Why does the rating vary between sequential runs?
On most systems, the value of the rating shouldn’t change by more than about +/-5% from run to run. On systems with limited memory it may vary by +/-10% due to memory swapping. If you’re seeing variations higher than this, some hardware or software is probably to blame. Do note that “limited memory” depends on operating system, installed drivers, running programs, etc. A badly configured system with 64MB may be worse memory-wise than an 16MB system… Software Causes: • Other programs running. Close all programs. If this doesn’t solve the problem, check for programs that are loaded in the Startup group, Run list, etc. • Problematic device drivers. Some drivers which are not correctly configured or incompatible may slow-down the system. Also some drivers “poll” the system for various reasons, e.g., the CD-ROM auto-run feature. • Power-saving options are turned on (APM). These options may cause the CPU to automatically slow down after even a few seconds of inactivity. Often, “inactivity”
