Firefox memory leaks?

bithub · 06-22-2009, 10:53 AM

According to this test, firefox actually does remarkably well in the memory department.
(If you are wondering why Chrome looks so bad in that test, read this)

Sharke · 06-22-2009, 01:47 PM

Jeez, what are you guys doing to have 40+ tabs open at once? Surely there can't be that much smut worth looking at.

Firefox works fine for me, I've never noticed any slow downs in all the years I've used it. Can't stomach any other browser. Done enough web design to put me off IE for life, Opera sucks and Google Chrome doesn't even have smooth scrolling.

ssharish2005 · 06-22-2009, 03:09 PM

The browse issue has been there for me for a long time. I always realise that my browser is pretty slow in rendering. I don’t know if this is to do something with the html download from the internet or just the rendering. Really annoying while loading up the page.

What I’m thinking is that there might be some Trojan or any other processor sitting behind somewhere eating my memory.

Is there any free tool to check if there her anything still hanging around and antivirus software i could probably scan and find out.

Cheers guys!

-ssharish

Sebastiani · 06-22-2009, 03:53 PM

>> What I’m thinking is that there might be some Trojan or any other processor sitting behind somewhere eating my memory.

It's possible. IE has *lots* of security holes. You should avoid it like the plague. Another problem with IE is that it doesn't really give you full control over what components are installed, and as a result so many objects loaded at once (even if their all legitimate) can bring the browser to it's knees. I use Firefox, and strictly limit what components are installed and enabled, and the browser runs like the gentle wind for me. Besides the browser itself, though, processes running on your system can have a signifgant effect on your browsing experience. I always keep a tight grip on what non-system processes are allowed to run in the background or loaded on startup (usually 0), as well as the services that are loaded (usually 5 or 6). The only time I ever have performance issues these days is when running Flash or Java. Otherwise, my system is always snappy and responsive.

>> Is there any free tool to check if there her anything still hanging around and antivirus software i could probably scan and find out.

I don't use any antivirus software myself, as I've found that most seem to have negative effects on the system. I'm sure there are exceptions to this, though. Personally, I've found a "do-it-yourself" approach to most effective. Tools like Sysinternals Filemon, ProcessMon, RegMon, PortMon, etc allow you to monitor in real time what's going on in your system, and I've found them immensely useful in keeping everything running optimally. Unfortunately, Microsoft bought them out, and only offer a handful of the complete suite, so you'll either have to find them elsewhere (such as the WayBackMachine) or else use some other product.

cyberfish · 06-24-2009, 10:51 PM

Running Firefox 3.5 (actually Shiretoko... wait, did they just change the unbranded name? EDIT: nvm, that's the official codename) with 18 tabs open. Flash disabled (I use a plugin that disables all flash animations until I click on them). Memory usage is fine (~150MB). CPU usage isn't, though, at almost constant 50%, and I'm not touching anything (not loading any pages, etc). This is certainly not good for laptop battery life...

Taking suggestions for a new browser (Linux). I want to give Konqueror a try, but I run GNOME, so it's not integrated well.

Sebastiani · 06-24-2009, 11:10 PM

>> Running Firefox 3.5

Yeah, I tried it out myself and it seemed to run slower and was more CPU-intensive than the earlier release. Hopefully, that won't be the case with the final release.

>> Taking suggestions for a new browser (Linux).

Have you tried Opera? I haven't used it in a while, but I remember it being pretty good. It has a lot of cool features, too, like mouse-motion and voice-enabled browsing.

stevesmithx · 06-25-2009, 01:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cyberfish

Running Firefox 3.5 (actually Shiretoko... wait, did they just change the unbranded name? EDIT: nvm, that's the official codename) with 18 tabs open. Flash disabled (I use a plugin that disables all flash animations until I click on them). Memory usage is fine (~150MB). CPU usage isn't, though, at almost constant 50%, and I'm not touching anything (not loading any pages, etc). This is certainly not good for laptop battery life...

Taking suggestions for a new browser (Linux). I want to give Konqueror a try, but I run GNOME, so it's not integrated well.

Heh, Luckily I didn't install 3.5, although i was considering to install it soon. But with beta releases who can say what would happen?. Only very few i know had worked well(*cough* windows *cough* 7).
btw, I use chrome whenever i find fx working sluggishly but only use it as a secondary browser.

cyberfish · 06-25-2009, 06:25 AM

I will try Opera next. I was trying to keep my computer open source... but well... it's free =P.

Will also try Chrome once the Linux version matures (the current Linux preview is reportedly missing a lot of features)

**CornedBee** · 06-25-2009, 08:18 AM

Still a 3.0 here, but with 24 tabs, after loading, the CPU goes down to 0% as it should. (600MB RAM - but those are very heavy pages I have open.)

cyberfish · 06-25-2009, 07:20 PM

Trying out Opera right now. Loving it so far. Just so much snappier (scrolling, changing tabs, etc), even on my slow laptop. But why does it have a "Download Opera" link in the default bookmark list...

And I love SpeedDial!

cyberfish · 07-02-2009, 08:27 PM

I tried Opera for a week or so. Not much better in terms of resource consumptions compared to FF. I think I will go back to FF (since I use GNOME, and FF is better integrated).

Maybe it's my desktop environment... I will give XFCE a try.

06-22-2009, 10:53 AM	#16
bithub Registered User Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: California Posts: 2,845	According to this test, firefox actually does remarkably well in the memory department. (If you are wondering why Chrome looks so bad in that test, read this)
bithub is offline

06-22-2009, 01:47 PM	#17
Sharke Registered User Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: NYC Posts: 259	Jeez, what are you guys doing to have 40+ tabs open at once? Surely there can't be that much smut worth looking at. Firefox works fine for me, I've never noticed any slow downs in all the years I've used it. Can't stomach any other browser. Done enough web design to put me off IE for life, Opera sucks and Google Chrome doesn't even have smooth scrolling.
Sharke is offline

06-22-2009, 03:09 PM	#18
ssharish2005 Protocol Test Engineer Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: fseek(UK) Posts: 1,316	The browse issue has been there for me for a long time. I always realise that my browser is pretty slow in rendering. I don’t know if this is to do something with the html download from the internet or just the rendering. Really annoying while loading up the page. What I’m thinking is that there might be some Trojan or any other processor sitting behind somewhere eating my memory. Is there any free tool to check if there her anything still hanging around and antivirus software i could probably scan and find out. Cheers guys! -ssharish __________________ Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving - Einstein
ssharish2005 is offline

06-22-2009, 03:53 PM	#19
Sebastiani Guest Join Date: Aug 2001 Posts: 4,923	>> What I’m thinking is that there might be some Trojan or any other processor sitting behind somewhere eating my memory. It's possible. IE has lots of security holes. You should avoid it like the plague. Another problem with IE is that it doesn't really give you full control over what components are installed, and as a result so many objects loaded at once (even if their all legitimate) can bring the browser to it's knees. I use Firefox, and strictly limit what components are installed and enabled, and the browser runs like the gentle wind for me. Besides the browser itself, though, processes running on your system can have a signifgant effect on your browsing experience. I always keep a tight grip on what non-system processes are allowed to run in the background or loaded on startup (usually 0), as well as the services that are loaded (usually 5 or 6). The only time I ever have performance issues these days is when running Flash or Java. Otherwise, my system is always snappy and responsive. >> Is there any free tool to check if there her anything still hanging around and antivirus software i could probably scan and find out. I don't use any antivirus software myself, as I've found that most seem to have negative effects on the system. I'm sure there are exceptions to this, though. Personally, I've found a "do-it-yourself" approach to most effective. Tools like Sysinternals Filemon, ProcessMon, RegMon, PortMon, etc allow you to monitor in real time what's going on in your system, and I've found them immensely useful in keeping everything running optimally. Unfortunately, Microsoft bought them out, and only offer a handful of the complete suite, so you'll either have to find them elsewhere (such as the WayBackMachine) or else use some other product.
Sebastiani is offline

06-24-2009, 10:51 PM	#20
cyberfish Registered User Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 1,780	Running Firefox 3.5 (actually Shiretoko... wait, did they just change the unbranded name? EDIT: nvm, that's the official codename) with 18 tabs open. Flash disabled (I use a plugin that disables all flash animations until I click on them). Memory usage is fine (~150MB). CPU usage isn't, though, at almost constant 50%, and I'm not touching anything (not loading any pages, etc). This is certainly not good for laptop battery life... Taking suggestions for a new browser (Linux). I want to give Konqueror a try, but I run GNOME, so it's not integrated well. Last edited by cyberfish; 06-24-2009 at 10:54 PM.
cyberfish is offline

06-24-2009, 11:10 PM	#21
Sebastiani Guest Join Date: Aug 2001 Posts: 4,923	>> Running Firefox 3.5 Yeah, I tried it out myself and it seemed to run slower and was more CPU-intensive than the earlier release. Hopefully, that won't be the case with the final release. >> Taking suggestions for a new browser (Linux). Have you tried Opera? I haven't used it in a while, but I remember it being pretty good. It has a lot of cool features, too, like mouse-motion and voice-enabled browsing.
Sebastiani is offline

06-25-2009, 06:25 AM	#23
cyberfish Registered User Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 1,780	I will try Opera next. I was trying to keep my computer open source... but well... it's free =P. Will also try Chrome once the Linux version matures (the current Linux preview is reportedly missing a lot of features)
cyberfish is offline

06-25-2009, 08:18 AM	#24
CornedBee Cat without Hat Join Date: Apr 2003 Posts: 8,439	Still a 3.0 here, but with 24 tabs, after loading, the CPU goes down to 0% as it should. (600MB RAM - but those are very heavy pages I have open.) __________________ All the buzzt! CornedBee "There is not now, nor has there ever been, nor will there ever be, any programming language in which it is the least bit difficult to write bad code." - Flon's Law
CornedBee is offline

06-25-2009, 07:20 PM	#25
cyberfish Registered User Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 1,780	Trying out Opera right now. Loving it so far. Just so much snappier (scrolling, changing tabs, etc), even on my slow laptop. But why does it have a "Download Opera" link in the default bookmark list... And I love SpeedDial!
cyberfish is offline

07-02-2009, 08:27 PM	#26
cyberfish Registered User Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 1,780	I tried Opera for a week or so. Not much better in terms of resource consumptions compared to FF. I think I will go back to FF (since I use GNOME, and FF is better integrated). Maybe it's my desktop environment... I will give XFCE a try.
cyberfish is offline

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