e6400 nvidia tips and tricks when running openbsd

Signed-off-by: Leah Rowe <leah@libreboot.org>

site/docs/hardware/e6400.md

@@ -193,3 +193,79 @@ FreeBSD has not yet been tested, as far as we know, but it should work.
 and newer Linux have not yet been tested** (I plan to test *Arch Linux*), but
 the older Linux/Mesa version in Debian 11.6 works just fine in the Dell BIOS,
 and I've confirmed that it uses the exact same Video BIOS Option ROM.
+
+Desktop environment / window manager on OpenBSD + Performance notes
+-------------------------------------------------------------------
+
+TODO: This section could probably be moved to its own section. It's not really
+relevant to Libreboot per se, but it may help a few people.
+
+Again, Linux's nouveau driver is currently broken. I've been playing with my
+E6400 (nvidia model) for a while and I've found that these things are a *must*
+for performance (the machine otherwise lags, openbsd's `nv` driver isn't quite
+as good as nouveau, when the nouveau one works that is):
+
+* Use a lightweight desktop environment like LXQt, or lightweight window
+  manager (OpenBSD has `cwm` in base, and it's excellent)
+* Install `obsdfreqd` which scales down the CPU speed during idle state; the
+  GPU has a poor thermal pad for cooling and so if the CPU is running hot,
+  that doesn't bode well for GPU temperatures either, and the GPU is likely
+  lagging due to heat:
+
+How to install `obsdfreqd`:
+
+	pkg_add obsdfreqd
+	rcctl enable obsdfreqd
+
+Now, before you start it, make sure `apmd` is disabled; it can be used, but
+not with the `-A` flag:
+
+	rcctl stop apmd
+	rcctl disable apmd
+
+Now start obsdfreqd:
+
+	rcctl start obsdfreqd
+
+You will be well served to perform the copper shim mod, for GPU cooling.
+With `obsdfreqd`, your laptop will run much cooler. This is generally a good
+idea anyway, especially on laptops, to save electricity.
+
+Of course, there are many tweaks that you can do to OpenBSD but the key is:
+don't use heavy bloated software. The term *lightweight* is misleading anyway;
+if the software does its job efficiently, and you're happy with it, then it is
+by definition superior for your purposes. So, "lightweight" is simply a word
+for "efficient" in many contexts. We should encourage the use and development
+of highly efficient software that runs more smoothly on old machines. The
+elitist attitude of *just buy a new computer* is quite damaging; re-use is
+always better, when that is feasible and safe. The power of BSD (and Linux) is
+precisely that you can tweak it to get the most use out of older hardware..
+
+Another nice hint: higher resolution video like 1080p 60fps or above won't
+play smoothly at all in a web browser. In testing at least on OpenBSD 7.3,
+Firefox seems to have the best performance among all the web browsers, at least
+when I used it. Anything 720p 30/60fps will work ~OK.
+
+For YouTube, you could use yt-dlp, which is available in ports, and use mpv to
+stream via yt-dlp. Or download manually with yt-dlp and play offline. See:
+
+<https://github.com/yt-dlp/yt-dlp>
+
+<https://mpv.io/>
+
+Another hint: for watching youtube in the browser, Invidious works quite well.
+It's a frontend that lets you view it by proxy, and there are many instances
+of it online. For a list of instances, see:
+
+<https://redirect.invidious.io/>
+
+Unlike youtube.com, watching youtube via invidious works even with JavaScript
+turned off in the browser. You can use it to also search YouTube, and then
+paste the youtube.com link into yt-dlp or mpv; Invidious websites themselves
+also often provide a download button for videos.
+
+The yt-dlp software may also work on a few other websites besides YouTube.
+Running with JavaScript turned *off* is generally recommended for performance,
+especially on slower machines, turning it on only when you need it. Many
+websites are just full of junk nowadays.
+