Re: Slow startup due to Windows splash screen appearing during POST
Ray,
Regardless of your measurements displaying the splash screen adds nothing
more than maybe a millisecond, if that. to the initial boot time for a Win
Me system. That the splash screen disappeared after 9 seconds simply
tells you that at that point the loader was moving to the next stage and
needed to clear video memory. Loading of the OS doesn't stop when the
splash is displayed. Due to a bug for most European locales the splash
screen lasts for just a few milliseconds until the local code page is
loaded, for those with US settings the splash lasts longer as the initial
code page loaded is used throughout.
> Mike and/or Heirloom: How long does it take your computer to
> a)complete POST
This is hardware/bios dependent and has nothing to do with the operating
system in use.
and b)reach the desktop?
Again this will vary from one PC to another and is dependent upon the
hardware involved and the drivers being loaded by the operating system.
> But I can't
> open Outlook Express because certain installation files are missing
This suggests that you may have other problems which you have yet to touch
on including how and why these files were removed. Only a poorly
configured system asks for the Win Me CD, all the required installation
(cab) files should be present on the system in either the
C:\Windows\Options\Install or C:\Windows\Options\Cabs folder - which
depends on the initial install media, Microsoft retail media uses the
"install" folder and OEM media the "cabs" folder. When asked for the Win
Me CD point it at whichever of these two folders contains the file
BASE2.CAB. Better, permanently fix the problem by setting the data for
the value SourcePath at the key
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Setup to
point to this folder. You can do this by either using Regedit or a
utility such as TweakUI (Special Folders | Installation Path on the My
Computer tab). The version of TweakUI to use with Win Me is v1.33.
--
Mike Maltby
mike.maltby@gmail.com
Ray K <raykosXXX@optonline.net> wrote:
> Thanks Mike and Heirloom. Too bad I can't view newsgroups from my
> g/f's computer so I can try your suggestions immediately. But I can't
> open Outlook Express because certain installation files are missing
> and require that I put an ME disc into the computer. Problem is, she
> doesn't have one, and the independent store I bought her computer
> from says they don't have one any more. Maybe some other local mom
> and pop store can help me.
>
> Mike's suggestion for removing the splash screen worked. Here are some
> timing measurements, with time=0 being when I release the power
> button:
> Case 1. When I started this thread, with the splash screen appearing
> in the middle of the POST:
> a. First appearance of splash screen: 13 seconds
> b. Disappearance splash screen: 22 seconds
> c. End of POST: 32 seconds (desktop shows just background color; no
> icons or start bar across bottom of screen
> d. Fully booted: 55 seconds (desktop with all icons and no hourglass)
>
> Case 2. Modified msdos.sys to remove splash screen:
> a. Not applicable
> b. Not applicable
> c. End of POST: 29 seconds (splash screen ate up four seconds)
> d. Fully booted: 51 seconds
>
> Case 3. Used FreshIU's Restore Windows settings to remove my changes:
> a. Not applicable
> b. Not applicable
> c. End of POST: 28 seconds (might also have been 29 seconds)
> d. Fully booted: 57 seconds
>
> So my tweaks shortened startup time about six seconds.
>
> My g/f's computer runs about 900 MHz with 256MB of RAM. A single 40 GB
> hard drive (should be in DMA mode). No programs are launched at
> startup. The BIOS is set to boot from the c: drive, so no time wasted
> looking elsewhere.
>
> Mike and/or Heirloom: How long does it take your computer to
> a)complete POST and b)reach the desktop?
>
> Ray