Intel application accelerator -- good or bad?

[xts3]

So is using the Intel application accelerator worth it?

 

[Wiktor]

I have recently done a test with IAA installed, with Intel UltraATA Strorage (old version of IAA) and with default WinXP dirvers.
I used HDTach and the cosbi benchmark. My resaults where very simmilar in each case, but IAA showed ~10% CPU usage, while the other ~5%. Read speeds in HDTach where also somehow better (and more consitent) without IAA. I haven't noticed any changes in boot up time or shut down time.
What I did notice was: diffrent HDD activity sounds (noise), maybe because of some acustic managment.
And more importantly my HDD makes a diffrent sound when it shuts down with IAA (louder and longer click) and sometimes when resetting Windows IAA caused the HDD to spin down and then back up. I am not using it now.

 

[CraigRT]

I have never used it before, but have always wondered myself. I'd personally stay away from stuff like that, as I really don't have any faith in it.

 

[dullard]

Many people claim it does wonders for them - much faster booting and slighlty faster applications. I tried it once - saw no difference in anything at all.

 

[ssanches]

IMHO, they're a little more than glorified IDE busmaster drivers I've yet to see some emperical evidence that they do something wonderful.

These drivers started to appear during the peak competition between VIA and Intel when both companies offered busmaster drivers for Win9x claiming better IDE performance for their chipsets.

 

[gsellis]

I had a NLE (video editor), MagicDeluxe 2.0?, that would not burn DVDs with IAA installed. Only issue I heard of with it.