pinwheel - "not responding"

[pen-helm]

Earlier I wrote:
I just installed the new Safari update and now Safari and sometimes Telnet have long periods where they just show the spinning pinwheel cursor, and Activity Monitor says they're "not responding." Coincidence?

But it's still slow when I reverted to the previous version of Safari, could it have installed some network stuff besides Safari?

Also, TextEdit gives the pinwheel when i try to use my new HP scanner/printer. Could the HP drivers be at fault?