PSE15 editor very slow to launch

[tpgettys]

I am experiencing a change in startup behavior; for over 30 seconds the editor is stuck showing Scanning for plug-ins... on the splash screen.  It used to load quickly.  I did a complete uninstall/reinstall with no change.  All plug-ins were removed.  Is there perhaps a way to get PSE to create a log during startup to see what is going on?

[MichelBParis]

Original discussion:

Editor slow to begin | Photoshop Elements & More

Note that the problem is different from other similar slowness complaints, it is linked with plug-ins...

[tpgettys]

Yes, it does seem to be.  However, I used Revo Uninstaller (which runs the Adobe uninstall and also trying to clean up the registry and files after that has run) before reinstalling PSE 15, so I am at a lose as to what there could be that troubles the editor for over 30 seconds.  What is it doing when it says "Scanning for plug-ins..." on the splash screen??

I am looking for any sort of insight or suggestions as to how to debug this behavior.  A load-time log file would sure be helpful!

[tpgettys · Accepted solution]

OK, mystery solved!  It was indeed related to plugins; specifically plugins from Topaz Labs.  They recently released updates to two of their products.  In response to many complaints about install problems they created a "utility" whose actions resulted in my problems.

For anyone who has the same problem as me and reads this, here is the fix:

In the folder C:\Program Files\Common Files\Adobe\Plug-Ins\Elements 15 delete all the shortcuts created by the Topaz utility.

The only thing that should be in that folder is another folder named "File Formats".