Thread 107139458

https://cy-x.net/articles?id=11

>This problem exists on Linux as well, but I'd like to just target this instead as Linux can still happily run on even the shittiest of boxes in the modern day.
Broken Promises

Twenty years ago, we were promised a future where computers would get faster, more efficient, and easier to use. Hardware delivered on that promise spectacularly. A modern CPU has thousands of times more processing power than a Pentium 4. RAM that cost $200 for 256MB now costs $30 for 32GB. Storage went from spinning disks to solid-state drives that are orders of magnitude faster.

So why does using a computer in 2025 often feel worse than it did in 2005?

The answer is simple: while hardware engineers kept their promises, software developers broke theirs.

We've been doing the same exact thing for 20+ years

Let's start with the most obvious example: Windows itself.
>pic rel

Windows XP could run comfortably on 512MB of RAM. You could boot up, run Office, browse the web, and still have memory to spare. Windows 7 raised the bar but remained reasonable - 2GB was plenty for most users.

Then came Windows 10 and 11. These operating systems struggle with less than 8GB of RAM, and 16GB is becoming the new baseline. What exactly are we getting for that 32x increase in memory usage? A few translucent effects? Cortana nobody asked for? Mandatory telemetry services?

The core functionality - managing files, running programs, displaying windows - hasn't fundamentally changed. Yet somehow Microsoft needs 16 times more memory to accomplish the same basic tasks.

This isn't progress. It's waste masquerading as innovation.

You don't own your modern computer
>pic rel

>People say they've "debloated their Windows" all the time, but have any of them actually checked to see if that was true?

Here's a real example from monitoring network traffic on a Windows 10 machine:

Steam, when accidentally opened for less than a minute, generated hundreds of outbound connections. Not for downloading games or updates - just for existing. Community features, marketplace data, friend status updates, advertising content - all transmitted constantly whether you use these features or not.

Windows itself isn't much better. Fire up a network monitor and watch your OS phone home dozens of times per minute. Sending what? Microsoft claims it's "anonymous telemetry" for improving user experience. But the user experience of Windows has arguably gotten worse over the past decade, so what exactly is all this data accomplishing?

Your computer isn't working for you anymore. It's working for Microsoft, Steam, and whatever other companies have decided they need a direct line to your system.

>>107139472
Microsoft doesn't use their own operating system
>pic rel

Can you figure out what's wrong with this error? I can.
This is an error in Windows 11. We can observe the following:
>Vista-era error symbol
>Win9x unthemed OK button

>Contents of window is Vista-white while it remains 9x grey below and above the window's contents
>the explorer is dark, the error is light
>Home - File Explorer:
>But it also says explorer.exe - System Error just in case you didn't know what it was : )
>The most IMPORTANT part of the Windows experience will break and experience countless errors at a moments notice

Windows 7 had something modern versions lack: consistency. Every dialog box followed the same design language. Menus worked predictably. The control panel was organized logically.

Windows 10 and 11? Good luck. Some settings live in the new "Settings" app with its touch-friendly interface designed for tablets nobody uses. Other settings still live in the old Control Panel. Some settings exist in both places but control different things. Some settings have been removed entirely.

This isn't user-hostile by accident. This is the result of developers prioritizing their own convenience over user experience. It's easier to build new interfaces than fix old ones. It's easier to add telemetry than optimize performance. It's easier to assume users have infinite RAM than write efficient code.

>>107139481
Programmers suck
>pic rel

>Provided you know how to config your computer, you could happily use Windows XP for all of your daily needs with incredibly low amounts of RAM! This particular fellow has only around 2 gigabytes of RAM in his machine, and it's only using up 132 megs!

We have computers that are literally thousands of times more powerful than the machines that sent humans to the moon. Yet somehow, opening a text editor takes longer than it did in 1995.

Why does a chat application need to run a full Chromium browser instance? Why does a simple text editor consume 200MB of RAM? Why do we need gigabytes of storage for what used to be kilobyte programs?

The answer isn't technical complexity. The underlying computing tasks haven't become dramatically harder. The answer is that modern software development culture has abandoned efficiency as a virtue.

"Memory is cheap," they say. "CPUs are fast," they justify. "Users won't notice," they assume.

But users do notice. They notice when their brand-new laptop feels sluggish. They notice when their battery dies after three hours. They notice when their "high-end" gaming rig struggles to run basic applications smoothly.

ok.

>>107139488
>pic rel
Take a look at that XP screenshot and that 2008R2 video again, please.

What We Lost

In chasing the illusion of modernization, we've sacrificed real value:

Stability: Windows 7 could run for months without rebooting. Windows 10 forces updates that break systems.

Privacy: Your OS didn't used to spy on you (if you don't include Windows Customer Experience and Error Reporting, of course). Now it's the default.

Control: Users could disable features they didn't want. Now essential functions are tied to bloatware.

Efficiency: Programs used to be optimized for the hardware available. Now they assume unlimited resources.

Predictability: Interfaces used to work consistently. Now every update changes the UI for no apparent reason.

The Real Cost

This isn't just about nostalgia or resistance to change. There are real costs to this regression:

Economic: People replace perfectly functional hardware because software has become too bloated to run on it.

Environmental: Working computers become e-waste because they can't handle modern bloatware.

Productivity: Time is wasted navigating inconsistent interfaces and waiting for overpowered machines to perform simple tasks.

Security: Complexity creates vulnerabilities. Every unnecessary service is another attack vector.

The Path Forward

The solution isn't to go back to Windows XP (though honestly, it's tempting). The solution is to demand better from software developers. If they aren't willing to correct their ways, REPLACE THEM. Make and use alternative software that performs better than the sluggish top dog and grants users more freedom.

We need to stop accepting "that's just how modern software works" as an excuse for poor engineering. We need to value efficiency, stability, and user control over flashy features and data collection.

>>107139499
Hardware engineers held up their end of the bargain. They gave us incredible performance improvements year after year. It's time for software developers to do the same.

The next time someone tells you that you need to upgrade your hardware to run modern software, ask them: what exactly is that software doing that requires so much more power than it did ten years ago?

The answer might surprise you. Or more likely, disappoint you.

Your computer should work for you, not against you. It's time we started demanding software that respects both your hardware and your time.

>>107139458 (OP)
WHERES THE GODDAMN ARTICLE RSS MIKE I TOLD YOU LAST TIME WHERES THE GODDAMN RSS ARTICLE MIKE

>the autist is back at it
seek professional help OP

>>107139642
>noticing is... LE BAD
rabbi, your time and the time of your golems and shabbos goyim will come

>>107139458 (OP)
which is why i tell you windoze ffaggots all the time linux solves your problems. i run slax and i peak at 480 mb.

All these new bullshit features are to handhold jeets and other thirdworlders into computers. Shit was so much simpler when everyone was white.

Good thread. Keep at it fellow autist.

>>107139499
>Now they assume unlimited resources
this. the hardware element has been completely abstracted in the minds of developers, which sort of makes sense since these days hardly any two people have the same system with how many different chips are available, which wasn't so much the case back then, back when there was only a handful of configurations you could even target. most devs must work in generalities if they're to set performance goals - does it take up all the RAM? no, then good enough; we know of course that isn't good enough that's a totally arbitrary metric, but its like, if it runs on the developers workstation, to the average codemonkey, that's shippable. they don't even think in terms of efficiency, its just "what do I have to do to make this work in a way that people won't complain too much"
I don't think its really an easy problem to solve in today's world, I think it requires a different way of envisioning performance altogether; in terms of making all the components of the system efficient, rather than only optimizing when its absolutely necessary. its floor vs ceiling (if that makes sense.) its like you're packing a suitcase - you could lay out your things neatly and see how they fit, or you can just jam it all in, and press hard on it and hope it doesn't pop open.
it either that mindset goes, or developers set low artificial limits and pretend they're targeting older computers, which is just a bit queer I think, but it would probably work for some people.

Web 2.0 and JS garbage was invented by white people, not Indians.

>>107141777
yes, and it was great and simple technology in the beginning, but then kikes and pajeets came and ruined it for profit by stacking 50 layers of frameworks on top of it.
windows nt, linux and hurd are excellent technologies, but then mouth-breathing faggots put 4 gb of unstable webshit on top of it.

>>107139458 (OP)

is lie modern cpu 10 times stronger maybe 100 times stronger without main computer

>>107139458 (OP)
>software has negated all hardware advancements .jpg

>>107139510
>Your computer should work for you, not against you.
That's very antisemitic.

Based. Kind of related but I remember last year I tried Fedora workstation on bare metal, and Gnome was stupidly sluggish, even simple actions such as opening a picture would take almost a second, which doesn't seem much but it does feel slower compared to other image viewers in other desktop environments or distributions. What the hell are Ebussy and co. doing?

Very well said anon. I do miss the simplicity. I try to cure it with Arch Linux, but sometimes I miss the old days.

>>107139458 (OP)
I literally went from getting 12-22fps in the oblivion remake to a stable 60 just by upgrading my cpu.

>>107139458 (OP)
>now costs $30 for 32GB
maybe update your gpt bait

>>107144935
From all that text, you manage to find the cost of ram? Just how retarded are you monkey?

>>107145051
yes I am capable of reading a few sentences, a great achievement in the current world I know

>>107145069
you read the wrong ones, read it fully and you will see the actual point of the thread

>>107141268
>480mb
lmao get real nigga, artix with i3 pipewire and networkmanager runs at 150mb-ish.

>>107139458 (OP)
The purpose of a computer is to serve ads and collect user data. That's it. Everything else is a cost paid to convince users to get served ads and do as much on the computer as they can so more data can be collected and sold. That's why stuff sucks more and more every year, because the market is willing to put up with shittier and shittier things.

pseud website

>>107145486
congrats but only further proves linux > windoze

>>107139458 (OP)
> now costs $30 for 32GB.
Liar

>>107145848
Focus on the psyop please, not the details.

>>107139510
>The next time someone tells you that you need to upgrade your hardware to run modern software, ask them: what exactly is that software doing that requires so much more power than it did ten years ago?
Anon, you know the answer to that question is always going to be "What, are you poor?". These people know what they're doing is bad and they intend to shame everyone into accepting it.

>>107139642
Is he wrong?

>>107139642
>everyone able to concentrate on something for more than 5 minutes is an autist

maybe he's the professional, you bubonic asscrack?

>>107141795
dummbshit zoomer
https://www.reddit.com/r/javascript/comments/223mp5/eli5_why_was_supporting_javascript_back_in_2000/

https://blog.codinghorror.com/javascript-and-html-forgiveness-by-default/

My new pc went from encoding video in an hour or so from taking half a day on my old one, seems faster to me

Lol noobs running win 11

you're in luck
in a few years AI will be able to write full efficient code, replacing all that pajeetware
the age of efficient windows os and apps is coming back

>>107139458 (OP)
Based website.
On the commercial side it's not just devs but management and bad incentives. Quality is rarely measured unless mission critical. It's all about "was the feature done and does it work". It's way easier and faster to shit out code that does the job than code that does the job and is efficient (unless you're talented). You won't get any more "story points" or whatever for taking your time to think it through. Management only looks at those numbers so the more you shit out the better you are in their eyes.
The culture is "just get shit out". We start new programmers with javascript instead of something that forces you to somewhat understand the computer. Hardware is so good you don't actually see the cost of your bad choices on an individual problem, so the cost just compounds. As long as it's fast to develop and roll out it's all good. If you pay attention you're doing "premature optimization" because performance only matters once something is so atrocious even modern hardware can't.
Non-tech people have no idea anyway and can't be expected to expect better. I don't think we're far out from adding fake loading screens to fast software because people are so used to everything being slow.

>>107146192
God is in the details, and telling porkies undermines the post credibility.

>>107139458 (OP)
we should force developers to go a decade back with hardware minimum is my personal opinion

my work laptop has 16gb ram and runs at 90% usage immediately after boot

>>107147549
"why so" you might ask
i just think we have been spoiled by powerful tech, we are using it for wrong, and i think the better way to teach developers to be better with optimization is to give them firsthand experience with limitations, a handicap they have to live with

>>107144858
>I try to cure it with Arch Linux
You should cure it with Debian

>>107139458 (OP)
Because this shit's sped up.

>>107146488
Yeah just another trillion, bro!

>>107147694
No it isn't, look at the counter in the task manager.

My computer in 2005 was unbearably slow lol

>>107147676
>You should cure it with Debian
Do it. austist!

>run win10
>"HURR DURR WIND0ZE BAD!!!"
>am running two completely separate virtual machine solutions right now (hyperv+vmware)
>have two games open vying for my GPU (one is a 30 year old game with 4 multibox windows, the other a modern title)
>video player open
>can still browse 4chan with a couple dozen tabs open
>nothing has slowed down it all
>everything just works
Niggers and incompetent, uneducated losers whine and whine and whine about OS bloat but they take for granted and lack the experience to fully comprehend just how much modern thread schedulers make computing possible

>>107139458 (OP)
SSD sped it up doe

>>107141243
I stand in solidarity with OP

>>107139458 (OP)
Its because software engineers have developed a culture of just using bloated library on top of bloated library. Things could be efficient but we all have coded ourselves into a corner where we just use the bloat or get outpaced by the ones who don't care. AI is only going to accelerate this until we reach a crisis where the bloat cannot be ignored

>>107147589
Are you suggesting windevs have a leg amputated or something?

Kinda unrelated to the threads topic but do you guys have any method or source for discovering new blogs/wordpress sites? Both tech and non-tech ones, since search engines are basically useless these days.

>>107150105
I've found most the ones I know of here.
there's wiby.me which is supposed to index web 1.0 sort of pages, should be good for finding blogs and personal sites and the like. I've hardly ever used it, but its neat.