Clean Install - slow, driver issues

Hi all

I recently did a clean install of 7 64bit. Easy enough, no problems.

It is terrible. It frequently lags severely just while having multiple tabs open in Firefox. Could this possibly be a driver issue, and if so, what drivers?

Also, my computer frequently operates in the 90 degree Celsius range even when idle due to a horrible design decision by Toshiba to put a cloth over the fan inlet. Probably to keep dust out, but it just gets blocked with dust waaaay too easily, which is ironic. To remove dust from this material adequately I need to use a compressor. And to not burn out the fan motor from the rapid spinning of the fan otherwise induced by the extreme air current, i need to lock the fan in place by means of physically stopping the fan, which I can only access by removing the keyboard. I.e. It is a very tedious process! Something I shouldn't have to do.

So, is it possible my processor has gone to shit due to being subjected to sustained periods of high temperature? And this is causing my computer to lag?

And back to drivers. I easily installed my wireless driver. I went to the intel site, and downloaded the chipset drivers from there. I also installed my NVIDIA driver which was working perfectly. Heck, i got appropriate wireless and graphics drivers even for XP.

Yet for some reason Windows 7 insists it has better drivers for my video, and prioritises its own generic drivers which has a maximum resolution of 1280x720. Which is not terribly smaller than the HD screen, but is obviously scaled and not very nice. I can solve the problem by uninstalling the existing driver, and the NVIDIA driver will be operating upon restart. But it keeps reverting to the windows generic driver. Is there a way I can stop this?

It's rather poor that Windows cannot provide a resolution greater than 1280x720. Why does Windows suck so bad for hardware support? Ubuntu (a <700 MB installation) gives perfect resolution. Wireless also works perfectly from the get go, something Windows does not seem it will achieve in a million years. Even a UBCD can give me HD resolution :/

the multiple tabs open in firefox should be theoretically a video driver issue, but firefox is basically a giant memory leak disguised as a browser so I cannot really tell. I use firemin with the setting bar all towards the ram to plug the Firefox's leaks.

About your Win7 constantly reinstalling its generic drivers when it shouldn't, try this or this.

Also, my computer frequently operates in the 90 degree Celsius range even when idle due to a horrible design decision by Toshiba to put a cloth over the fan inlet.

I'd do my best to remove such cloth, because hey, 90 °C is pretty friggin extreme. Get a laptop cooling pad asap. (the bigger the fan, the less the noise it does)

Why does Windows suck so bad for hardware support?

They have to pay their programmers. If you had to pay all people that worked for free for the average linux distro... you got the idea.

timtadams said:

it's not just Firefox, and it never used to be an issue.
Also I would love to remove the cloth but to do so I need to pull apart the laptop completely, which I couldn't work out how to do

Wise decision. Tell the model of the laptop, maybe I can fetch a disassembly/service manual.

The exact name/code should be on a label in the bottom side of the lappy.