CPU Usage with Streets and Trips 2009

Microsoft Streets and Trips 2009 is currently dragging a lot of resources of my IBM laptop which has a Intel CPU @ 2.16 GHz and 1 GIG of Ram. CPU temperature tends to be on the high side and processor usage ranges in the 50%. I have tried to run my computer at a lower speed (916 MHz high) but then navigation is lacking speed; current car location only updates when already passed the next turn. I had to switch back to 2.16 GHz.

Though I am interested to know if anyone experienced same problem and are Streets & Trips future versions going to use less computer resources

Which GPS receiver do you use with your Streets and Trips?

I currently use the GPS that is sold with Streets & Trips from Microsoft.

Streets & Trips is not a resource-intensive application and has fairly modest system requirements in normal usage. 50% CPU on a dual-core machine basically means that one of the two cores is pegged at 100%. Something else is going on, and it could just as well be hardware as software.

If this only happens in navigation mode (i.e., not when doing trip planning), then I would suggest trying a different USB port.

Is there a possibility that you have a large number of POI's imported to the map that you are using? Secondly are you using any custom icons on the map to highlight specific POI's? After those two questions I am all out, time for chips and salsa.

I used to change my Streets & Trips version every two years since early 2000 and I have always experienced high CPU usage. Newer versions seems to be more intensive on usage resources probably because of better graphics and additional features.

Formerly, I was using a Navman GPS with a Compaq computer (1,79 Ghz AMD CPU with 700 MB Ram) and it was impossible to have the computer play music (iTunes) while using the GPS. With my newer computer, I can use iTunes but CPU usage is very high and temperature as well. CPU usage is lower than 5% when running only iTunes and not the GPS

I am not using custom icons nor using a lot of POI's

I don't know what you are doing to get high CPU usage, but I am running Streets & Trips 2009 on a Windows XP laptop Pentium m 1.7 GHz (far from a dual core power) and it run smoothly without using a lot of CPU resource at all.

Not really, no. Since 2000, Streets & Trips has had very few graphics improvements, and the additional features are also not resource-intensive. System requirements have grown only modestly in the last decade.

As I stated before, there is something else going on. And it may or may not be related to S&T. Could be malware or craplets eating up system resources. Could be a busted GPS unit. Could be a damaged USB port. Could be anti-virus. At this point, we're throwing darts blindfolded; the problem could be anywhere.

Indeed. My navigation setup is even slower than that: Tablet PC with 1 GHz Pentium M chip and a slow 4200 rpm hard drive. Runs very smoothly when navigating. Streets and Trip Planner were demanding applications back in 1996, but S&T is not even close to being processor-intensive in 2009.

As mentioned, my problem might be anywhere but to bring a little more to this discussion, I want to add that I have also used S&T on the brand new computer of my sun ( bought it 3 months ago, Toshiba, model ??) and there again, his new computer was not powerful enough to cope with turns announcement since the screen was not refreshed fast enough for the turns. Though, on the 3 computers that I have used, I have experienced the same high usage problem.

The only things that are common in all my experiences are the S&T and the Softkeys Software add-on designed by Marvin.

I'll have to find what's wrong with my setup since it seems that I am the only one to experience difficulties.

Florent

Florent, it could be S&T Keys that is slowing things down. Try to run Streets & Trips alone to test the high CPU issue. If you find that S&T Keys is the culprit, let MisterMoonlight know. He hes been very kind to continue with the S&T Keys project. I no longer work on it.

Thanks. I will certainly check it, but as I mentioned in an another thread before, I do not want anymore to use S&T without Softkeys.


Florent

Another thing to test is to turn off your antivirus program. I know it's another thing you will not want to live without, but the newer versions of many antivirus programs really drag performance down of many things. It it's the antivirus program you can always get a different one that doesn't make a bit hit on the performance.

Viruses shouldn't be able to get at your computer while you're driving around with it in the car, I think.

...ken...

One thing i have seen on my system in some cases is that when i grab with the mouse a big map with a lot of data and long trace route, it could be very slow in some situations. In one trial, i have close S&T Keys and it seems to go much faster. But then the problem came back without any reason and just minimizing the application and maximize later change the speed of S&T?

I have never seen this behavior before. I don't know if it could be related to S&T Keys, but if you find something, i could look at it closer.

Thanks MisterMoonlight. Yes, I normally use road maps with multiple way points (which is the main reason why I am using my laptop and not my Garmin).

I will try to better define what is my problem and let you know all if I ever find reasons for the high CPU usage or at least clues on what's happening.


Florent

If you can increase the RAM, it might help. If your computer is having to swap data out between the RAM and the hard drive, it will slow everything down.

Many programs are graphics-intensive and those tend to be large files. The map on your screen is a large graphic.

Running XP with 1 gig of RAM seems to be enough. In surplus, I have been using and still use FreeRam XP to improve my RAM usage (http://www.yourwaresolutions.com/).

Florent

J’ai fait un test de CPU avec S&T et l'utilisation est de 30 à 35% en moyenne quand je roule; à l'arrêt elle diminue un peu vers 20 à 25% ; à l'occasion il y a de courte pointe à 80% d'une ou 2 secondes (Vieux Fujitsu avec Pentium 3 et 0.384 Go de Ram.)

I made CPU test with S&T and the use is 30 to 35% on average when I am running; on stop it decreases a little around 20 to 25%. Occasionally it rises for a short period at around 80% for one or 2 seconds. (Old Fujitsu with Pentium 3 and 0.384 Go of RAM.)

Just S&T is running on the Laptop...

Honestly, instead of turning off your antivirus program, you should just get one that takes up less space. Many of them are such space hogs! I use Cyberdefender and it works great! It has prevented some viruses and it is scans for malware and spyware. They also have 24/7 computer support so you can call them if you have a conflict with your Streets and Trips software. These guys totally rock!!