[kwlug-disc] Can OSs demand too much?

[unsolicited]

Shane wrote, On 05/14/2010 4:24 PM:
> I'm not sure there is a bug or even bugs.  I believe it may simply
> be a case of trying to get too much out of too little.  Since 9.10
> and 10.04 run on more modern up-to-date machines I am pretty well
> convinced that even Linux has evolved beyond old hardware.  If the
> results of command line testing and subsequent installing of older
> OSs turn out the way I believe they will, I will have my proof.  If
> not, who knows?

Not likely too much out of too little.

If you are running exactly the same set of apps as before, it should 
be running as well as, and hopefully better, than before. Which is all 
to say, you aren't asking more out of it now than you were before.

Having said that, I expect OS evolution will bring more functional 
installation than was there before, a fair portion of which will come 
along automagically without your conscious choice. So you are probably 
running more than you were before, and those are likely your culprits, 
if you can identify them.

Please take Paul's message to heart, especially vis a vis ACPI, etc. 
Looking at logs and so on. Hopefully a quick peek will reveal 
something truly huge going on, be it ACPI / interrupts / something, 
that solving will result in performance much closer to your expectations.

IIRC, KDE went from 3.x to 4.y during this time period (?), I forget 
whether Gnome also went through it's own thrashing as well. (Didn't 
they do the same thrashing, a couple revs. earlier, though?) Perhaps 
what you're running into is a more 'graphics intensive' experience 
(accidentally, by virtue of 'upgrading') - if you could simplify it, 
either by feature or by driver (video memory consumption / hardware / 
interrupts / etc.?), perhaps your expectations would be closer to 
being met?