Linuxconf Europe: Kernel Programming and Energy Efficiency
Today, the Linux Conference in Cambridge focused on energy saving and kernel power management.
LinuxConf Europe is a very technical conference. One of the nicest features of this gathering
has been an overt recognition on behalf of the organisers, the UKUUG and GUUG, that
Linux is only a small component of a large software ecosystem; largely the GNU operating
system. Even more impressively, on Tuesday, the conference held an entire session
dedicated to hardware-related issues, specifically power management. At first this may not
appear to be the most interesting topic, but as the kernel continues to mature the
importance of power management is ever-increasing.
Arjan van de Ven of Intel began the session with an overview of common programming
techniques which are the largest wastes of power consumption: unnecessary polling of system
resources, insufficient caching of data being read from hard disk for example. These
examples were largely presented in the context of desktop applications, but the importance
and ramifications spread much further, most notably into the field of mobile devices.
Mobile and embedded Linux have been some of the largest growth areas for the kernel in
recent years (as advanced by devices such as Nokia's Internet Tablets, N770/800 and this
will only accelerate as OpenMoko and Qtopia phones become commercially viable.
The session ended with a talk by Matthew Garrett discussing how programmers need to go
about making Linux less power hungry. He noted that he had calculated his power saving
code, internationally, had saved more energy than he had consumed flying to conferences to
present his work. The ecological argument for this work is clearly apparent. However, it
shall be the increased usage time for mobile devices that will be the most obvious benefit of
this work.
Issue 269/2023
Buy this issue as a PDF
Subscribe to our Linux Newsletters
Find Linux and Open Source Jobs
Subscribe to our ADMIN Newsletters
Find SysAdmin Jobs
News
-
Kubuntu Focus Announces XE Gen 2 Linux Laptop
Another Kubuntu-based laptop has arrived to be your next ultra-portable powerhouse with a Linux heart.
-
MNT Seeks Financial Backing for New Seven-Inch Linux Laptop
MNT Pocket Reform is a tiny laptop that is modular, upgradable, recyclable, reusable, and ships with Debian Linux.
-
Ubuntu Flatpak Remix Adds Flatpak Support Preinstalled
If you're looking for a version of Ubuntu that includes Flatpak support out of the box, there's one clear option.
-
Gnome 44 Release Candidate Now Available
The Gnome 44 release candidate has officially arrived and adds a few changes into the mix.
-
Flathub Vying to Become the Standard Linux App Store
If the Flathub team has any say in the matter, their product will become the default tool for installing Linux apps in 2023.
-
Debian 12 to Ship with KDE Plasma 5.27
The Debian development team has shifted to the latest version of KDE for their testing branch.
-
Planet Computers Launches ARM-based Linux Desktop PCs
The firm that originally released a line of mobile keyboards has taken a different direction and has developed a new line of out-of-the-box mini Linux desktop computers.
-
Ubuntu No Longer Shipping with Flatpak
In a move that probably won’t come as a shock to many, Ubuntu and all of its official spins will no longer ship with Flatpak installed.
-
openSUSE Leap 15.5 Beta Now Available
The final version of the Leap 15 series of openSUSE is available for beta testing and offers only new software versions.
-
Linux Kernel 6.2 Released with New Hardware Support
Find out what's new in the most recent release from Linus Torvalds and the Linux kernel team.