There are two things added to the gnome panel that weren't there in previous distros. One is the "User Switcher" and the other is the "Deskbar". They are side by side. One or both of them is causing this problem. When I removed them both, Gnome loaded in a few seconds, as expected.
There are two things added to the gnome panel that weren't there in previous distros. One is the "User Switcher" and the other is the "Deskbar". They are side by side. One or both of them is causing this problem. When I removed them both, Gnome loaded in a few seconds, as expected.