The UOC and QUOC Patch - Optimize Firefox (and derivatives) for old hardware!

[grey_rat]

Hardware acceleration work only DirectX 9.0b (FX5*** & x700-x1250) theoretically and DirectX 9.0c+ (GF6***+ & x1300+) the fact.

FX5*** - problems with Youtube.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_AMD_graphics_processing_units

Firefox 54 last working with Direct3D9

 

Edited September 23, 2019 by grey_rat

[looking4awayout]

You don't want to use native YouTube in browser on an old machine with the UOC Patch. Use instead YT 2 Player to redirect YouTube videos to VLC, or if you want to watch YouTube videos in browser, install Greasemonkey with the Viewtube script, that will replace the HTML5 player with VLC. Both plugins are the way I watch YouTube on my Tualatin RDD. I started developing the UOC Patch when I had a GeForce FX5600 and ran okay. Do you have a GeForce FX to test with the patch? Or even an ATI card newer than a 9800 Pro, such as an X800 or an X1250? I'm curious to see how it performs with those cards.

Edited September 23, 2019 by looking4awayout

[grey_rat]

I tested in Firefox 48-52.9 ,  settings from https://habr.com/ru/post/373803/ (my article for Russian-speaking users, almost like UOC Patch)

FX5200 128Mb, XP and 7. Compositing - Direct3D9 (layers.acceleration.force-enabled), WebGL only software (webgl.disable-angle true, webgl.force-enabled true)

Radeon 9550 128mb XP.  Compositing - Basic (layers.acceleration.force-enabled does not work), WebGL hardware (webgl.disable-angle true, webgl.force-enabled true)

 

Edited September 23, 2019 by grey_rat

[looking4awayout]

Use the UOC Patch. See if it makes any difference. The patch does a lot of changes in terms of hardware acceleration, you cannot compare it to those tweaks as the patch and the enforcer do more extensive changes. Also, with ATI cards don't forget to apply the tweaks to improve acceleration, mentioned in the main post. It might not work on the 9550, but on more recent cards, it does.

Edited September 23, 2019 by looking4awayout

[grey_rat]

UOC Patch

FX5200, NM27 https://www.dropbox.com/s/l3ovnctyfjwiarr/5200.JPG?dl=0 , NM27 Youtube https://www.dropbox.com/s/r8e3a9ne1jsv1l4/5245yt.JPG?dl=0 , FF45 (roytam1) https://www.dropbox.com/s/857h86kwuswabzw/520045.JPG?dl=0

Radeon 9550, NM27 https://www.dropbox.com/s/c4ctlzw8jwhkvsp/9550pm.JPG?dl=0 , FF45 (roytam1) https://www.dropbox.com/s/2e1wxbze6p2sioi/955045.JPG?dl=0

[looking4awayout]

Thanks for providing the screenshots. From what we can see, the FX5200 successfully accelerates the browser in hardware, but does not accelerate WebGL, due to the driver version used. The situation is bleaker with the Radeon 9550, where the hardware acceleration does not work at all. I'm not surprised about the result, because those two graphics cards are too old to receive any benefit for the patch. For a Geforce FX, a 5600 is a better option since at least you have full hardware acceleration minus WebGL, which is not strictly essential.

Concerning this, there might be a way to trick Firefox into enabling full hardware acceleration, which is done by spoofing the driver version. You have to create a batch file that lets you decide the driver version and eventually, the VID and PID of your graphics card, in order to let Firefox think it's using another driver version, or even another graphics card. You can find more info about that on Google. Unfortunately YMMV with that, as the spoofer might work with some cards (for example, it does on my old 6800GT and my current X1950 Pro, as I use driver versions that are officially blacklisted by Mozilla, but they are the fastest ones for the respective cards), but it might not work with others, or even cause the browser to crash altogether.

About Youtube, as I said, you do not want to use the HTML5 player with those graphics cards, as it is already too taxing for the CPU, let alone for those poor cards, which do not have any kind of support for that feature.

There is a way for you to watch YouTube in browser much like you do with a modern computer. First, you have to download this extension, Greasemonkey:

https://legacycollector.org/firefox-addons/748/greasemonkey-3.9.xpi

Then, you must download this script called ViewTube:

http://sebaro.pro/viewtube/

Once you have downloaded it, installed and enabled it, you will have to configure VLC first, in order stream Youtube videos most likely at 360p or 480p (I used to watch videos at 480p and they ran fine on the 6800GT, I actually do not remember if I used 480p with the FX5600 though), then you have to enable the VLC plugin in Firefox, and in Viewtube, you need to set the option from the Viewtube list to "Low Definition MP4", then in the Auto dropdown menu, you must choose VLC, then click on the HD button and choose LD, and select the MD option and voila, you will be able to watch YouTube videos in browser even with a very old graphics card.

YT 2 Player does the same thing:

https://legacycollector.org/firefox-addons/550044/yt2p-1.2.1-signed.xpi

The difference between Viewtube and YT 2 Player is that unlike the former, the latter just automatically opens VLC whenever you click on a Youtube link. But first you have to configure the add-on in order to point it to the location of your VLC installation. Remember to periodically update your Youtube.lua file, or else videos will not be played.

Edited September 24, 2019 by looking4awayout

[grey_rat]

Bugs in UOC Patch 45:
pref("general.autoScroll", false); - double

pref("javascript.options.asyncstack", true); - for developers https://bugzilla.mozilla.org/show_bug.cgi?id=1386407

pref("layers.bench.enabled", true); - for developers https://searchfox.org/mozilla-central/source/modules/libpref/init/StaticPrefList.yaml#3983

pref("media.hardware-video-decoding.failed", true); - it is the indicator

pref("media.hardware-video-decoding.force-enabled", true); - does not work in WindowsXP

pref("gfx.webrender.all", true); - ?

 

FX5*** WebGL only software webgl.disable-angle true. OpenGL 2.0 on these video cards - only software

 

I use "Drag & drop" and extension "Byffox YouTube Downloads" https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/s/5qrembb9ghyq7y7/byffox_youtube_downloads-1.0-fx-windows.xpi

Edited September 24, 2019 by grey_rat

[looking4awayout]

Webrender is necessary to increase performance in hardware acceleration. Do not disable it.

Hardware video decoding is for the cards that support it.

Thanks for reporting the double autoscroll thing. I will fix it once I have enough time, something I don't in this period. :)))

You can tweak the patch to suit your own needs, it is not set in stone. So if there are some settings that you want to change, feel free to edit them. Letting users to tweak the patch to suit it to their preferences is something I always encouraged since its inception. :)

What does that plugin do, essentially? I don't use Media Player Classic, as the K-Lite Code Pack takes a toll on my Tualatin, but I'm curious. Does it send the video to MPC? Or downloads it and then plays it in MPC? I find the YT 2 Player plus Viewtube combination much more practical, as it lets me use the RDD more like a modern PC rather than a computer from 2001 with outdated hardware.

[grey_rat]

Quote

Webrender is necessary to increase performance in hardware acceleration. Do not disable it.

Firefox 60+,  DirectX 10.1+ , OpenGL 4.0+ and Windows 10.

Quote

Hardware video decoding is for the cards that support it.

DirectX 10+, Windows Vista+

Quote

What does that plugin do, essentially?

Receives direct URL of video

Quote

I don't use Media Player Classic, as the K-Lite Code Pack takes a toll on my Tualatin, but I'm curious. Does it send the video to MPC?

Only MPC-HC, without Code Pack, video in MP4. Does it send the video to MPC

Quote

Or downloads it and then plays it in MPC?

without loading, play at once

 

[Vistaboy]

Does add-on like YT 2 Player (VLC) /Biffox (MPC) exists for Chrome 49? 

[looking4awayout]

49 minutes ago, grey_rat said:

Firefox 60+,  DirectX 10.1+ , OpenGL 4.0+ and Windows 10.

DirectX 10+, Windows Vista+

 

I don't know if it's a placebo, but on my machine these options have made the browser faster and more responsive. But they can also come in handy for people who use the patch with Vista and 7 too.

I've also installed the unofficial DirectX 10 patch for XP a couple of months ago and that has brought another slight increase in speed. But nothing substantial compared to an unpatched browser versus a patched one with the supported hardware.

Edited September 24, 2019 by looking4awayout

[sparty411]

I haven't seen any feedback regarding testing on OSX PPC, so I figured I'd chime in here. Prior to applying the UOC patch, TenFourFox was borderline unusable, even on the fastest Powerbook / iBook laptops. After doing so, I've noticed quite a big uptick in performance, especially while scrolling! So, with that being said, double thanks, @looking4awayout!

[looking4awayout]

Awesome! What is the graphics card of your Power Macintosh? Did you use the Enforcer too?

Today I've applied the Patch for the first time on a Vista-era laptop: an Acer Extensa 5230 with a Celeron 560 CPU, 1.5GB of RAM and the infamous Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (or Decelerator, as often nickname it) X3100, born with Windows Vista Basic but came with Windows 7 installed. The Patch made Firefox much more usable and scrolling was actually smooth, which is quite impressive considered the ultra low end architecture of the machine itself. Unfortunately the HDD was not in the best shape (the SMART reported several failures), so if it worked properly, it could've ran even better.

I also got a slight improvement in hardware acceleration after enabling tiles. So apparently the trick reserved for ATI cards might also work with Intel IGPs, or at least it does on the GMA X3100.

Edited September 27, 2019 by looking4awayout

[sparty411]

6 hours ago, looking4awayout said:

Awesome! What is the graphics card of your Power Macintosh? Did you use the Enforcer too?

Today I've applied the Patch for the first time on a Vista-era laptop: an Acer Extensa 5230 with a Celeron 560 CPU, 1.5GB of RAM and the infamous Intel Graphics Media Accelerator (or Decelerator, as often nickname it) X3100, born with Windows Vista Basic but came with Windows 7 installed. The Patch made Firefox much more usable and scrolling was actually smooth, which is quite impressive considered the ultra low end architecture of the machine itself. Unfortunately the HDD was not in the best shape (the SMART reported several failures), so if it worked properly, it could've ran even better.

I also got a slight improvement in hardware acceleration after enabling tiles. So apparently the trick reserved for ATI cards might also work with Intel IGPs, or at least it does on the GMA X3100.

This iBook G4 features the Radeon Mobility 9550 32MB.

 

I have used the enforcer yet, but it is on my docket of things to do today. I can confirm what you've stated about Intel GMA performing well in webgl. In my experience, it performs EXTREMELY well, and considering the low power consumption, I actually prefer Intel GMA in older laptops, as opposed to dedicated GPU's due to excellent webgl performance, low power consumption, and excellent reliability (old laptops were plagued by GPU BGA issues).

[looking4awayout]

1 hour ago, sparty411 said:

This iBook G4 features the Radeon Mobility 9550 32MB.

That is quite surprising, considering ATI cards are notoriously poor at OpenGL. This makes me wonder if people with the 9000 series could use the Macintosh version of the UOC Patch to get an actual improvement in speed with such cards.

About the Intel GMA, yeah, I have been surprised by how better things got after installing the patch, as usually that poor IGP struggles at almost everything. But I only had the opportunity to test the patch with an X3100 GMA, I haven't tested it on the older generations yet.