I can't recommend switching to mise highly enough: https://mise.en.dev/

The only thing I demand to be fast on my terminal is grep reverse search (ctrl+r) and of course typing a character. But if your terminal can't keep up with your typing speed there is something deeply wrong with it.

Apparently for some of the simplicity-produces-speed arguments, users have found complex/featurefull. tools that are still quick. I’m not sure how to evaluate this (I like simplicity just because it is easier to fit simple tools in my head) but we should note the counter argument (and applaud the follow-up).

  $ for i in {1..5}; do /usr/bin/time zsh -i -c exit; done
        0.01 real         0.00 user         0.00 sys
        0.01 real         0.00 user         0.00 sys
        0.00 real         0.00 user         0.00 sys
        0.00 real         0.00 user         0.00 sys
        0.00 real         0.00 user         0.00 sys

I had no idea that you could do that asynchronously, and then have ZSH update the already printed prompt with the status later! That blows my mind!

Even with a low grade laptop, my zsh config grants me a sub 5ms prompt and a sub 1ms input lag, and that's far more important than the exit time.

     ./zsh-bench
    ==> benchmarking login shell of user XYZ ...
    creates_tty=0
    has_compsys=1
    has_syntax_highlighting=0
    has_autosuggestions=0
    has_git_prompt=1
    first_prompt_lag_ms=54.942
    first_command_lag_ms=57.069
    command_lag_ms=4.275
    input_lag_ms=0.669
    exit_time_ms=26.522

     hyperfine --warmup 3 'zsh -i -c exit'
    Benchmark 1: zsh -i -c exit
      Time (mean ± σ):      26.5 ms ±   0.5 ms
      Range (min … max):    25.5 ms …  27.6 ms

"Most of these optimizations are about leaving stuff out. It's about being intentional and only adding things you're going to use."

I don't use X11 or a similar graphics layer, only textmode. Thus I don't use a terminal emulator

I don't use zsh. I use NetBSD sh

Smaller and faster

This is what I am comfortable with

Others may have their own preferences; to each their own

I might not understand others' preferences but that's their business, not mine

As it turns out, avoiding unnecessary fork() is good hygiene everywhere.

Kitty doesn't work, alacrity doesn't work, foot doesn't work, gnome terminal doesn't work, xfce terminal doesn't work, urxvt doesn't work, xterm doesn't work, the list goes on.