ARC Rant

I've seen a lot of posts pointing out that ARC (Avatar Rendering Cost) is arbitrary and imperfect. Peter Stindberg even said it has been "debunked".

http://stindberg.blogspot.com/2008/08/avatar-rendering-cost-debunked.html

http://www.secondeffects.com/2008/05/arc-from-here-to-infinity.html

That's like saying that graded exams have been "debunked". We know it's not perfect, but it's what's possible. Yes, it is only a rough indication. The idea is that an avie with ARC 5000 is harder for your machine to draw that an avie with ARC 1000. There may be no difference between two avies with ARC 4900 and ARC 5000, because yes, there is a big margin of error.

That was explained way back, when Pastrami Linden introduced ARC on the Official SL Blog:

Note that these weightings, and their resultant totals, are not a *perfect* measure of your cost- but more of a relative counter to weigh against other avatars. Point: it’s close, but it’s not scientifically perfect. For that, you’d have to delve deep into batch sizes and draw calls. These weightings and their description/rationales were written by Runitai Linden, one of our most senior graphics engineers and a man who knows rendering efficiency!

We all get fed up with our machines turning to molasses in busy sims when we're surrounded by people wearing bling, long flexi hair, flexi skirts, etc. 

ARC is just a way to tell people when they're getting it wrong.

So people get rude about it? That's the fault of rude people, not ARC itself.

So there are edge cases like a particle emitters which emits one particle every other year? So what? Who wears one of those? And even if they do, it's only 16 points. ARC is only meant to be a general guide. 16 points either way is nothing. You'd have to wear hundred of the little buggers for your ARC to become seriously wrong.

As for "expression" - this is like people playing their tinny MP3s out loud on the bus. Maybe they're expressing themselves, but they're forcing me to experience it, and I don't want to experience their music. Likewise, in a busy sim I don't want to experience your blingy, flexi, 300-prim furry avatar. Feel free to wear it whenever you aren't in a busy place where you're making my computer groan under the load.

Summary: 

i) If you don't think ARC is precise, then congratulations, you just got the goddamn point. It's rough, and for general comparison only. 

ii) If you got yelled at for having a high ARC in a busy sim, then the person who yelled at you is rude but for pity's sake please go and take off some of that junk.