Facebook and Java

Really a Java question. Seems to be a memory hog . . . .

[rocknbil]

Win XP Pro, 2 GB RAM, all the latest updates including Java. Experienced using FireFox, v. 3.0.6 (I keep skipping the update . . . )

I finally took the dive and have been messing around with Facebook on and off this week.

At this very second, FireFox is using 89-90 K of memory (5 tabs to plain text/image-based pages open.) When I dig around Facebook, which appears to use Java heavily, it spikes to between 120 and 140K . . . and additionally, Java launches using an additional 20-40K.

In itself this is not a big deal, but I'm one of those multi-application users, with Photoshop, Flash, mail proggie, HomeSite, FF, and who knows what else open on any given day. On 4 occasions now it's ground the system to a halt, and it seems it's only when I have Facebook in one of the tabs.

So the discussion is really this: how much memory and other resources should Java be using? Any way to optimize it? Do the above numbers seem excessive?

[idev]

Usually that's not the FB base JS issue, rather the flash banners that hang there.

Try using Flashblock plugin to check that out.

[idev]

I'd also recommend Google (the beta) Chrome for casual browsing. It's fast.

[rocknbil]

So you are saying this is Flash??

I'll keep looking, but my Processes in Task Manager don't seem agree. :-)

I found another issue: it seems when this "happens" it is breaking one of the devices in the system, "Microsoft Kernel Wave Audio Mixer."

Dig around the net, found no prospective solutions, and this is the first time in 3-5 years this has ever happened.

Out of nowhere my system reports "no sound device". I uninstall the device and reinstall it, sound is back - but it doesn't "show" in the device list until reboot.

I usually have a lot going on when this happens, so it may be something else and I'm making the wrong connection.

[idev]

Ugly flash banners taking most of my cpu crashed my browser multitude of times. I feel much safer w/ the Chrome multi-process model. (looks like an ad, heh :) ). Same for ugly JS.

Try the flashblock FF plugin. If the issue disappears, then that's flash.

I've never had that problem with the wave mixer, no ideas here.

[rocknbil]

Well, I did an alternate - I just disabled Flash.

First I went to the photo upload page, which is Java based.

It turns out, like you say, it's not so much the memory, it's CPU. (2.79 Ghz here.) Flew right up to the top and stayed there while on this page.

I disabled Flash, went to another "album" - the Flash ads no longer displayed, but still getting 100% CPU usage.

I've checked my CPU when running Photoshop, Flash, FreeHand, and Pagemaker all at once - the most it's ever

EDIT: (Unrelated to this topic . . . Delete this post but note how it's chopped off above. Then note the full post below. I clicked only ONCE . . . this is the third time in a month now . . . problem on this site or my connection? I'm on a satellite connection, which is a proxy, maybe something is bouncing . . .)

[edited by: rocknbil at 9:58 pm (utc) on Mar. 20, 2009]

[rocknbil]

Well, I did an alternate - I just disabled Flash.

First I went to the photo upload page, which is Java based.

It turns out, like you say, it's not so much the memory, it's CPU. (2.79 Ghz here.) Flew right up to the top and stayed there while on this page.

I disabled Flash, went to another "album" - the Flash ads no longer displayed, but still getting 100% CPU usage.

I've checked my CPU when running Photoshop, Flash, FreeHand, and Pagemaker all at once - the most it's ever done is spiked to 100%, I've never seen it hang off the ceiling like this. I mean it's a flat line at the top . . . lol

Right now it's floating around 5-7%, which is more or less "normal".

[idev]

Perhaps updating JVM would do the thing in your case.

Same here, to load the CPU with my standard tools is almost impossible, bad-coded widgets, flash ads and JS is what kills that the most and I'm glad that's not an issue for me anymore :)