com.apple.qtkitserver CPU usage on OS X Lion

Question

I'm on Lion 10.7.3 and every now and then, com.apple.qtkitserver hogs my CPU @ 100% for a little less than a minute, especially when there's something happening on Finder. I know that QTKitServer is the Quick Look server, but it seems its generating files unexpectedly or something of the sort.

Does anyone have a fix?

Note: This started happening when I upgraded from Snow Leopard to Lion.

Answer 1

Normally this is due to unfinished/corrupted video files in your downloads folder. I am assuming this is the case for you.

This should solve the problem:

1. Open Finder an navigate to your downloads folder.

2. Right-click and select Show View Options.

3. Untick Show Icon Preview.

Answer 2

I was informed that download apptamer would solve the problem. The activity was reduced significantly. Right now I'm on a 15 day trial. It appears from what I found here: http://maccrazy.com/macbook-air-heat-fan-noise, that others have found it useful too