[plug] Snappy UI

[Nathan Alberti]

Onno,

1st things I would look at are removing any unnecessary services 
(assuming you don't use them) things like Exim/Lpr/Portmap etc..etc.. 
Try a lightweight Window manager, I like IceWm, endure your drives are 
running at their optimum (man hdparm) and you have adequate swap space 
(512mb ram should be fine).

You should really consider going down the re-compile path, upgrading a 
kernel with Debian is a snap and can make a big difference, strip out 
all the crap you will never need, bare minimum config and compile for 
the appropriate architecture.

HTH,

Nathan

Onno Benschop wrote:

> I know, the subject isn't very informative, but I couldn't think of
> anything else.
> 
> I have a Celeron 1.2Ghz with 512Mb of RAM. It has a laptop drive and
> runs some abortion of the Intel 815 chipset - it's a Cappuccino TX3 and
> it's my workstation. It has to be small because I'm travelling. Besides,
> I had a Dual PII-233 before this...
> 
> I run Debian testing and my main applications are Evolution, Galeon,
> LinCVS, nedit and gnome-terminal.
> 
> It's running sawfish and gnome2 (from testing) and a 2.6.5 kernel.
> 
> And it's annoying the sh*t out of me.
> 
> The interface doesn't feel crisp, it feels like molasses, not something
> you could actually time, but just the feel. OO.o takes six years to load
> and I'm just not a happy camper.
> 
> Some discussion on /. was crapping on about Linux becoming bloated, and
> I'm beginning to wonder myself. A system boot takes the better part of
> five minutes and all in all it's just not as fast as a bare '95 box
> would be...
> 
> Now I know that at this point all manner of hands will go up about
> security and stability and I'm agreeing with all of you. Why do you
> think I'm running Debian and not '95 in the first place?
> 
> What I'm trying to convey is a sense of, disappointment, shall we call
> it. Don't get me started on double-clicks and copy and paste, but you
> get my drift.
> 
> I'm perfectly happy with Debian, love apt to death, but I'm just feeling
> a little let down.
> 
> So, any constructive ideas that won't require me to recompile or
> reformat my disk would be well received.
> 
> I've considered booting off a Knoppix CD and I'll tell you this: that
> boots faster than my machine does from the drive.
> 
> 
> Onno Benschop 
> 
> Connected via Optus B3 at S27°52'30" - E151°16'25" (Millmerran, QLD)