I'm using Windows 7 Pro 64-bit. I've configured Classic Shell to keep the
default 7 Start Menu, but with a cascading All Programs submenu.
The problem is that, after clicking on or hovering over All Programs, there is
approximately a two-second delay between when the user account picture (at the
top right of the Start Menu) disappears, and All Programs fades open. Nothing
else on the Start Menu can be clicked on during this delay.
Is it possible to get rid of this delay?
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
The delay occurs every time I hover or click All Programs. I'm using the Aero
theme, though the delay problem has been confirmed in all all themes with All
Programs, and the Programs menu in the classic theme. Other cascading menus
seem to have no delay though.
I have nearly two full columns in All Programs. Is that probably the problem?
There's no delay using the original Windows 7 scrolling All Programs menu,
plus I also have a fast computer.
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
Well, having more items means there are more things to process, however 2
seconds is not normal. Especially since you claim you have a fast machine. I
have 20 items and for me it's instant.
As a test, try reducing the number of items. It should be easy to place half
of them in a sub-menu temporarily and see if that has any effect.
It may be that you have increased the duration of the fade animation, but from
what you describe that seems unlikely. Still, make sure it is set to 200ms for
sub-menus.
I suspect there's something else going on however. Maybe you have some shell
extension that is slowing down the opening of the menu. Can you think of some
unusual extension that you have installed?
Also, how about sub-menus (like Accessories)? They should have much less items
- are they fast?
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
I have realized that, during the two second delay, the taskbar is not
responsive either, and Process Manager's graph doesn't refresh (I've noticed
by setting its refresh rate to 0.5 seconds). Icons on the desktop still work
fine though. Could it be part of an unrelated, more serious issue? No idea.
I've actually previously reduced the fade animation time to 100ms (from
200ms). No difference. In addition, I've tested reducing All Programs to
cascade to only one column initially, with about 20 items. The delay is
reduced, but is still present, at ~1 second.
Any submenus under All Programs each have the same delay for loading. (ie.,
opening Accessories from All Programs incurs 4 seconds of delay.)
I can't think of having installed any unusual extensions. Also, ShellExView
says there are 195 shell extensions installed. Is that a lot, or about right?
I can PM you the generated list of extensions if you think it would be
helpful.
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
I disabled avast! Antivirus, and as soon as I did that, the delay was gone.
I'm guessing its overprotective heuristic scanner was to blame. I may need to
add your shell to avast!'s file system scanner exclusions of what not to be
scanned.
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
Hello, I've got the same delay when i hit the orb, or press the win key, it
takes about 5 second for the start menu to show up. I am aware that Classic
Shell needs to cache the icons, but it happens every time.Indeed, avast!
delayed it because, when i disabled it, the start menu appeared with no delay.
Adding "ClassicStartMenu.exe" to all avast! scanning exclusions doesn't fix
anything. thnx.
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
The start menu runs inside the explorer.exe process. ClassicStartMenu.exe is
just a launcher. It doesn't do much.
Try adding explorer.exe to the exclusion list and let me know if that fixes
it.
If it works, you have to decide for yourself if you want to keep it in the
list or not. On one hand it is part of the OS and is a trusted component, but
on the other hand it runs shell extensions and some of them may be untrusted.
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
I just installed the free avast version in one of my virtual machines - a
32-bit Vista. Wow, that's one chatty piece of software. I don't notice any
delay. I have 3 columns of stuff in my Programs menu, but they are mostly text
files.
What are the contents of your Programs menu? Is it mostly folders, mostly
documents, or mostly actual programs (like Notepad, etc)? Loading the icon
involves actually loading the exe (since that's where the icon is kept), so
maybe that triggers scanning of every program that's in the menu.
It is possible that avast's algorithm is optimized to detect when the Windows
start menu tries to load icons, but since it knows nothing about Classic Start
Menu it can't apply the same optimization there.
Either way, since I am unable to reproduce the problem, I can't fix it until I
get more info. Let me know if adding explorer.exe to the exclusion list helps.
There are 2 lists - one for on-demand scans and one for real-time scans. Make
sure you use the correct list. Also try playing with the settings and let me
know which setting makes the problem go away. For example there is "Use
transient caching", which looks promissing.
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
Adding explorer.exe to real-time scan and that "Use transient caching"
settings seemed to no avail.
Start menu was sluggish because i have ~ 30 program shortcuts on the root of
the start menu ( not in Programs ). Not so far ago, Classic Shell worked
flawless. Removing them made Classic Shell responsive again.
The fact of the matter is that before this problem appeared I've been messing
around with some c:\ security permissions, and maybe damaged something related
to icons caching, because some of the icons from my shortcuts and file
associations are corrupted.
I am using an x64 Windows 7 on an Intel I3 with 4gigs of ram, so refreshing
icons isn't a big deal.
I've needed a fresh install of Windows for a while to set things right and
I'll see after that how things work.
Thanks for your response.
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
I have 68 folders, 23 shortcuts counting from the root of All Programs.
Stuffing those 23 shortcuts into another subfolder caused the delay to
disappear when opening when opening All Programs. However, opening those
subfolders will cause a delay.
Adding explorer.exe to the File System Shield's exclusions doesn't fix the
problem (in fact, adding the entire C:\WINDOWS directory did absolutely
nothing, in addition to it being a huge security risk). However, adding the
two locations where the Start Menu items are located to exclusions did
eliminate the delay; those two locations being
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs and
C:\Users\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs.
imihai, you might want to see if that works before clean reinstalling Windows
:)
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
That's interesting. Maybe avast mistakenly scans shortcuts, but it shouldn't.
The shortcuts are not "executable" themselves, they just refer to the real
program.
You may try excluding *.lnk from the AV scan. If that works, it will be safer,
since you will not be excluding anything potentially dangerous (like some exe
that happens to be in the start menu folder).
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
Uhm... I've already reinstalled windows, so all things are "speedy"... I'll
try to reproduce the delay by bloating the start menu with lots of shortcuts.
Nice one with the .ink exclusion.. I'll try it as soon as i can :) Thanks
If you would like to refer to this comment somewhere else in this project, copy and paste the following link:
I'm using Windows 7 Pro 64-bit. I've configured Classic Shell to keep the
default 7 Start Menu, but with a cascading All Programs submenu.
The problem is that, after clicking on or hovering over All Programs, there is
approximately a two-second delay between when the user account picture (at the
top right of the Start Menu) disappears, and All Programs fades open. Nothing
else on the Start Menu can be clicked on during this delay.
Is it possible to get rid of this delay?
Does it happen every time, or just the first time?
Which skin are you using?
Do you have excessive number of items in the menu?
The delay occurs every time I hover or click All Programs. I'm using the Aero
theme, though the delay problem has been confirmed in all all themes with All
Programs, and the Programs menu in the classic theme. Other cascading menus
seem to have no delay though.
I have nearly two full columns in All Programs. Is that probably the problem?
There's no delay using the original Windows 7 scrolling All Programs menu,
plus I also have a fast computer.
Well, having more items means there are more things to process, however 2
seconds is not normal. Especially since you claim you have a fast machine. I
have 20 items and for me it's instant.
As a test, try reducing the number of items. It should be easy to place half
of them in a sub-menu temporarily and see if that has any effect.
It may be that you have increased the duration of the fade animation, but from
what you describe that seems unlikely. Still, make sure it is set to 200ms for
sub-menus.
I suspect there's something else going on however. Maybe you have some shell
extension that is slowing down the opening of the menu. Can you think of some
unusual extension that you have installed?
Also, how about sub-menus (like Accessories)? They should have much less items
- are they fast?
I have realized that, during the two second delay, the taskbar is not
responsive either, and Process Manager's graph doesn't refresh (I've noticed
by setting its refresh rate to 0.5 seconds). Icons on the desktop still work
fine though. Could it be part of an unrelated, more serious issue? No idea.
I've actually previously reduced the fade animation time to 100ms (from
200ms). No difference. In addition, I've tested reducing All Programs to
cascade to only one column initially, with about 20 items. The delay is
reduced, but is still present, at ~1 second.
Any submenus under All Programs each have the same delay for loading. (ie.,
opening Accessories from All Programs incurs 4 seconds of delay.)
I can't think of having installed any unusual extensions. Also, ShellExView
says there are 195 shell extensions installed. Is that a lot, or about right?
I can PM you the generated list of extensions if you think it would be
helpful.
I've found the problem.
I disabled avast! Antivirus, and as soon as I did that, the delay was gone.
I'm guessing its overprotective heuristic scanner was to blame. I may need to
add your shell to avast!'s file system scanner exclusions of what not to be
scanned.
Hello, I've got the same delay when i hit the orb, or press the win key, it
takes about 5 second for the start menu to show up. I am aware that Classic
Shell needs to cache the icons, but it happens every time.Indeed, avast!
delayed it because, when i disabled it, the start menu appeared with no delay.
Adding "ClassicStartMenu.exe" to all avast! scanning exclusions doesn't fix
anything. thnx.
The start menu runs inside the explorer.exe process. ClassicStartMenu.exe is
just a launcher. It doesn't do much.
Try adding explorer.exe to the exclusion list and let me know if that fixes
it.
If it works, you have to decide for yourself if you want to keep it in the
list or not. On one hand it is part of the OS and is a trusted component, but
on the other hand it runs shell extensions and some of them may be untrusted.
I just installed the free avast version in one of my virtual machines - a
32-bit Vista. Wow, that's one chatty piece of software. I don't notice any
delay. I have 3 columns of stuff in my Programs menu, but they are mostly text
files.
What are the contents of your Programs menu? Is it mostly folders, mostly
documents, or mostly actual programs (like Notepad, etc)? Loading the icon
involves actually loading the exe (since that's where the icon is kept), so
maybe that triggers scanning of every program that's in the menu.
It is possible that avast's algorithm is optimized to detect when the Windows
start menu tries to load icons, but since it knows nothing about Classic Start
Menu it can't apply the same optimization there.
Either way, since I am unable to reproduce the problem, I can't fix it until I
get more info. Let me know if adding explorer.exe to the exclusion list helps.
There are 2 lists - one for on-demand scans and one for real-time scans. Make
sure you use the correct list. Also try playing with the settings and let me
know which setting makes the problem go away. For example there is "Use
transient caching", which looks promissing.
Adding explorer.exe to real-time scan and that "Use transient caching"
settings seemed to no avail.
Start menu was sluggish because i have ~ 30 program shortcuts on the root of
the start menu ( not in Programs ). Not so far ago, Classic Shell worked
flawless. Removing them made Classic Shell responsive again.
The fact of the matter is that before this problem appeared I've been messing
around with some c:\ security permissions, and maybe damaged something related
to icons caching, because some of the icons from my shortcuts and file
associations are corrupted.
I am using an x64 Windows 7 on an Intel I3 with 4gigs of ram, so refreshing
icons isn't a big deal.
I've needed a fresh install of Windows for a while to set things right and
I'll see after that how things work.
Thanks for your response.
I have 68 folders, 23 shortcuts counting from the root of All Programs.
Stuffing those 23 shortcuts into another subfolder caused the delay to
disappear when opening when opening All Programs. However, opening those
subfolders will cause a delay.
Adding explorer.exe to the File System Shield's exclusions doesn't fix the
problem (in fact, adding the entire C:\WINDOWS directory did absolutely
nothing, in addition to it being a huge security risk). However, adding the
two locations where the Start Menu items are located to exclusions did
eliminate the delay; those two locations being
C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs and
C:\Users\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs.
imihai, you might want to see if that works before clean reinstalling Windows
:)
That's interesting. Maybe avast mistakenly scans shortcuts, but it shouldn't.
The shortcuts are not "executable" themselves, they just refer to the real
program.
You may try excluding *.lnk from the AV scan. If that works, it will be safer,
since you will not be excluding anything potentially dangerous (like some exe
that happens to be in the start menu folder).
Yes, the .lnk exclude trick has been confirmed to work for me as well.
Uhm... I've already reinstalled windows, so all things are "speedy"... I'll
try to reproduce the delay by bloating the start menu with lots of shortcuts.
Nice one with the .ink exclusion.. I'll try it as soon as i can :) Thanks