<h2><font style="font-weight: normal;" size="2">From <a href="http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Talk:Designs/Activity_Management#Memory_economics">http://wiki.laptop.org/go/Talk:Designs/Activity_Management#Memory_economics</a>:</font><br>
<span class="mw-headline"></span></h2><h2><span class="mw-headline">Memory economics</span></h2>
<p>The memory ring was a <b>very</b> effective instructor for memory
economics not present in the new design proposal. Perhaps the Frame
segment to be occupied by running activities could be used for this
purpose by greying the Frame background for each activity with the
proportion of memory usage consumed by the overlaid icon. Minimal
segment dividers may also help complete the picture. --<a href="http://wiki.laptop.org/go/User:FGrose" title="User:FGrose">FGrose</a> 15:02, 5 April 2008 (EDT)
</p><p>The intent is described in the HIG, Key design principles, <a href="http://wiki.laptop.org/go/OLPC_Human_Interface_Guidelines/Design_Fundamentals/Key_Design_Principles#Performance" title="OLPC Human Interface Guidelines/Design Fundamentals/Key Design Principles">Performance</a>:
</p>
<blockquote>
...<br>
Since there is no swap space on the laptop, only a limited number of
activities can run concurrently; the Sugar UI exposes these details
directly to the children. The Home screen features an activity ring
that contains icons representing each instance of an open activity. The
size of the ring segment that a given activity occupies represents its
overall memory usage; when the ring fills up, no additional activities
may be launched until some resources have been freed. ...
</blockquote>
<p>and also from the Zoom metaphor, <a href="http://wiki.laptop.org/go/OLPC_Human_Interface_Guidelines/The_Laptop_Experience/Zoom_Metaphor#Home" title="OLPC Human Interface Guidelines/The Laptop Experience/Zoom Metaphor">Home</a>:
</p>
<blockquote>... The activity ring surrounds the character, indicating
all of the currently open activities. Furthermore, the section of the
ring that a given activity occupies directly represents the amount of
memory that the particular activity requires to run, providing
immediate visual feedback about memory constraints and exposing a means
for resource management that doesn't require knowledge of the
underlying architecture. ...
</blockquote>