# Timbrinded Kiln Performance > Performance Optimization - Skill: `tomevault-io/timbrinded-kiln-performance` (Agent Skill, multi-file: 2 files) - Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add tomevault-io/timbrinded-kiln-performance` - Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/tomevault-io/timbrinded-kiln-performance/raw - Safety review: pending (external: skill-scanner PASS, skillspector PASS) - Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex - Category: Coding & Dev Tools - Author: tomevault-io (https://skillmd.com/u/tomevault-io) - Updated: 2026-09-17 - Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/tomevault-io/timbrinded-kiln-performance --- # Performance Optimization Language-agnostic performance optimization guidance distilled from Google's Abseil performance engineering wisdom. Applicable to C++, Rust, and TypeScript. ## Core Philosophy Forget about small efficiencies 97% of the time. But a 12% improvement, easily obtained, is never considered marginal. Choose faster alternatives when readability and complexity remain unaffected. Reserve deep optimization for the measured critical 3%. For full philosophy, estimation techniques, and latency numbers, consult **`references/philosophy.md`**. ## The Optimization Workflow ``` 1. MEASURE → 2. IDENTIFY → 3. OPTIMIZE → 4. VERIFY Profile Find the Apply Measure first bottleneck technique again ``` ### 1. Measure First Never optimize without a baseline measurement. Profile production or representative workloads. ### 2. Identify the Bottleneck Determine which resource is constrained: CPU, memory, network, disk. Use the appropriate profiling tool. ### 3. Apply the Right Technique Use the decision tree below to select the appropriate reference file. ### 4. Verify the Improvement Measure again with the same methodology. Compare primary and proxy metrics. An unmeasured optimization is worthless. ## Quick Reference: Latency Numbers | Operation | Latency | |-----------|---------| | L1 cache reference | 0.5 ns | | L2 cache reference | 3 ns | | Branch mispredict | 5 ns | | Mutex lock/unlock | 15 ns | | Main memory reference | 50 ns | | Compress 1KB | 1 us | | Read 4KB from SSD | 20 us | | Datacenter round trip | 50 us | | Read 1MB sequentially (RAM) | 64 us | | Read 1MB from SSD | 1 ms | | Disk seek | 5 ms | | Read 1MB from disk | 10 ms | Extended table with additional entries and notes in **`references/philosophy.md`**. ## Decision Tree: Which Reference to Consult **"The algorithm is wrong or suboptimal"** → **`references/techniques-algorithms.md`** — Algorithmic complexity, data structure selection, bulk APIs, search/iteration optimization, regex optimization. **"Too much memory used, or memory access is slow"** → **`references/techniques-memory.md`** — Compact structs, field reordering, indices vs. pointers, batched storage, inlined storage, arenas, bit vectors, reducing indirections. **"Code does unnecessary work"** → **`references/techniques-execution.md`** — Fast paths, precomputation, deferred computation, specialization, caching, compiler hints, stats reduction. **"Too many allocations or copies"** → **`references/techniques-allocations.md`** — Avoid unnecessary allocations, reserve/resize, move vs. copy, reuse temporaries, object pooling. **"Need to measure or profile correctly"** → **`references/measurement.md`** — Profiling methodology, flat profiles, microbenchmarking, hardware counters, measurement ROI, decision-making with imperfect data. **"Need to think about the optimization approach"** → **`references/optimization-process.md`** — Project selection, success metrics, reversibility, rollout strategy, automation, estimation calibration. **"Need the equivalent technique in another language"** → **`references/language-equivalents.md`** — C++ → Rust → TypeScript mapping for all techniques, applicability matrix, TypeScript-specific concerns. **"Need to understand the performance mindset"** → **`references/philosophy.md`** — The critical 3%, performance-aware design, back-of-envelope estimation, latency reference table, structural thinking. ## Optimization Categories at a Glance | Category | Key Insight | Impact | |----------|------------|--------| | Algorithm/data structure | Reduce complexity class (O(N²) → O(N)) | 10-1000x | | Memory representation | Smaller = fewer cache misses = faster everything | 2-10x | | Avoid unnecessary work | Fast paths, precompute, defer, specialize | 2-20x | | Reduce allocations | Each alloc costs time + cache + GC pressure | 1.2-5x | | Bulk APIs | Amortize per-item overhead across N items | 2-10x | | Measurement methodology | Measure the right thing the right way | Enables all above | ## Process Checklist When undertaking performance optimization work: - [ ] Define primary success metric before starting - [ ] Estimate expected improvement (back-of-envelope) - [ ] Profile to identify the actual bottleneck (do not guess) - [ ] Apply one technique at a time for measurability - [ ] Measure after each change with pre-defined methodology - [ ] Compare estimate to actual result for calibration - [ ] Consider non-local effects (cache pressure, distributed system impacts) - [ ] Prefer two-way door decisions (reversible via feature flags) ## Language-Specific Quick Notes **Rust**: Move semantics are default. Use `Vec::with_capacity`, `smallvec`, `bumpalo` for allocation control. `hashbrown` (default `HashMap`) uses SwissTable internally. Profile with `perf`, `criterion`, `flamegraph`. LLVM backend shared with C++ enables `llvm-mca` analysis. **TypeScript**: Focus on algorithmic complexity, V8 hidden class stability (monomorphic objects), GC pressure reduction, and TypedArrays for numeric work. Most C++ memory-layout techniques do not apply. Profile with Chrome DevTools and `clinic.js`. Bundle size affects parse/compile time. **C++**: Full access to all techniques. Use `absl::` types (InlinedVector, flat_hash_map, Span, string_view) for efficient defaults. Profile with `pprof` and `perf`. Use `llvm-mca` for instruction-level analysis. For comprehensive cross-language mapping, consult **`references/language-equivalents.md`**. ## All Reference Files | File | Content | Words | |------|---------|-------| | **`references/philosophy.md`** | Mindset, critical 3%, estimation, latency numbers | ~860 | | **`references/measurement.md`** | Profiling, benchmarks, methodology, measurement ROI | ~1,200 | | **`references/techniques-algorithms.md`** | Algorithms, data structures, bulk APIs, regex | ~1,000 | | **`references/techniques-memory.md`** | Compact structs, layout, arenas, bit vectors, indirections | ~1,300 | | **`references/techniques-execution.md`** | Fast paths, precompute, defer, specialize, caching | ~1,200 | | **`references/techniques-allocations.md`** | Reduce allocs, avoid copies, reuse, pooling | ~1,100 | | **`references/optimization-process.md`** | Project selection, rollouts, automation, estimation | ~1,400 | | **`references/language-equivalents.md`** | C++ → Rust → TypeScript mapping tables | ~1,000 | --- > Converted and distributed by [TomeVault](https://tomevault.io/claim/timbrinded) — claim your Tome and manage your conversions.