Why Modern Code is Slow

Because of the entire security nonsense, modern linkers do not support the classic statically linked executables, which were superfast. So all code is compiled the PIE bloatware. Of course that crap goes on top of already slow MMU and meltdown/spectre fixes (which are just an excuse to sell your new CPU). Remember these old COM files? They were ridiculously fast, compared to the modern ELF garbage, where just the header takes more space than the code itself.

Remember: security experts are the consumer's biggest enemies. Common people don't care about security, they care only about apps running fast, liek they used to run in C64.

>>9

Programs are faster than ever.

Only if you use GPU. Common CPU have reached the frequency cap. Like physical one. We wont ever see a THz CPU. A few gains were mostly to improving the basic architecture (i.e. switching to MIPS-style design) and using the additional transistors to hardcode stuff like division tables, all while c64 CPU didn't even had a division opcode.