I posted this in an identical thread in the mods section:
When GWX loads, it takes a long time. GWX increases the number of ships from stock and has to load every one of them. Load times when going from stock to GWX increases significantly. The first time you see this, it looks like the game has locked up. It hasn't though. I thought the same thing first time I loaded up GWX.

On my old rig, when I first installed GWX the load time was about 15 minutes. :o

My newer rig does it in about 10 minutes-a little better. I've heard people with better computers have load times of 3-5 minutes with GWX. Lucky sobs :O:.

You guys with 3-5 minute load times are killing me.:O:

:)

Mine comes on straight away with no delays,I dont even have to turn the PC or monitor on,I just roleplay the entire game inside my head :har:

Shouldn't take that long then :rotfl2:

I tried that but I couldn't stand the echoes.:wah::cry:

Try roleplaying being depth charged!,you may want to take insurance out on all your furniture!,and dont forget to apologize to your stunned neighbours! :o:har::rotfl2:

The other voices in my head keep drowning out the game.:shifty:

:)

OK, an extended wait time results in the game starting. I still don't know what changed between three months ago, and yesterday.

Thanks for the help!

Probably some change on your computer. If so, try using AlacrityPC or GameBooster to remove unneeded processes and programs that are using memory and processor resources.
And as noted above, using the merged campaign files will slow loading. To see how much, use a blank campaign file (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/down...o=file&id=1082) and time the load time. Then use your regular campaign file and compare the times.

You may need to give your system a cleanout using 'crapcleaner' or something similar.