Re: interactive feel of Emacs: the need for speed, and -Q [measure.el]

[Michael Welsh Duggan]

I'm not prepared to respond in detail right now, but I will ask a couple
of questions that pop into my head right now.  First, is the slow-down
you notice in all buffers, or specifically in buffers in specific modes
(like c-mode)?  If the latter, what is the value of
`after-change-functions' in those buffers?  Although this hook isn't the
only possible place that can cause slow downs, it is a hook that can be
called very often, and if too much is run in it, that can slow things
down.

Another thing that can slow things down is excessive garbage
collection.  Try setting `garbage-collection-messages' to non-nil.  This
will cause messages to be output when Emacs does a GC run.  Run it with
and without -Q and see if there is a significant difference in the
frequency.  Possibly tweak `gc-cons-threshold' and see if it makes a
difference.

Others may be able to suggest more, but this is the best I can suggest
while fighting off a (literal) headache.

-- 
Michael Welsh Duggan
(address@hidden)