Topic
Ollama
28 posts on ollama — guides and lab notes from real runs on hardware we own. New posts land here automatically. Start anywhere, or grab the copy-paste prompts that ship with them.
- 5 min read
How to Calculate Local LLM Energy per Token
My RTX 5090 test shows how watts and output rate become joules per token, and why the faster of two matched settings can waste energy.
- 4 min read
Why a Failed Local LLM Benchmark Row Still Matters
A failed local LLM row marks the test boundary. My RTX 5090 report shows why quality, speed, and settings belong in one receipt.
- 5 min read
My local LLM eval hid four token caps
My 5090-rig eval uses four output caps: 50, 180, 192, and 256 tokens. A score without the cap is not a model result. Record the cap on every row.
- 5 min read
The 26B Model Hit the Cap. The 8B Finished.
Same code task, same 512-token cap. Ollama's done_reason showed one local model finished and one got cut off. Tokens per second hid it.
- 5 min read
A 27B Model Fit on an 8 GB GPU. It Was Slow.
Qwen3.8-27B Q3_K_S loaded on an RTX 3070. VRAM used 7,435 of 8,192 MiB. Decode ran 2.07 tok/s. Fit on 8 GB is not a usable rate.
- 4 min read
My Local LLM Writer Failed Its Own Word-Count Gate
Gemma 4 26B wrote a 535-word draft against a 550-word floor. The gate blocked it, both rescue engines were down, and no bad post shipped.
- 5 min read
Unload Local LLMs After Every Test
A local model test is not over when text appears. I unload the model, read idle VRAM, and record the result before I start another run.
- 5 min read
How I Benchmark Local LLMs Before I Trust Them
A local LLM benchmark should end with a decision. I record task quality, tokens per second, VRAM, power, and failure state before I add a model.
- 5 min read
How I Test a 30B Local Model Before I Load It
A 30B local model can fit on paper and still fail the job. This test plan checks memory, tool use, speed, and repeatability first.
- 5 min read
When a 4B Local LLM Beats 26B on One Task
On one RTX 5090 workshop, a 4B model beat a 26B model on speed while both passed four code checks. Here is the model-selection rule I kept.
- 5 min read
Does Ollama Include That New llama.cpp Feature?
A llama.cpp release note does not prove that Ollama can use the feature. I trace the active runtime path, pin versions, and test the same workload.
- 5 min read
My Local LLM Got Faster After It Passed the Tests
A three-run RTX 5090 test showed why local LLM tuning must pair speed with fixed-task checks. One faster setting also repaired every test.
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