[comp.sys.next] Need help with a Slo NeXT

eoshough@nmsu.edu (Erik OShoughnessy) (07/11/90)

We have a NeXT running the newest release of the software (1.0a), with
8meg of RAM, and a 330 meg hard drive. This machine acts as an ftp
site, and hosts a LP-Mud, which is a multi-user net game. The problem
is the machine seems too slow, even for the amount of buisness it's
doing, ( which isn't really all that much ).  The guru's here
speculate that the machine is running out of swap space, which would
result in the slow down of the machine, and we suspect the Mud of not
relinquishing memory.  To solve the problem, we've tried killing the
Mud, and allowing it to restart, killing the mud entirely, and then
restarting it, asserting the *machine* and then restarting the mud,
and then finally, just asserting the *machine* and not restarting the
mud for a couple of hours.  All of this resulted in absolutely no
speed up of the machine.  I'm asking the author of the Mud software
about the memory allocation that the Mud software does, and I'm asking
anyone out there if there's something "funny" the NeXT does in
recovering allocated memory.  Any pointers would be appreciated.

--
		  ~			| Erik O'Shaughnessy
|\/\/\/|  	   ~			| Small Systems 
|      |  	 ~  	       		| New Mexico State University
|   *  |          ~ o==========		| Las Cruces, NM USA
| (x)(x)  	    	|_|====		| eoshough@dante.nmsu.edu
C      _) 		    ===		|------------------------------------
|  ,___|  		    ===		|"Do not follow the NULL pointer,
|    /    				| for that path leads to chaos, 
/____\    	Die Bart! Die!		| and madness." - me
|     \   				|

dastrout@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu (root@next1) (07/16/90)

	All NeXT's are slow.  It's in the union rules.  I belive the
compiler puts approximately 5E7 NOP's between each call to any function.
I would suggest re-writing the MUD in assembler.  Along with the OS.  Along
with the Window Manager.  Along with the.....
-- 
Dave Strout
dastrout@miavx1.acs.muohio.edu
root@next1.acs.muohio.edu
513-523-8245