11.7 Windows System Processes

Windows is a complex operating system, and there are many processes and system-related applications running behind the scenes. Many of these processes and applications can negatively impact performance of a computer, and TouchDesigner.

Windows is made for a large market of consumers, who primarily use their computers during the day. Because of such, there are many applications and Windows system operations that are scheduled to run if a computer is left powered-on overnight. This can be problematic for performance installations that run 24 hours a day. Depending on the needs of the installation or performance, many different applications and system related tasks can, and should, be turned off and rescheduled.

Applications such as virus and spyware scanning softwares, albeit useful for daily computing, should generally be avoided when using TouchDesigner. Virus and spyware softwares can cause a number of issues, the first being pop-ups. Many of these softwares display pop-up reminders and notifications at regular intervals. In unfortunate situations, these can overlap with displayed content and cover outputs during performances and installations. These applications can negatively effect the hard drive as well, as they often scan the system for viruses and malware, using up hard drive read \& write cycles. These two issues are aside from the CPU toll that many of these ever-running applications can incur.