[comp.sys.next] how does adding extra memory affect performance?

awang@isl.Stanford.EDU (Avery Wang) (05/31/90)

Hi there-

	I'm considering adding more memory to my NeXT--either 4meg or
8meg.  I'm wondering how much of a performance increase I'll get with
either upgrade--is it very noticeable?  I notice that I spend a decent
amount of time doing context swaps since I jump around a lot and have
a lot of stuff open.  What are people's experiences?

	Also, where are some good places to get memory nowadays?  A
few months ago there were some suggestions, but I'm wondering what the
current situation is.

thanks,
-Avery Wang
awang@isl.stanford.edu

dml@esl.com (Denis Lynch) (06/01/90)

You should absolutely, difinitely, positively get more memory.

How much depends on what you're doing. You will notice a rather
considerable difference going from 8MB to 12MB almost no matter
what you do. If you tend to do only relatively modest things (i.e.
you don't act as a print server for anybody else, you don't run
the Sybase server for anybody else, you don't keep too many things
like TopDraw and Frame shuffling back and forth), 12MB will be all
you need.

If you do any of the above, however, go for 16MB.

I've never experienced a cofiguration with >16MB, but in our use
the server machines with 16MB feel about the same as the 12MB
clients. (We haven't done any measurements, so we don't really
know which is better.)

Just go to any mail-order source for fast SIMMs. They seem to
all work fine.

Good luck,

Denis Lynch
ESL, Inc.

eps@toaster.SFSU.EDU (Eric P. Scott) (06/01/90)

In article <DML.90May31135850@mozart.esl.com> dml@esl.com writes:
>I've never experienced a cofiguration with >16MB

I have.  It's painfully obvious how much having enough memory
impacts performance, especially when dealing with Mathematica or
Common Lisp.  A 25MHz 68030 goes a long way when it doesn't have
to service page faults.  The 68040 upgrade + 40MB RAM + 330MB
"swap disk" should be a good configuration for a serious client
workstation.  (And it could record or play a whole 3 minutes of
digital audio!)

Anything less than 16MB is just plain stupid.

					-=EPS=-

doug@dept.csci.unt.edu (Douglas Scott) (06/01/90)

In article <683@toaster.SFSU.EDU> eps@cs.SFSU.EDU (Eric P. Scott) writes:
>
>I have.  It's painfully obvious how much having enough memory
>impacts performance, especially when dealing with Mathematica or
>Common Lisp.  A 25MHz 68030 goes a long way when it doesn't have
>to service page faults.  The 68040 upgrade + 40MB RAM + 330MB...
				              ^^^^^^^^

Whoa!  How would you manage this?  As far as I  have heard, 16 Mb is still the
limit for the machine.  You know something I dont?
-- 
___________________________________________________________________________
Douglas Scott
doug@dept.csci.unt.edu