Recent observations from users on the social platform X have uncovered performance issues tied to the Windows 11 Start Menu, revealing that the component is built using React Native - a framework known for its cross-platform flexibility but criticized for inefficiency in system-level applications.
Users report that clicking the Start button can spike CPU usage by 30% to 70% on at least one core, depending on the hardware configuration. The issue doesn't occur consistently across all systems, with some users noting it happens in about 50% of clicks.
This revelation has reignited discussions around software optimization and resource management in modern operating systems. Notably, legendary game developer John Carmack recently weighed in on a related topic during a discussion dubbed the "CPU Apocalypse" thought experiment.
Carmack, former CTO of Oculus and co-founder of id Software, argued that software inefficiencies - not hardware limits - are the real bottleneck in computing today. He suggested that if the development of new processors were to stall, market forces would push for significantly more optimized software, enabling older hardware to perform far better than currently expected.
The Start Menu issue highlights growing concerns over how modern UI components are built within Windows, raising questions about Microsoft’s choice of frameworks for core OS elements and whether performance considerations are being prioritized sufficiently.
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This would become a total non-issue if Microsoft just rewrote Windows in Rust.
For those who are ignorant, “Rust is blazingly fast and memory-efficient: with no runtime or garbage collector, it can power performance-critical services, run on embedded devices, and easily integrate with other languages.” says the Rust web site.
So you’re telling Microsoft to rewrite windows 11 in rust?
1. Some new parts of windows 11 are written in rust
2. Microsoft would need to make windows from scratch meaning apps would stop working as they too need to be rewritten too.
So, before saying something, think if it makes some sense