Is it a computer or a broadband problem?

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Earlier this month, I was as a domestic customer, changed over from BT to EE, retaining the same 900Mb level. The EE engineer replaced the BT Smart hub 2 with an EE one and replaced the black BT wi-fi circular discs with square white EE ones. I am on Digital Voice. All was fine but a week ago, at intermittent time periods when typing, the monitor screen (six months old) began to flicker and the buffering symbol appeared over the text area. It only lasts for three to five seconds, but is very annoying when you have a lot of text matter to type and during that short period, any text that I was in the process of typing just does not appear, causing me to retype the missing matter. I have a very good quality HP Pavilion desktop computer which was working perfectly well until the changeover to EE and their equipment.

An automatic computer check says all items are working well, so has anyone any ideas? I am 79 years of age.

 

[najaB]

An automatic computer check says all items are working well, so has anyone any ideas?

Much more likely to be a computer issue than a problem with your Internet connection.

In most cases, while you're typing no data is transferred between your computer and the website.

If it happens specifically while you're typing a lot of text then it's probably a spelling or grammar checker parsing what you've written.

You don't happen to have installed anything like Grammarly?

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

Last week, as it turns out, one of my twin sons (aged 48) used my computer to send emails to other consultancy managers about an emergency meeting he was calling. I note under the "extensions" icon at the top right-hand corner there is an item that I had not been aware of called "Microsoft Editor : Grammar and Spelling" which he must have installed at that time without telling me.

Is that what you mean? Incidentally, the damn thing is happening whilst I type this....three seconds in time.

 

[Snow1964]

I wouldn't be surprised if when you changed router, you were asked to go through some welcome screens to enter login key etc, then default option was to add some free software (probably in name of keeping you safe from hacks and viruses etc), which you might have tabbed through instead of saying no.

Microsoft has been known to try and do this on quarterly updates and have to switch to no thanks (otherwise get more junk that you have lived without for years) slowing your computer.

Had this few years ago, after changing broadband, seemed there were two virus checkers running and would get these pauses (as they presumably conflicted). So I went into the settings and software programmes and purged (deleted) whole lot of stuff and never had any problems since. I'm sure one of the columns in the list was date software installed, so can easily spot any recently added items.

 

[Harpers Tate]

You mention "when typing". If you mean, "when typing into a form on a website" (such as, making a post here) then the web connection is highly unlikely to be at play for this reason: typing on a form like this is accumulated locally and only transmitted over the web when you hit to "Post Reply" (or equivalent) button.

As an aside - if you experience this only on websites like this one, then I would note that I have seen this myself in the past. It was ultimately tracked down to being an issue with the text tool used on this and other sites (called "redactor", I think). It's supposed to have been fixed and I haven't seen that occur for some time.

Absent anything else to fix it, here is a workround for anything longer than a few words:
Start the app "Notepad". Type and edit and proof your text there. Then, when done, select all, copy, and paste it into your web form.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

You mention "when typing". If you mean, "when typing into a form on a website" (such as, making a post here) then the web connection is highly unlikely to be at play for this reason: typing on a form like this is accumulated locally and only transmitted over the web when you hit to "Post Reply" (or equivalent) button.

As an aside - if you experience this only on websites like this one, then I would note that I have seen this myself in the past. It was ultimately tracked down to being an issue with the text tool used on this and other sites (called "redactor", I think). It's supposed to have been fixed and I haven't seen that occur for some time.

Absent anything else to fix it, here is a workround for anything longer than a few words:
Start the app "Notepad". Type and edit and proof your text there. Then, when done, select all, copy, and paste it into your web form.

No, it was not "when typing into a form on a website", as you suggested. It was articles on railway history, that can be from four to nine A4 pages in length.

Thanks for the advice offered in your last paragraph. It is really annoying that in the fourteen years since retirement, that this problem has suddenly occurred when writing articles.

 

[Harpers Tate]

No, it was not "when typing into a form on a website", as you suggested. It was articles on railway history, that can be from four to nine A4 pages in length.

So - using (for example) a word processing app? If not - what application are you attempting to type into?

 

[sor]

I wouldn't be surprised if when you changed router, you were asked to go through some welcome screens to enter login key etc, then default option was to add some free software (probably in name of keeping you safe from hacks and viruses etc), which you might have tabbed through instead of saying no.

I don't think BT (or rather EE now) do any of that anymore. If you want McAfee or whatever rubbish they offer with the broadband you have to go and get it yourself.

 

[Energy]

I wouldn't be surprised if when you changed router, you were asked to go through some welcome screens to enter login key etc, then default option was to add some free software (probably in name of keeping you safe from hacks and viruses etc), which you might have tabbed through instead of saying no.

Unlikely. The BT/EE (or any ISP routers I'm aware of) routers don't require configuration and work out of the box with the default SSID and password. More likely it was a Windows update or someone just pressed yes to the Microsoft Spelling thing without realising. Try removing it and see what happens.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

I don't think BT (or rather EE now) do any of that anymore. If you want McAfee or whatever rubbish they offer with the broadband you have to go and get it yourself.

My son had Norton Deluxe and Norton Utilities Ultimate installed on my desktop computer ages ago and I notified BT at the time that the Norton product they offered as part of a package would not be used, as I already had superior level products.

 

[davews]

Agree, this is a Windows software issue and nothing whatsoever to do with your broadband. Your internet connection, since you are on full fibre, is defined by the ONT box on the wall and the router, almost identical to your former BT one, is a pretty dumb interface over ethernet. BT routers certainly don't come with 'bundled software'.
But interested that you have been moved from BT to EE. Although the BT website suggests I should do so here I can see no advantages apart from a marginal cost saving so am prepared to sit and wait until they try and get all their customers moved which I suspect may happen eventually.

 

[najaB]

Last week, as it turns out, one of my twin sons (aged 48) used my computer to send emails to other consultancy managers about an emergency meeting he was calling. I note under the "extensions" icon at the top right-hand corner there is an item that I had not been aware of called "Microsoft Editor : Grammar and Spelling" which he must have installed at that time without telling me.

Is that what you mean? Incidentally, the damn thing is happening whilst I type this....three seconds in time.

That's more than likely to be the culprit. As suggested above, try typing the text into something else (e.g. Notepad) or a different web browser and see if the same happens. If not, then you've found the cause.

 

[Xenophon PCDGS]

A happy ending to this saga. I removed the "Microsoft Editor : Grammar and Spelling" item and everything is back to normal. Many thanks to all who offered advice.

 

[najaB]

Glad to hear it.