carolynm Posted July 6, 2009 Report Share Posted July 6, 2009 Does anyone have any tips to make this software run with some kind of speed? I thought it was my computer beginning to stutter but after a couple of days without a complaint and not running ATX...I realize it's ATX. I shut down every evening but it seems after I've been in the program for a while it turns into molasses. I eventually have to shut down the whole computer. I have 1 gig of ram on a 3.2ghz pentium puter...do I need more ram, more computer? I'd love to see if I can't speed this up before next year..I get tired of waiting for my computer to calculate! Carolyn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Brasch Posted July 6, 2009 Report Share Posted July 6, 2009 Carolyn, Since you get on the internet, your computer may pick up spyware and other things that slows it down. I would suggest you go to http://www.iobit.com and download their free Advanced SystemCare. This application cleans many things from your computer that can slow it down. It works in the background and should speed up ATX and everything else you do with your computer. They have a Professional version that does many more things, but the free version may be all you need. See what you think. Wayne Brasch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyDaleOne Posted July 6, 2009 Report Share Posted July 6, 2009 I would suggest more RAM 2 to 3 gigs or 4 gigs if going to Windows 7. After loading the software and the return I have not had a speed problem. I would guess I notice the speed thing in loading the ATX program, loading a tax return, and when I exit the program. If you are running over a network that also slows done the operations. I am running a 1 gigabit LAN to speed things up. Increased buffering of the hard disk and a faster hard disk would also speed things up. However, any buffering or latency in the write side of the operations increases the exposure to the effects of a power failure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
carolynm Posted July 7, 2009 Author Report Share Posted July 7, 2009 Since you get on the internet, your computer may pick up spyware and other things that slows it down. I don't think this is the case here, as I was surprised how well the computer runs when ATX is not running. I have search and destroy (for malware) and avira (for viruses) running. I would suggest more RAM 2 to 3 gigs or 4 gigs if going to Windows 7. After loading the software and the return I have not had a speed problem. /quote] So you don't experience a lag when say pulling up the print screen? I wait a long time for that... I also sometimes get random lags when the program just seems to bog down..I think I'll try a memory upgrade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taxit Posted July 7, 2009 Report Share Posted July 7, 2009 Carolyn I think you are right,it is ATX. I have 9 computers on a network. I had them all upgraded in November 2008 and they ran 2007 ATX very well. After loading 2008 ATX they all slowed down to some degree. As we opened more returns the speed is affected. Any other program we open runs fast. I've loaded Drake to try it out and it ran much faster than ATX. That being said, I've been using ATX for over 10 years and I do like ATX, it's just slow. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyDaleOne Posted July 7, 2009 Report Share Posted July 7, 2009 This is just my opinion, "because of the programming tools used in programming ATX it would require a different programming approach to overcome some of the lag in ATX." I am agreeing taxit comments, same experience. Yes, I have a lag when trying to print the complete return, not in the printing part but in the preparatory part. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaelmars Posted July 7, 2009 Report Share Posted July 7, 2009 i just close the program a few times each day and also reboot my puter at least once a day and everything is faster after i do this. during tax season, rebooting at least forces me to take a mini break to stretch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
robpeterson Posted July 7, 2009 Report Share Posted July 7, 2009 Our hardware is about the same, running on XP. Peer to peer network with 3 users. We don't have any speed problems other than waiting for the "file, print" screen to come up. I generally run "msconfig" and turn off programs / toolbars / etc. not needed. The less junk running the better your performance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcb39 Posted July 7, 2009 Report Share Posted July 7, 2009 I am running a 5 year old computer with a 2.8 GHz Pentium 4 processor with HyperThreading. I have upgraded to 1.5 G Ram. I have no noticeable slowness issues except when preparing Partnership Returns. I do regular maintenance, such as defrag. I have 10 years of ATX software on my hard drive. Am running Windows XP. Rebooting at least once a day during the busiest times is a definite "must". I can multi-task while running ATX with no problem. I think the HyperThreading is a definite advantage. Unless something drastic happens, I don't plan on changing my system any time sooner than a year. If you do nothing else, backup religiously. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Randall Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 This is just my opinion, "because of the programming tools used in programming ATX it would require a different programming approach to overcome some of the lag in ATX." I am agreeing taxit comments, same experience. Yes, I have a lag when trying to print the complete return, not in the printing part but in the preparatory part. I'm no programming guru, but I think the ATX program is a spreadsheet type of language and therefore slower. Especially, when you have a more complex return with more forms, depreciation schedules, multiple states, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Brasch Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 I have 4 GB of RAM and also use the application Advanced SystemCare Professional I mentioned already. I never have a lag of any type in any year's version of the ATX program. I have Windows Vista and the ATX programs since the 1998 tax filing season on my computer system. Wayne Brasch Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kcjenkins Posted July 9, 2009 Report Share Posted July 9, 2009 The memory upgrade should certainly help. ATX is a memory hog, and rebooting at least once a day [lunch break ?] is a basic step to do, as well. But running 4G of memory will be significantly better for your speed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kea Posted July 10, 2009 Report Share Posted July 10, 2009 Not only is my Vista PC running slow, I've started getting "windows is not responding" messages when changing programs or opening a new window or doing almost any activity. It usually does it 2 -3 times per hour. I've run the various Norton and SpyBot tools I already have. I'm not sure the Advanced SystemCare will help much since it is for spyware, too. Any other programs anyone wants to recommend? It's time to replace Norton anyway and I will be switching to Advanced SystemCare and AVG. I've been troubleshooting most of my own PC problems for years, but haven't been able to fix these "...not responding" messages. I usually tell it to "close program" at which point it clears all the icons off the desktop and takes away the menu bar. They come back about 30 seconds (+/+) later and then it will work again for a while. I haven't lost any data (yet), but the time lags are annoying. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kcjenkins Posted July 10, 2009 Report Share Posted July 10, 2009 How much memory does the computer have? I know that Vista uses a lot of memory just for the OS itself. The minimum memory that many new computers come with is just slightly more than the OS needs to run itself, leaving any program that is memory-hungry to have problems. 1 Gig is the MINIMUM for a business computer running the Vista OS, so 2 G would be my idea of a minimum usable system, and I'd personally want 4G. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RoyDaleOne Posted July 12, 2009 Report Share Posted July 12, 2009 Currently, most computer setups can only access 3 gigs of ram. However, I still recommend 4 gigs because soon that will not be true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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