I just disabled the hud-service because it was taking up 2.8 GiB of my computers RAM.
I understand that it is part of the unity ecosystem because others are posting solutions along the lines of installing xubuntu etc. However, I like running stock-ubuntu as this tends to make asking for help and diagnosing issues easier (just my opinion).
Question
Could someone explain to me what this service is responsible for, and thus what I am sacrificing by disabling this service?
Possibly Related Info
I use synapse for searching/starting applications, and always have the unity-side launcher/dashboard hidden and never use it. I switch between applications using the compiz ring-switcher which is set to display everything from all workspaces, and the desktop "wall" combined with expo.
Best Answer
The HUD or Head-Up Display was introduced in release 12.04. It is still being developped and perfected and meant to ultimately replace menus in Unity.
This wiki should definitely help you understand some of the intent and portent of HUD (
hud-service) as an integral part of the unity architecture. It is meant to be and functions as an "intent-driven interface" meant to facilitate the management of the desktop's applications' menu interface, the GUI end of it being the visible std-out (display).To most users hud-service remains obscure and a "background thing". In fact its central promise is that it will help tap users' actions' predictability in navigating the GUI.
If you turn that service off you will arguably downgrade the efficiency of your GUI management in terms of responsiveness and RAM usage. Remember that Unity is a rather chunky bit of software and it puts a strain on any system, however big it happens to be.
HTH