Linked by Thom Holwerda on Thu 21st Oct 2010 22:14 UTC, submitted by diegocg
Linux 2.6.34 has been released. This version includes support for the Tilera architecture, a new filesystem notification interface called fanotify, a redesign of workqueues optimized for concurrency, CIFS local caching, support for Intel Intelligent Power Sharing in i3/5 systems, integration of the kernel debugger and KMS, inclusion of the AppArmor security system and several new drivers and small improvements. You can read the full changelog as well.
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Member since:2008-07-15
it would be good to see somewhere in release notes something that looks like: boot time reduced by 30% or 50%.
Or is the responsibility of speed improvements not on the kernel?
Or is the responsibility of speed improvements not on the kernel?
Depends. The actual boot speed of the os isn't primarily the kernel's doing, but rather how services are initialized and in what order, and are they started one at a time or in parallel? That being said, the Linux kernel does take considerably longer to initialize than most, especially if using a generic kernel such as those provided with the major distros. This has to do with how Linux's driver structure works and how hardware is probed mostly, at primary fault here is the fact that many drivers are in the kernel which probably should be loaded on demand. All that being said you can, if you wish of course, cut down on kernel boot times by making your own kernel, though it would be better for the distros to get a bit smarter about what actually needs to go in a kernel and what could go on the initrd and only be loaded if needed at boot or even later.
Member since:2005-07-08
Member since:2005-11-02
Member since:2005-11-02
Member since:2009-03-27
Just to add on, it's more complicated than that if you wanted to make that a permanent setup, because init sends out TTY hooks so that the kernel knows to start virtual terminals. So, yes, changing to /bin/sh would get you raw boot speed, but you wouldn't be able to get to shell. You'd be surprised how hard it is to turn Linux into a genuinely single user system (not just selecting single user mode at boot and running as root).
But I understood your comment, which was just talking about the benchmark usage. Point taken.
Member since:2006-01-07
Those of you who are interested in seeing faster booting times might get a pleasant surprise in the next release cycle of your favorite distro. The big project currently underway to deliver more speed is called "systemD" and Fedora, at least, hopes to deliver it by April 2011:
http://fedoraproject.org/wiki/Features/systemd
I'm not a Fedora user myself (currently using Lubuntu), but I think all the big distros will implement systemD as soon as possible.
Features
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/20/13 11:29 UTC
The day has finally come! Jolla has finally announced the launch device for its Sailfish operating system - and by god this is a looker. It's decidedly different from other phones out there, but it has good specifications and carries a relatively reasonably price tag - EUR 399, and it's up for pre-order today, shipping in the fourth quarter of this year.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/18/13 21:33 UTC
Why does Google get so much credit in the technology industry? Why, despite the company's many obvious failings, do many geeks and enthusiasts still hold a somewhat positive view on the all-knowing technology giant? A specific talk at Google I/O this week provides the answer.
Linked by David Adams on 05/16/13 4:23 UTC
OSNews is a sponsor of this year's O'Reilly OSCON in Portland, Oregon, USA. A lucky OSNews reader will win a free three-day pass, including two tutorials days. To win the pass, post a comment on this story saying something about Open Source Software or OSCON. We'll pick a winner at random next week. If you don't have an OSNews account, you may email us your entry. Part of the conference is the 9th annual Open Source Awards, and today the 16th is the deadline for nominations. If you'd like to nominate an outstanding open source contributor, do it here. Read on for more information about OSCON. Update: The 20% discount code for OSNews readers is "OSN."
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/11/13 21:41 UTC
"Windows is indeed slower than other operating systems in many scenarios, and the gap is worsening." That's one way to start an insider explanation of why Windows' performance isn't up to snuff. Written by someone who actually contributes code to the Windows NT kernel, the comment on Hacker News, later deleted but reposted with permission on Marc Bevand's blog, paints a very dreary picture of the state of Windows development. The root issue? Think of how Linux is developed, and you'll know the answer.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/08/13 14:22 UTC
This is one of those news items that's fun to write, fun to read, fun to comment on, and where no one will be able to say anything unkind. It's all just one big ball of awesome fluffiness. TuneTracker, the BeOS radio automation software, has just released something very special: TuneTracker System 5, the first version designed entirely and specifically for Haiku. In fact, it actually includes Haiku in the software package. Better yet, TuneTracker also unveiled several system-in-a-box products - which have Haiku and TuneTracker pre-installed.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/02/13 15:28 UTC
Exactly twenty years ago, a document was published that played a huge role in establishing the web as we know it today. Twenty years later, and this simple and straightforward document is proof of an irrefutable fact: while closed technologies can change markets, open technologies can change the world.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/29/13 21:06 UTC
Oh multitasking. That staple of computing that got thrown out the window with many modern smartphones. We got some rudimentary thing in its place - but even as multitasking on phone and tablets improves, its user-visible side remains cumbersome. Windows 8 has a neat implementation, and now it's time Android follows in it footsteps.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/24/13 22:24 UTC
They're here! Whether that excites you or not remains to be seen, but the Galaxy S4, which will most likely become the best selling Android smartphone of the year by a huge margin, has been reviewed by all the major sites, and there's lots of interesting conclusions in there - although I think most of you will get the gist.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/18/13 11:21 UTC
Nokia has posted its quarterly results for the first quarter of 2013, and just like the quarters that came before, there's not a whole lot of good news in there. The rise in Lumia sales still can't even dream of making up for the sales drop in Symbian phones, and when broken down in versions, the sales figures for Windows Phone 8 Lumias in particular are very disappointing. In North America, Nokia is getting slaughtered.
Linked by Thom Holwerda on 04/16/13 9:29 UTC
The day has finally come: Google has started shipping Google Glass to the lucky few early adopters. Now that it's shipping, Google has also unveiled a lot more about the API and the specifications of the device itself. While the company had already given out substantial details at earlier occasions, there are still a few surprises here.More Features »
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Member since:
2010-03-30
it would be good to see somewhere in release notes something that looks like: boot time reduced by 30% or 50%.
Or is the responsibility of speed improvements not on the kernel?