So by now some of you that know me know I'm a huge Chrome fan - in fact I try to convert anybody I know using Firefox to jump to the Chrome boat. It has been empirically proven to be the leading browser in terms of performance (page speed, javascript execution, etc.) and I'm a huge fan of it's simple interface and life-saving (overstatement) extensions like my personal favorite, Fresh Start (session manager). Not to mention it's support for CSS3 and HTML5 markup.
But I have a confession to make: I'm a tabaholic. There, I said it. I'm out in the open.
At any given time I have about 40 to 50 tabs open over a series of three or four browser windows, and Chrome's Fresh Start extension has only served to enable my addition.
But let's face it, who doesn't work with multiple windows open? Whether it's an email client, iTunes, one or two browser windows, Photoshop, a code editor, etc., - we all work with multiple apps running...so shouldn't it stand to reason that a guy who is a web professional should have multiple webpages running??
"I'll give that, but...."
Okay, so having 40 - 80 tabs on any given day may be a little past the "normal" bar, and into OCD territory...but I'm not totally convinced. I just think it's a solid way to manage my workflow and curb distractions by saving them for a more opportune moment, while leveraging the power of the web to harvest information from the most appropriate topics at the most opportune moment.
...Okay so my BS Meter is reaching max capacity...
But turns out there's another downside to my dark habbit: system performance.
Seems that even though pages are downloaded and rendered once, storing them in the browser even while you're not interacting with them still takes processing power. (See Exhibit A - screenshots of my system profiler). You'll notice that while Chrome browser is listed in your system profiler only once, taking up only a few hundred MB of memory, each open tab requires an additional Chrome render frame that also uses memory.
So because I'm constantly trying to beg, borrow and steal every bit of performance out of my 15" Macbook Pro already being forced to power itself and a 24" external monitor, the memory hog known as Adobe Photoshop, Esperesso, SVN client, Mail.app, Evernote, iChat, etc ad nasuem (see Exhibit B) - I'm forced to face my addiction squarely in the - well, face, to see if I'm not cutting off my nose to spite my face. (No pun inten...okay, pun intended).
So my plan it to use Session Manager to continue saving tabs I should really spend more time with later, and instead of just using it as an archive, CLOSE said tabs and use Session Manager to get back to them at said later date.
Hopefully this way I can have a few hundred extra MB of processing power to run Illustrator and InDesign at the same time as my hog, Photoshop.