I'm a little disappointed assuming I did this right. I just did a test running Mozilla (browser only) and Phoenix in Win XP, both viewing a blank page, and while Phoenix ran at about 15,900k Mozilla ran at about 15,100k which is around 800k less! Careful though, because if you want to run this test yourself and you run them both at once one of them will share some of the preloaded stuff with the other one making one run at only a meg or so. So run one, note the mem usage, close it and do the same with the other one.
I think I'll wait until Phoenix gets a little smaller until I consider switching to it from Mozilla. According to their site they plan on reducing it from 9mb to 6mb by replacing certain components with lighter equivalents. The reason I don't see the switch as worth it now is because I can get Mozilla to become browser only simply by running a custom install and only selecting the browser and the security manager (for ssl support). It really does help and seems to cut the load time in half. I recommend to anyone upgrading/installing Mozilla for the first time to try it. In fact most people who notice Phoenix running much faster probably installed Mozilla with the default options. For me it's about a tie right now.
My favorite alternative to internal combustion engines is fuel cells. With all the explosions and moving parts jamming up and down ICs get the low 3-5% efficiency rating from stuff like heat and vibration loss. This also causes them to wear out quicky and with the need to keep the moving parts oiled they get pretty filthy too.
(Note: It's been awhile since I've read about these so correct me if I'm wrong about anything) So here's what I know about fuel cells for those who have never heard of them, as I understand it, there are no moving parts, kind of like a battery (this isn't counting stuff likes tires of course). It also makes zero noise like a battery so it would make as much noise in a car as a battery powered car would. So I without the movement I don't think there's a need to lube it with oil and they probably last a long time with very little maintenance since they're not vibrating, grinding, and heating up/cooling down all the time. And I think they're smaller too which means you can design them for easy maintance I.E. you don't have to take the whole engine apart just to get to a fan belt. In fact, I don't think it needs a cooling fan either because there probably wouldn't be much in the way of heat output. For fuel they can take pretty much anything rich in hydrogen which is the most abundant element on the planet. This means there are many types of renewable fuel to choose from. The way the engine gets it's energy is it takes two different molecules, strips their electrons for power, and combines what's left over. What you end up with as output is pretty much pure water (no pollution!). So with the lack of moving parts and excess heat and the superior method for energy transfer I've heard of fuel cells getting up to 60% efficiency.
The only problem with fuel cells right now is they are difficult to mass produce since they haven't been as researched as much as ICs and are therefore pretty expensive. Plus if cars were to use them you'd have the problem of readying every gas station in the country all while maintaining support for gasoline for every person in the country who still owns a normal car. Canada has some buses using them though. I think someone (the mayor of Toronto maybe?) even drank a glass of water out of the tailpipe when they first introduced the buses just to show how clean they are. Instead of just dumping the water out the back maybe cars should have water fountains built into the dashboard:).
Anyway http://www.fuelcells.org/ has more info. (Sorry it's not linked it seems the html isn't the version I'm used to.)
Slashdot Mirror
I'm a little disappointed assuming I did this right. I just did a test running Mozilla (browser only) and Phoenix in Win XP, both viewing a blank page, and while Phoenix ran at about 15,900k Mozilla ran at about 15,100k which is around 800k less! Careful though, because if you want to run this test yourself and you run them both at once one of them will share some of the preloaded stuff with the other one making one run at only a meg or so. So run one, note the mem usage, close it and do the same with the other one.
I think I'll wait until Phoenix gets a little smaller until I consider switching to it from Mozilla. According to their site they plan on reducing it from 9mb to 6mb by replacing certain components with lighter equivalents. The reason I don't see the switch as worth it now is because I can get Mozilla to become browser only simply by running a custom install and only selecting the browser and the security manager (for ssl support). It really does help and seems to cut the load time in half. I recommend to anyone upgrading/installing Mozilla for the first time to try it. In fact most people who notice Phoenix running much faster probably installed Mozilla with the default options. For me it's about a tie right now.
I'm talking about the game with looking under a bridge to get the ball but that series did look fun. Too bad I never bought the collection :(
King's Quest IV: The Perils of Rosella?
(My first Slashdot post)
:).
My favorite alternative to internal combustion engines is fuel cells. With all the explosions and moving parts jamming up and down ICs get the low 3-5% efficiency rating from stuff like heat and vibration loss. This also causes them to wear out quicky and with the need to keep the moving parts oiled they get pretty filthy too.
(Note: It's been awhile since I've read about these so correct me if I'm wrong about anything) So here's what I know about fuel cells for those who have never heard of them, as I understand it, there are no moving parts, kind of like a battery (this isn't counting stuff likes tires of course). It also makes zero noise like a battery so it would make as much noise in a car as a battery powered car would. So I without the movement I don't think there's a need to lube it with oil and they probably last a long time with very little maintenance since they're not vibrating, grinding, and heating up/cooling down all the time. And I think they're smaller too which means you can design them for easy maintance I.E. you don't have to take the whole engine apart just to get to a fan belt. In fact, I don't think it needs a cooling fan either because there probably wouldn't be much in the way of heat output. For fuel they can take pretty much anything rich in hydrogen which is the most abundant element on the planet. This means there are many types of renewable fuel to choose from. The way the engine gets it's energy is it takes two different molecules, strips their electrons for power, and combines what's left over. What you end up with as output is pretty much pure water (no pollution!). So with the lack of moving parts and excess heat and the superior method for energy transfer I've heard of fuel cells getting up to 60% efficiency.
The only problem with fuel cells right now is they are difficult to mass produce since they haven't been as researched as much as ICs and are therefore pretty expensive. Plus if cars were to use them you'd have the problem of readying every gas station in the country all while maintaining support for gasoline for every person in the country who still owns a normal car. Canada has some buses using them though. I think someone (the mayor of Toronto maybe?) even drank a glass of water out of the tailpipe when they first introduced the buses just to show how clean they are. Instead of just dumping the water out the back maybe cars should have water fountains built into the dashboard
Anyway http://www.fuelcells.org/ has more info. (Sorry it's not linked it seems the html isn't the version I'm used to.)