Arduino 1.6.8 IDE problems on Windows XP

In the lab I still use a 2004 laptop that runs Windows XP. It is compact and does everything I need.

Unfortunately the last update to Arduino IDE 1.6.8 caused a couple of issues:

1. "ld returned 5 exit status" when compiling, making it impossible to get working bytecode
2. 100% CPU usage by services.exe and java.exe (or javaw.exe) even when the IDE is idle

The first issue can be solved by replacing the stock ld.exe with the one from old IDEs, like 1.0.5.

But I found no solution (and nobody complaining either) to the second issue, so I am reverting back to 1.6.5 that, as far as I remember, had no problems. Otherwise I will go backwards with releases until I reach a stable point again.

Edit: yes, 1.6.5r5 does work indeed. It is a Windows XP SP3 with a Intel centrino CPU.