First of all, I have to back off of my statement, which I often used to present:
"Ehhh, with today's amount of RAM available on computers, who cares, how much RAM Firefox uses".
Apparently, it doesn't work that way, at least for me.
I have a Vista here with 2GB of RAM, using Firefox 3.
Unfortunately, when FF memory usage reaches 300K, FF slows down, and at 400K it becomes a pain.
I have no other option, but save the session, close down FF, end FF process, and start it again.
At some point, I tried
Firefox Ultimate Optimizer:
http://www.computerhope.com/forum/index.php/topic,65404.msg420263.html#msg420263, but apparently, it's more like a trick, than a real solution. It moves FF processes from real RAM to virtual memory, which firstly is slower than RAM, and at some point it becomes clogged by FF processes as well. The result: FF slows down anyway.
We all know where the real FF problem lies -
add-ons.
When I run FF in Safe Mode, everything is beautiful, and I can run FF for ever.
We also know, from Mozilla list, which extensions cause memory leaks, leading to FF slowdown.
But, the problem is, I need, or I like some of those extensions.
I've tried ALL POSSIBLE settings in
about: config, but they either don't work, or have very minimal influence on FF behavior.
Catch 22? No solution?
Since yesterday, I've been trying
Minimem:
http://minimem.kerkia.net/ Initially developed for Firefox only, Minimem now can reduce the memory footprint of any application. It runs in the background and can be set up to optimize as many proceses as you'd like, using a very intuitive graphical interface. Unlike other memory optimization tools, it gives you full control over what applications you want to optimize, when and how often, as well as the possibility to only optimize memory when required and relevant.
It optimizes memory by removing as many non-necessary memory pages as possible from the selected processes. It does so at regular intervals which can be user-defined as well and every 30s by default, though uses an advanced pooling mechanism to ensure the CPU usage of Minimem remains low at all times. This then optimizes your applications which can load those pages back whenever they need, and makes your overall system perform much better whenever it is memory limited.
Minimem runs in the background and is fully non-intrusive. It stays in your tray where you can access its settings at any time and will remember your favorite settings for an optimal ease-of-use. Its intuitive GUI should make it useable for any type of user so no specific skills are required to take advantage of this great tool.
I haven't restarted Firefox since.
I'd very pleased with your opinion about the program, if you wish to install it.
