Debunking optimization myths

Over on LowEndMac, Ed Eubanks Jr offers 11 Ways to Optimize Your Mac’s Performance. Awesome. I love getting the most from my machine. The problem is, some of them don’t actually have any effect on performance. My aim isn’t to be negative. It’s to be informative. If I don’t mention an item, it’s because the tip may have an effect on performance, even though it may be slight.

5. Clean Out Unnecessary Code
Eubanks suggests that using a utility to strip out different processor code will help performance. “This not only helps the applications to run faster; it also saves hard drive space (sometimes a lot of it).” It may save disk space (for those into counting bytes), but having both PowerPC and Intel code in the same Universal application has zero effect on how fast it runs. Your Mac is smart. It will only use the code appropriate to its architecture. Do this only if you’re concerned about disk space.

6. Get Rid of Languages and Translations You Won’t Use
The suggestion is to rid yourself of localization data stored in applications. “And even if you are, you can strip out the other ones you aren’t using and gain more efficiency and drive space using a utility like Monolingual.” Again, this has zero effect on execution performance. Your Mac will pick a localization (language) as appropriate at launch of an application and stick with it. Again, disk space is the only win here.

11. Run OnyX
I’m sure most of us are familiar with Onyx and software of its ilk. They run a series of maintenance tasks. Many users swear by all the actions performed by the utilities. When pressed for an actual explanation of why these help performance, you’ll get hand waving, anecdotal evidence, and if you’re lucky, a long winded explanation of what file permissions are without a real explanation of why and how they affect performance. Let’s run down the list:

• Cron scripts - As of Tiger, these actually do get run on a regular basis, even if your computer is off or slept overnight. That said, they save you a little disk space, little else.
• Repair permissions - Nuf said. (Update: Don’t forget Dan Frakes’ balanced view.)
• Cache clearing - Some caches may become bloated, but by blowing away all of them, you just lost all the savings originally afforded by those caches and must incur the cost of rebuilding them. Hardly a clear win.

There are a several clear lessons to pull from the article. First, eliminate and minimize the number of programs you’re using. If you’re done with something, junk it or turn it off. Second, keep your apps up to date, or at least Universal Binaries when using an Intel. Third, keep your Mac cool. Beyond performance concerns, it’s best for the life of essentially all electronics. Finally, don’t jam your hard disk full. Upgrade your storage or archive to keep your drives mostly empty. Let’s keep away from the myths, we’ll all be more productive.