Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!samsung!usc!snorkelwacker!bloom-beacon!EIK.II.UIB.NO!jeremy
From: jeremy@EIK.II.UIB.NO
Newsgroups: comp.windows.x
Subject: Re:  WANTED: Faster X server for Sun4 w/GX
Message-ID: <9009281228.AA05881@pinje>
Date: 28 Sep 90 11:20:06 GMT
Sender: root@athena.mit.edu (Wizard A. Root)
Organization: The Internet
Lines: 50

OpenWindows 2.0 can be as much as 100x faster for some window
operations. I've carried out some rough comparisons using xgc. Some
rough results are:

 o OW 2.0 is about 10% slower than MIT X11R4 on a mono Sparcstation1 for most
   operations (this is surprising - didn't sun do some of the work on
   the generic X server? Their name is plastered all over the source).

 o OW 2.0 is faster than MIT X11R4 on a GX sparc for all operations.
   Using xgc, the following results were obtained (all times in seconds):

   
                Copy Area            Solid Lines          Stippled Lines
    gc function MIT   OW2.0 speedup  MIT   OW2.0 speedup  MIT   OW2.0 speedup

    copy         3.22 0.50   6.4*    0.17  0.045  3.78    4.9   0.045  108.9
    set         10.48 0.48  21.8     0.33  0.045  7.33    5.4   0.045  120.0
    or          11.34 0.63  18.0     0.52  0.065  8.00    5.2   0.065   80.0
    xor         11.82 0.65  18.2     0.53  0.065  8.16    5.3   0.065   81.5
    clear        9.68 0.47  20.6     0.34  0.045  7.56    5.3   0.045  117.8
    and         11.39 0.66  17.2     0.49  0.065  7.54    5.1   0.065   78.5

   * This exercises the bitblt routine in the server (I think!)

   All of these operations on a GX sparc are faster than any mono sparc 
   can achieve.


So as you can see, if you're in the business of drawing stippled lines in
your applications, then it pays to get a GX card and run OpenWindows 2.0 :-).


OW2.0 does seem slower for other things though. There is markely more swapping
going on, and it seems to take about 20% longer to transmit properties
(atoms) to the server. It also takes a lunch break to bring the thing up.

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Disclaimer: I do not work for Sun, I'm just a user of their products.