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Macintosh

Performance

For MacOS 8+

If you use Netscape or AOL or a version of Internet Explorer before 4.5, your browser creates hundreds of little cache files in your Browser Preference folder inside of your Preferences folder in your system folder.

These should be thrown out at least once a week. They cause directory corruption and can cause you to lose all of your data.

Better Surfing

Want faster, more stable Web surfing?

So, you're plagued by constant crashes in your favorite Web browser? Or it just takes too long to render pages, especially those you've already downloaded to cache? So why do they take so long?

Try a RAM disk to speed things up and prevent your disk from becoming seriously fragged at the same time.

1. Finder: Menubar: Apple Menu: Control Panels: Memory
2. Turn RAM Disk On
3. Select a size for your RAM Disk (6-12 MB is good)
   (B&W G3 and G4 users should also turn Persistent RAM Disk OFF)
4. Close Memory and Restart
5. You'll now see a volume mounted to your Desktop titled RAM Disk
6. Launch your favorite browser
7. [browser]: Menu: Edit: Preferences...: Advanced
8. Select Purge Cache Now (this clears all your old files from disk)
9. Alter your cache size to 5 MB
10. Change your cache target folder* to the RAM Disk
    (*it is not necessary to have a folder inside the RAM Disk, just target the root level of the volume)
11. Save and close Preferences

That's it! Now, your Web surfing should be noticeably faster (especially on older Macs), and you have the added benefit of the oft-corrupted cache.log and cache files you download being deleted on each Shutdown or Restart*. This will prevent lots of common browser-freezes, Type 2 errors, and total-System-crashes. Also, your B-Tree Directory, File Directory and Desktop DB/DF files will be less-used, therefore requiring less maintenance. Don't know what that means? Don't worry, it's a Good Thing!.

12. Repeat the procedure for each of your browsers, making sure to have a RAM Disk slightly larger than the cumulative total of all your cache settings. (e.g., Navigator 5 MB + Explorer 5 MB =10 MB cache = 11 MB RAM Disk)

(*Older xx00 and Performa Macs will retain RAM Disk contents through a Restart; "Beige" G3 Macs will give a warning about losing the contents on each Restart [say OK]; B&W G3 and G4 Macs should turn Persistent RAM Disk OFF to prevent retention of cache files).

Taming Extensions

Many high-end programs and system improvements (Kaleidoscope, GoMac, screensavers, etc.) use extensions to carry out their tasks on your Mac. Unfortunately, these extensions sap memory and computing power noticeably during the use of system-intensive games.

The best way to improve performance on such games is to create an extensions set with Extensions Monitor that only has the essential extensions your system.

Shave a few seconds off startup time

When your Mac starts up it runs a check on your memory, which is only really necessary when you modify your built-in memory.

To turn this check off, open your memory control panel while holding down the Command & Option keys. You'll see a fourth option in the list for toggling on/off the memory check option.