Lag Woes?

Everyone is always complaining about lag, but I wonder if there's as much lag as we think or if it could just be our own computers.
While talking to a builder about rebuilding my island, I began to complain of how laggy my island was since we started filling it up. The builder told me that my island had hardly any lag at all for her, and that I should understand that majority of lag is caused by a user's computer. To test this, I hopped onto my husband's work computer and checked out SL. SL ran like a dream! Everywhere I went, be it crowded mainland or empty space, there was hardly a bit of lag.
So I have to wonder why users still bitch to LL about lag when it seems the majority of it is from the user's computer. It doesn't seem very fair to blame them if it's something that can be fixed on your own side.
My question I guess is, do you guys also believe the majority of lag is caused by the user's computer? I have only been able to test this once, but I feel it rings true.

Client side lag and network side lag are two separate issues. I do think a lot of what people complain about is client side lag (textures not rezzing is one I hear a lot)...BUT, network lag does exist, particularly when bandwidth is in short supply with nearly 40,000 concurrent log-ins.

Also on the client side, your settings have a great deal to do with lag. The biggest issues I typically see from inexperienced users (or computer users even) are bandwidth set too high (I am on a very speedy line and even I rarely set it above 500 for example) or draw distance too high.

Most of the complainers I see are running SL on misconfigured or underperforming spec hardware; incorrect settings for their connections and are wearing bling OK, bling isn't causing that much lag, but in my opinion it's the devil

I agree--most lag seems to be client side: too much stuff for a given computer to draw. A powerful computer will see little difference between crowded and sparse areas. A two year old middle-of-the-range computer will see a huge difference, and I think it's OK for users with such computers (myself included) to "bitch" about it. I mainly just choose areas with a lower density of stuff, or at least a high ratio of worthwhile to worthless stuff. Simply avoiding areas that offer ways to make money does the trick for me. And, I find myself constantly adjusting settings to be able to move around smoothly, or to see the beautiful people fully rezzed, or to see the builds rather than people in detail, etc.

If I were concerned about attracting people to my stuff in SL, I'd definitely regard client-side lag as a primary issue and take steps to mitigate it. And, I'd urge LL to choose policies that mitigate the factors introduced by neighbors, esoteric features, etc.

I've been beating this drum ever since I upgraded my computer, but more often than not I get flamed for suggesting that it's not all LL's fault.

My SL performance improved tremendously after building a new computer that was fully in line with specs. I also spent a lot of time studying the Preferences explanations and selecting the correct configurations.

I aslo do periodic sweeps of my inventory to keep it as lean as I can stand it, and I avoid prim-heavy avatar adornments. I don't even use prim hair -- I much prefer my Robin Sojourner textured hair.