I'd like to again repeat that both sides are arguing different things, and aren't necessarily disagreeing.
YES, the client has become heavier, and this should be addressed.
NO, the Foldit client alone can't cause your computer to overheat, no matter how heavy it is.
You are wrong asdawnbreaks… the foldit client is the only thing that makes my computer overheat. And, it does it for several different computers. And, I'm not the only one experiencing this.
Adb - players are not flaming jflat, we are concerned about the noticeable effects on our computers and trying to make that very clear to the developers, testers and the scientists. If we don't tell them they don't know.
Folders from most active groups have contributed to this discussion, so please don't trivialise their comments, which are genuine.
Jflat is quite correct about dust etc, also consumer devices wear out, laptops 3yrs, desktops 5yrs, is a standard industry replacement cycle for businesses because repairs are not worth the loss of productivity or the cost of repair. Mostly these devices only run during business hours.
I think it is very important that the folders who don't know much about computers (I include myself in that category) understand that, depending on the way they play, they can damage their device, and shorten the device life span, especially any form factor which is going to be challenged by heat, all in ones and laptops in particular.
The way folders play has changed since LUA scripts were introduced. Folders grind scripts 24x7 for days, most consumer computers are not designed for that continuous load, especially laptops and all in ones because they haven't been designed to effectively dissipate that level of heat as desktops and towers can. Consumer devices are not designed for continuous workstation, server loads.
Running several clients at the same time just adds to the load of course. Script writers are not necessarily concerned about or aware of the load they place on devices, and they don't know anything about the device as jflat says.
Windows 7 (probably the most common OS) does not warn you that you are possibly doing damage. At the end of the day the effort should be going to getting the right pose, unfortunately we play for score, because it is a game, and it is the only clue we have.
There has been an increasing compute load. This is undisputed, even by folders with high spec devices. This is a problem for folders, also undisputed.
Additionally, experimentation with puzzle set ups, and the reintroduction of old bugs, endless changes to wiggle, filters and rebuild makes it difficult for folders to effectively analyse impacts as there are too many variables and we all have different rigs.
So please don't try to oversimplify or emotionalise a complex conversation which is being carried out with goodwill between the folders and the foldit team.
Even if some of the folders are concerned about the possible growth of tails :D
Would you like to put some expertise or internationally recognised qualifications behind the statement that foldit can't consume resources to the extent that it will cause overheating or increased cooling resource expenditure? Or perhaps you don't actually fold very much?
Elevated privileges means running as admin on your computer - of course no one does that IRL on a Windows home computer.
Frood we are all ostensibly playing a game to help science, and by derivation the scientists who provide the puzzles, self serving is no less than can be expected, hardly expect scientists to not push the envelope, it is up to the folders to let the scientists know if there are problems which is what is happening in this thread.
NOT what I'm saying. I'm saying that Foldit IS consuming so much resources that it can cause the computer to overheat. But as Jeff said, if your firmware and OS are correct (and you have your fans cleaned out) you shouldn't have a problem with overheating, as it should take care of the issue before it does.
Thank you, you are helping to put this into better perspective for me, and I admit I may have been looking at the comments wrong. Just file my comments away somewhere.
"(meaning we're not just seeing a small increase, but seemingly about double)."
I think slimming the program is one objective. What was overlooked as people talked past each other is this:
When we see these kinds of changes in performance from a program, we can't help but question if there is something not performing correctly in the program.
As gamers, we grow concerned because we are running our own equipment at a steep price. So, while overheating may sound like a problem at our end, it may also be a problem at your end by default.
If you make me a bike that only performs in 10th gear, and I go, "oh crap, I blew out a knee!" and you say, "wow, maybe you should take better care of your knees, or operate your bike more efficiently." It can make a person want to flip you the bird. Not me of course, but another person ;P
Also, when my knee blows out, I can't help wonder, "maybe it wasn't just the 10th gear thing (slimming down)". I want to inspect the whole bike for flaws. Maybe (or maybe not) I'll find the chain had one less link than it should have for this bike (program performing incorrectly).
I did certainly not experiment such a big decrease. On a Mac (laptop), I used 3, now, 2 to 3 depending on the size of the proteins.
On a windows (desktop), I used 3 (to 5 with crashes), now 3 to 5 with fewer crashes.
I might be wrong, but I suppose a computer is able to manage its heating and decreasing CPU performance if heating is too high?
I observed that the number of clients depends heavily on the size of the protein, and the type of commands (scripts) that is running (including wiggle power).
With small proteins with no filter, it's the same as before NC. I suspect that bigger proteins with more filters are released today. This would be the problem, not NC.