Refer to the above message post by myself a while ago.
I actually performed a recovery using the Windows System Recovery, not to revert to windows 8 however, but to the time before i did a few things right after i update from windows 8 to 8.1. Amazingly, the slow start up and shut down problem is not there anymore (I have shut down and restart at least 6 times to make sure). So i figure that, maybe the things that i did after i update to windows 8.1 have triggered the slow start up and shut down issue. Here is the list of what i did after update to 8.1:
- verify the user account and later on change it to a local account
- Install an update for Microsoft office 2010, 2013 and visual studio 2005. (This update was installed previously but was deleted after i performed the recovery. Now, the update file is pending installation but i dare not to do anything for the fear that it may trigger the slow issue again.)
- Delete Dolby audio driver and re-install it. (There is an issue with the driver after i update to windows 8.1)
- Re-install the bluetooth driver . (My bluetooth cease to function after update to windows 8.1)
I hope that this will help. Right now, i just leave my pc as it is until a solution is found. One more thing, the recovery point is not set by me, but it is set automatically by the pc. So, if any of you have the slow issue, try to check if your pc has set the restore point automatically for you.