ideally there should be at least 20% spare hard drive space, though I often run with less. Problems will almost certainly set in if not enough spare disc space is left, and it can be very difficult and very slow to fix problems due to lack of space once they set in. Better not to go there in the first place.Comment
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I agree with that, which is why I suggested using the Task Manager.Originally posted by PJPJ View Post
pilamenon:
I suggest you repeat looking at which processes are running (and their percentage usage) when you are experiencing the problem with iPlayer.Comment
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Mark Russinovich also suggests the ose of a Process Monitor for some problems, though should we all really have to hone our Sherlock Holmes skills just to use a computer? See http://blogs.technet.com/b/markrussi...2/3506849.aspxComment
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