Why is there no SSE2 version of Pale Moon 3.6 anymore?

Frequently Asked Questions about the Pale Moon browser and their answers.
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Why is there no SSE2 version of Pale Moon 3.6 anymore?

Unread post by Moonchild » 2011-11-12, 12:40

Note: This FAQ deals with an archaic versions of Pale Moon that should not be used. It's kept for historical reasons.

Why is there no SSE2 version of Pale Moon 3.6 anymore?

If you previously used the SSE2 version of Pale Moon 3.6.x and are wondering what the merge means for you, then please consider the following points:
  • The difference between using SSE2 and SSE in practice is small in overall speed for a browser; the specific additional instructions in the SSE2 set are more useful for multimedia applications and games - the current version makes full use of SSE and all earlier instruction sets implied by having SSE capabilities, and this will at all times remain the minimum for Pale Moon.
  • Both versions have been unified because developing separate branches takes twice the time, and because overall, the percentage of Pale Moon users using 3.6.x is (very) small compared to the NG (Next Generation) version (in the order of 2.5% 3.6.x and 97.5% on the NG versions, where most of the 3.6.x users are on SSE-only processors). It would be disproportionate to maintain separate releases of 3.6.x (building, testing, publishing, support) for SSE and SSE2.
  • Consider this is a free product and I only have so much time to go around to spend on things that don't pay the bills. Both processor-specific builds have been combined into one because of necessary resource planning.
  • An additional bonus: having just one 3.6.x release prevents confusion among the users. It is much easier to decide "I have older hardware so I need an older version of the browser" than having to make a technical assessment and know exactly what your processor supports re: SIMD instruction set.
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