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List:       suse-linux-e
Subject:    RE: [SLE] OO: If you can make it, I can break it!
From:       "Greg Wallace" <gregwallace () fastmail ! fm>
Date:       2005-12-30 4:07:17
Message-ID: !~!UENERkVCMDkAAQACAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAABgAAAAAAAAAFi/9+yIBsUe66x5a7uVsecKAAAAQAAAAZs+KODNkekatTQSO+24d2wEAAAAA () fastmail ! fm
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On Thursday, December 29, 2005 @ 3:39 PM, Carlos Robinson wrote:


>The Thursday 2005-12-29 at 18:29 -0500, Ken Schneider wrote:

>> > Actually, the cache/buffer memory makes the system go faster. The more
you 
>> > have there, the faster.
>> > 
>> > That's why the second time you load OOo, without the quickstarter, it 
>> > loads faster: it doesn't need to read from disk, it is already in
memory.
>> > 
>> 
>> But -that- is the whole problem with "perception" with -new- users. They
>> load a program like OO and it takes them forever the first time and they
>> then think that -everything- runs slower. If there was a limit to how
>> much ram was used by cache/buffer, programs would load faster the
>> -first- time because memory would be available the first time it was
>> started. 

>No, you are wrong there; cache memory is freed instantly, the worst 
>problem is disk I/O. OOo is huge, and has to be loaded.

>You can try very easily: start up your system, get in to X mode with a 
>small memory footprint environment - almost anyone except kde (if you 
>have 1GB, then use kde if you like). Start an xterm with "top" running on 
>it; watch the free free memory display, you should have a lot still, and 
>litle memory dedicated to cache; then start up OOo. You will see little or 
>no diference compared to when the chache is in use, provided there is 
>enough free memory. In fact, it may be slower.

>> The "perception" that new users need to have is that linux is
>> as fast as MS Windows or better yet faster.
>> The cache/buffer use needs to be a tunable parameter.

>No, the kernel knows better than you (we) in this respect.

>- -- 
>Cheers,
>       Carlos Robinson

So when are the binaries cached, when you exit the program?  I've really
never explored this in Linux, but on 'dose, the application binary is cached
the first time you open it.  That's why if you open something like, say,
EXCEL, turn right around and close it, then open it again, it comes up
almost instantly the second time.  You can also go to task manager and watch
the memory hits.  If an app is, say, 100K, the first time you open it you
take a 200K memory hit.  If you close it, memory goes down by 100K (leaving
the 100K cached copy).  The only time that cached copy would go away is if
you needed the memory for some other app.  Then it would be aged out.  Does
Linux work differently?

Greg Wallace



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