Catalina install gone bad

Fixed!

While poking around, updating MS and  apps contributing to the slowdown I looked at

the Trash contents one more time - and before my very eyes the were dozens of items,

some the com.apple types. Realizing I was now over my head I called  Support at

(800) 692-7753 (keep handy). A tech somewhere in Texas looked at the trash and decided

we needed to put many items back in the prefs folder - which was going to be a daunting

task. I dint know how they got there but the tech started to poke around and saw that the

update to Catalina was recent - he then realized that the trashed items - some 130,000 of

them - which you could see by rotating folder arrowheads down - were words or lines of

code written in 32-bit characters - whereas Catalina's dispensed of in favor of 64-bit. Yes!

That meant Trash could be emptied - a process taking nearly 15 min. Apparently the Mac

had to read thru all items in Trash before executing a command - slowing it drastically.

Once the trash was deleted, the Mac ran at normal speed. End of story.

Finally received this 2012 Mini from UPS - the one with the bad install of Catalina.

The problem is getting resolved simultaneous with updating not just  apps but Microsoft

ones - not in App Store (requiring recourse to MS). Office 365 is now Microsoft Office - I

assume it's a major rewrite as is Catalina. Remember how Explorer was built into Windows?

It seems  followed that model with Pages and Numbers so if they're not updated it causes

havoc in Catalina. There were other issues - the user had loaded the desktop with links, etc.

causing the OS to read all those during startup - but MS updates were most problematical.

I'm doing a full scan of the disk now to ferret out any other issues (viruses anyone?) but the

spinning ball has diminished - not entirely gone - but the Mini's useable now.

If you have any other ideas I'd welcome them. I'm used to an SSD - the Mini has an old spinning

platter drive - maybe that's why there are wait states I'm not used to anymore - anything else?

Thanks again, Tom

Ok will try that when it gets here in

the next week. Thanks very much.

Tom

Am still awaiting delivery - something about a shipping carton.

There is no backup (!). Will reinstall

erase the drive?

Tom