Benchmarking and Optimization Tips

Benchmarking and Optimization Tips

About

• Benchmarking measures code execution metrics.
• Optimization should be data-driven.
• Focus on algorithmic improvements first.
• Micro-optimizations as last resort.

Main Topics

1. Stopwatch Benchmarking

   • Definition: Basic timing measurement.
   • Example:

     final sw = Stopwatch()..start();
     // Code to measure
     print(sw.elapsedMicroseconds);

2. Benchmark Harness

   • Definition: Precise measurement package.
   • Example:

     import 'package:benchmark_harness/benchmark_harness.dart';
     class MyBenchmark extends BenchmarkBase {
       // Implementation...
     }

3. Optimization Techniques

   • Definition: Proven optimization patterns.
   • Example:

     // Prefer:
     final list = List.filled(100, 0);
     // Over:
     final list = [];
     for (var i = 0; i < 100; i++) list.add(0);

4. Memory Optimization

   • Definition: Reducing memory footprint.
   • Example:

     // Use fixed-length lists:
     List.filled(100, null, growable: false);

5. Isolate Utilization

   • Definition: Offloading heavy work.
   • Example:

     // Move to separate isolate:
     await Isolate.run(() => heavyComputation());

How to Use

• Measure First: Profile before optimizing
• Prioritize: Focus on hot code paths
• Validate: Verify improvements
• Document: Track performance changes

How It Works

1. Baseline: Establish current metrics
2. Experiment: Try optimizations
3. Compare: Against baseline
4. Verify: In real-world conditions

Example Optimization:

// Before:
String concatenate(List<String> items) {
  String result = '';
  for (var item in items) result += item;
  return result;
}

// After:
String concatenate(List<String> items) {
  return items.join();
}

Conclusion

Effective benchmarking and optimization in Dart rely on systematic measurement and targeted improvements. By focusing on algorithmic efficiency first and using isolates for parallel processing, developers can achieve significant performance gains while maintaining code readability.