Current Dells and UEFI/secureboot?

[Walter Dnes]

  I don't want to hi-jack the Hispalinux thread, so I'm starting a
separate one.  How are current Dells regarding UEFI/secureboot?  Is it
simply a matter of toggling an option in the BIOS setup to get "legacy
boot"?

  The reason I'm asking is that I have 2 Dell desktops ("production" and
"hot backup") that are pushing 5 or 6 years of age, and I need to
replace at least one.  They simply can't keep up with HD video
streams...
* it could keep up with Youtube 480p videos fullscreen under Teksavvy's 5
  megabit service.  The stream was the limit.
* after the speed was bumped up, it could keep up with Youtube 720p
  videos fullscreen under Teksavvy's 6 megabit service.  The stream was
  the limit.  The download still couldn't keep up with 1080p videos.
* This week, I moved from "legacy 6 GAS" to "FTTN 7".  Unlike GAS, FTTN
  speeds are net, not gross.  So my Speedtest.net results jumped from
  approx 5.1-5.2 megabits to 7.1-7.2 megabits, and it can keep up with
  1080p streams.
* The "newer", more powerful, machine can play 1080p Youtube videos
  under Firefox in the "large player", but the load is pegged at between
  2.5 and 3.  For a 2-core machine, that's bad.  The leaner Midori can
  play the same video with a load between 1.7 and 2.1, which is pushing
  it.  Going to fullscreen, it stutters noticably under Firefox.  Midori
  can just barely keep up in fullscreen mode.
* The machine can play NHL GameCenter Live at the slowest stream
  (400 kbits/sec).  It doesn't even show the other options (800, 1600,
  and 3000)

  The 1080p video was http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=US3Px2sePWk  Note
that you have to manually select 1080p.  The "fmt=" option doesn't seem
to work anymore.

  The onboard Intel GPU is not the problem; it's the CPU trying to keep
up with Flash.  And before anyone asks...
* I'm running Gentoo with full optimizations
* I'm running ICEWM with no "desktop environment"; see my sig
So I don't think there are any more optimizations to be had, other than
a new PC.  Assuming there are no showstoppers, I'll be buying another
Dell.  They seem to last for me.

-- 
Walter Dnes <waltdnes-SLHPyeZ9y/tg9hUCZPvPmw at public.gmane.org>
I don't run "desktop environments"; I run useful applications
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