My question is a Mac (OS 9.0) is EXTREMELY slow to the point where we
can't get anything done.  What do we need to do to make it faster? In
other words, what causes a Mac to get slower? We are not buying a new
machine, well at least not for the next three months. Is there any
Band-Aid method to make an improvement? Please give me your ideas.

It depends on the model. Bigger, faster hard drive. More memory.
Simply cleaning the hard drive, and optimizing the system and desktop.
Upgrading the OS to 9.2.2 could help.

hlabadie-ga

How about posting the specs of the machine (model, ram, hard drive,
free space, cpu, speed)

Plus the extensions that are running, and whether you are using
virtual memory or not.

Finally, what do you mean by running slowly?  Can you give specifics?

Hi, seeotter,

Your problem could be caused by many things, some software related,
and some caused by hardware. Here are a few questions for you:

1. You didn't say if your Mac is a desktop model or a laptop. Which is it?

2. This might appear to be a silly question: How long has it been
since you rebooted (restarted) your Mac? If it's been a long, long
time, reboot it and see if your problem is solved.

3. Do you have virtual memory (or something similar, like RAM Doubler) turned on?

4. Have you installed any software lately?

5. Have you installed any hardware lately?

6. How large is your hard drive? Is it almost full? Note: If you open
a folder, you should see two lines above the folder contents: the
title of the folder at the very top, and just below that a line saying
how many items are in the folder and how much disk space is left. How
much disk space is left on your hard drive?

7. If you start the computer with the extensions disabled, does the
speed of your computer come back to normal? Note: to start your
computer with the extensions turned off, restart and immediately hold
down the shift key until you see a screen that says that the
extensions are off. (If you don't hold down the shift key soon enough,
you'll get a normal start-up. If so, just retry the procedure, this
time pressing the shift key sooner.). Once you see this screen,
release the key and let the start-up continue. How's the speed of your
computer now? (Some options won't be available to your with the
extensions off. For example, you won't be able to use your modem,
assuming you have one on this machine.) To turn your extensions back
on, just restart again, but don't hold any keys down. You'll get a
normal start-up.

dtc

Hey this is fantastic. Why do they have paid answers when the comment
people seem to know so much? Anyway, I will repost with the answers to
the things asked.

Muchas gracias to the max!

By the way, I canīt install or replace any new hardware for this, but
is there some simple SOFTWARE untility that I can just buy for brain
dead people such as myself that I can just turnkey have it zap my
system, compress files, clean parasites or whatever and just
mindlessly clean the whole thing up for me? Thanks for any pointers if
such a comprehensive optimizing utility exists for Mac OS 9.0

Mahalo to the max!

-SeeOtter

Hi again, seeotter (nice nickname, by the way),

There's one free piece of software you can use in case there's a
problem with your hard drive. You already have it: Apple's Disk First
Aid. It came with your computer. Disk First Aid will probably be
installed on your hard drive. Look for your Utilities folder; it
should be in there. Or you could click on the desktop--the Finder, in
other words--and then press the command-f keys simultaneously. (The
command key is the key just to the left of your space bar. It'll have
a cloverleaf on it or maybe an Apple, depending on the model. There's
a command key just to the right of the space bar, too, if you use a
full keyboard.) That'll start Find File. Type in "Disk First Aid"
without the quotes, and it'll show you where to find this little
application. Disk First Aid will check and repair your hard drive.
(Disk First Aid will not compress files or check and repair computer
viruses.)

Note: If, for some reason, you can't find Disk First Aid on your hard
drive--maybe someone threw it in the trash one day, for
example--you'll find a copy on the CD discs that came bundled with
your computer. You could either install it from that disc, or boot
from one of the CD discs and then run Disk First Aid from the CD
itself.

I don't use it though; instead I use a commercial product called Disk
Warrior. You said you can't install anything. That's OK. If you like
this what you read about this product, you can use its CD to start
your computer and then use the application Disc Warrior to diagnose a
hard drive problem. In other words, no installation is necessary. Disk
Warrior is super! Another commercial application is Norton Disk
Doctor, which comes as part of Norton Utilities for Mac. The Symantec
corporation is the manufacturer. This CD, too, can start your computer
and then diagnose and fix many problems that your hard drive might
have. Another popular repair application is TechToolPro. I don't have
that web addy handy right now. I have TechTool, but I don't care for
it. My #1 tool is Disk Warrior (it's a one-trick wonder, but it is
unsurpassed at fixing that one thing, and, without getting
complicated, it's a super-important thing).
http://www.alsoft.com/DiskWarrior/index.html
http://www.symantec.com/product/index_macintosh.html
One more note about Norton Disk Doctor: The modern versions might or
might not be backward-compatible with OS 9. You'd have to check with
Symantec about that. I don't have a computer running OS X yet, so I'm
still using old Norton Utilities discs.

But we're putting the cart before the horse here, and your hard drive
might not be the source of the problem. Once you answer all the
questions, people will have better info to point you in the right
direction.

As for the Google researchers, there are some who are well versed in
Macs, and one of them could well answer your question. But they, too,
would like the information that leoj-ga and I have asked for.

Here's a book I recommend: Ted Landau's _Dead Macs, Bombs, and Other
Disasters_. Maybe you can find a copy in your local library or in a
bookstore. If you'll be buying a new computer in several months or so,
you might think about buying the latest version of this book. But for
your computer running OS 9, the 4th edition would be best. This
edition came out in the year 2000.

By the way, I'm not a computer professional. I'm just a computer user
who's gotten pretty good with Macs.

dtc

P.S. I can recommend some applications that will compress files and
look for viruses, but let's save that info for later, OK? Let's see if
someone can get your Mac up to speed first.  :-)

Try rebuilding the desktop. Hold down the Command and Option keys
while starting up the computer until the message appears asking if you
want to rebuild the desktop.

hlabadie-ga