VDD project is currently working on performance analysis. The whole system, including every single feature, is put under the test, both on an individual base (one user at a time) and on a collective base (several users at a time). Contrary to what happens with servers, the main requirement for interactive desktop-based applications is to respond to user-generated events with a delay that is acceptable to their perception. Refering solely to throughput, bandwidth, end-to-end latency does not provide performance indications that are relevant for the desktop.

For this reason, our benchmark set is organized into three categories:

• Microbenchmarks: useful for understanding system behavior for simple interactive operations. Eg: GUI elements behaviour.
• Task-oriented benchmark: to understand the real impact of latency on the perceived interactive responsiveness of an application. Eg: office-suite tasks.
• Application microbenchmark, to evaluate isolated interactive events from the realistic workloads. Eg: page-down on Impress.

For widening the theme, see here

In order to obtain a mapping of system performance to desktop performance, we costantly measure values of parameters such as CPU, memory, disk and network, while operations, belonging to the aforementioned benchmark categories, are performed. Those values are stored on files with time stamps and eventually analysed and commented. Whenever a threshold is overpassed, an anomaly is reported and analysed apart.

Moreover, a questionnarie is given to people doing tests in order to determine satisfaction of users during the utilization experiences, useful for evaluating the system also in a qualitative way and possibly improve it.

The results and a final report will be published soon!

Finally the Graphical User Interface has been released.

A lot of considerations have been done up to here, before releasing such a GUI, since we had to find the best solution with respect to quality/easyness ratio. Zenity gave us the possibility to “export” complicate bash commands and scripts to the final user and to put them all in a slim and easy to use interface. As we stated in many circumstances, VDD configuration/administration is not easy, so a Graphical User Interface which helps people involved in this task is certainly a step forward.

This first release is intended to be a “launching ramp” for the GUI development. Actually, other solutions can be eventually considered, like GTK programming in different languages (eg. Python for the portability or C++ for the performances) as well as other improvements be made.

GUI flux diagram and source code can be found here. See also screenshots section. Here, more information on the related NLnet project work package.

Sunday the 20th of december 2009, VDD will be guested at l'Altradomenica, an event dedicated to Open Communication and Free Software. It will be possible to put hands on it!

The three themes of this edition of L'Altradomenica are creativity, cooperation and sharing.  A presentation and a demo of VDD will be given within the SHARE space. In the FUN space, Internet Point Desktop-as-a-Service! Choose your distro and go! Come and see VDD at work at Città dell'Altra Economia, Largo Dino Frisullo - Foro Boario - ex mattatoio a Testaccio - Roma.

More info at:

• Altradomenica
• Città dell'Altra Economia
• Binario Etico
• Frontiere digitali

Linux Day, the most important event on GNU/Linux in Italy, organized by the Italian Linux Society (ILS), accepted our submission to the call for partecipation! So this coming saturday, the 24th of October, Binario Etico is going to present VDD at Linux Day 2009! The venue is in Via Eudossiana 18 (Rome) at the Faculty of Engineering.

During the speech, we will officially open the call for partecipation to the project. We intend to gather developers, promoters, partners and interested parties. Join the crew!

More info at: Italian Linux Day web site

Attachments:

vdd_linuxday.odp

[Slides of the speech at Linux Day 2009]

1701 Kb