Path: utzoo!attcan!utgpu!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!wuarchive!cs.utexas.edu!rutgers!njin!limonce From: limonce@pilot.njin.net (Tom Limoncelli) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.tech Subject: Re: Smooth Operator (for disks) Keywords: disk schedule multi-process optimizer smooth seek Message-ID: Date: 7 Nov 89 21:24:25 GMT References: <5850@ucdavis.ucdavis.edu> Organization: Drew University/NJIN Lines: 22 Figure a SeekQ for two processes each reading one file (the description that you described, which is a VERY typical one). Now do that calculation for the same senerio but use a SortedSeekQ. Notice that the total seek time was the same. (Even if sorting took no time to perform). I think Tannembaum's OpSys book has this question almost EXACTLY in one of the chapter reviews. (Good book, by the way). Basically, on single-user machines, you'll find that it doesn't help. Of course, it would be nice if AmigaDOS did it anyway, just for the one or two times that you're running 100 processes and they're all doing disk i/o. :-) :-) -Tom -- Tom Limoncelli -- limonce@pilot.njin.net Standard Disclaimer CM 1060 -- tlimonce@drunivac.bitnet P O Box 802 -- ...!rutgers!njin!drew!tlimonce Madison, NJ 07940 -- 201-408-5389 "I do not like green eggs and spam, I do not like them, Sam I am!"