Steam needs better optimization / avatar animation disabling options

[[Bouncy]-|Henky‼|-[TTC]]

This has been a recurring theme for me ever since valve started to use HTML5 in the client.
Steam should be a platform that allows me to play games, not a platform that prevents me from getting performance on my system.

I am running Linux on an older laptop, i don't always want to be on my gaming PC when i interact with my steam friends. And the idle CPU draw and memory usage is just really high because of all the animations steam has going on. Normally this was only an issue for me on the frontpage when a promo was going on, but now i am getting this on the friendslist as well.

GPU rendering does not appear to work, which means that everyones animated avatar now ends up costing CPU resources. So much so that my CPU idles between 40 and 60% when i have the friendlist open (Large friendlist, weak cpu).

Steam itself is also consistently using more ram than the games i am playing.

As far as the suggestions go?
Short term remedy :
- Have a global steam wide option to disable animations, you can use the performance option for the library if you want make this disable chat avatar animations and front page animations as well.
- Unload the webpages when they are not open in this performance mode, and unload them once i go ingame / disable avatar animations when games are running.

Long term solution :
- The above + switching to a different renderer for websites that is geared closer to what you are trying to accomplish. Have the usual chromium only for things that where actual webpages like this community or the storefront like it used to be. Run everything else on alternatives like Ultralight which are optimized for GUI design in games and run much better.

[76561198407601200]

Originally posted by Bouncy-|Henky‼|-TTC:

I am running Linux on an older laptop,

Well there's your problem....

[ViralShadow]

Yeah im bothered by the idle 20-30% it takes after the update from friends list alone, though it is also inconsistent and right now it only takes 2-3% of cpu usage in background.

[nullable]

If you're not playing games, what's the problem? And if you are shut the client ui down to free up usage...

[[Bouncy]-|Henky‼|-[TTC]]

Originally posted by Brockenstein:

If you're not playing games, what's the problem? And if you are shut the client ui down to free up usage...

Its significant enough to lag my other applications because with a few applications combined ill now hit 100% CPU.

[Kiddiec͕̤̱͋̿͑͠at 🃏]

Originally posted by ViralShadow:

Yeah im bothered by the idle 20-30% it takes after the update from friends list alone, though it is also inconsistent and right now it only takes 2-3% of cpu usage in background.

As far as I can tell, it doesn't happen when you don't have any animated avatars on display (including in the section you scroll down to).

So if you move everyone who has an animated avatar into their own category, then minimize it, or create copies of your existing categories with the people who have animated avatars removed then only expand the category containing friends / contacts who do not have animated avatars, then you should not see a performance increase... UNLESS... you are using an animated avatar of your own. You can not hide your own avatar on your friend list and it appears... in the top-left corner.

Some people have even gone so far as to just outright remove friends, that have animated avatars, from their friend list.

If you're using the "Currently Online" or "Currently Offline" categories in your friend list, then I can totally see why this would be inconsistent for you. When they go into the collapsed category (ie. if Online is the open category and Offline is not) their avatar effects will get removed from the "page" and no longer need to be processed as their animations play.

Originally posted by Bouncy-|Henky‼|-TTC:

Steam needs better optimization / avatar animation disabling options

You say this is an issue for you, and yet you have an animated avatar frame of your own.
In doing so, you make it impossible for yourself to escape the extra rendering requirement of it, in ANY window on Steam.

If this is really an issue for you, I suggest you start by removing your animated avatar frame. Close all Steam windows, especially the chats and friend list, then only open up the library.
I am fairly certain you will see a decrease in performance / CPU usage, at that moment.
The next step would be to stick your friends that have animated avatars into a category that you minimize.

Originally posted by The Living Tribunal:

Originally posted by Bouncy-|Henky‼|-TTC:

I am running Linux on an older laptop,

Well there's your problem....

While you are technically correct here, this is just as much Valve's problem as it is the end-user. If Steam is unusable, or inaccessible, or inconvenient for them to use (in any way), then technically they are being told "Steam is not for you" via the action or ignorance of a customer's problem that is being taken / afforded.

That is not good for the market because [you, the company] are, in a sense, alienating or disparaging a portion of what would -otherwise- be your demographic, from using your platform.

[[Bouncy]-|Henky‼|-[TTC]]

You bring up a good point that i am contributing to my own problem here by having one, disabled my avatar border which will likely help. I just wish they made an option to have them show but not animate on request.

[Kiddiec͕̤̱͋̿͑͠at 🃏]

Originally posted by Bouncy-|Henky‼|-TTC:

You bring up a good point that i am contributing to my own problem here by having one, disabled my avatar border which will likely help. I just wish they made an option to have them show but not animate on request.

I -entirely- agree that should be an option.
...and so do ALL of these people:
https://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/10/2577696996223481715/

Plus, there are other threads with people taking issue with this, who aren't outright suggesting:

"Hey! Please give us an option to turn this off for ourselves! Why didn't you think to do that before releasing this feature in the first place?"

https://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/10/2577696996222867598/
https://steamcommunity.com/discussions/forum/10/2577696996223437382/

[bonkmaykr]

Originally posted by Bouncy-|Henky‼|-TTC:

This has been a recurring theme for me ever since valve started to use HTML5 in the client.
Steam should be a platform that allows me to play games, not a platform that prevents me from getting performance on my system.

This