Systemload output from "w": what does it mean?

[CAT-TALK Maint. Account]

In article <262 at twg.wimsey.bc.ca> bill at twg.wimsey.bc.ca (Bill Irwin) writes:
}I like the output from the "w" command and use it instead of "finger".  I
}like  seeing the current process running for each user.  It also gives me
}some info that I am curious about.
}
}It  reports  "load  average" followed by three sets  of  numbers.   These
}numbers  get  higher as more users come on the system, as  they  probably
}should,  but why three of them?  What is considered medium or heavy  load
}conditions?  Is it measuring cpu usage and/or swapping and/or disk i/o?
}

Those numbers are the average number of processes in the run queue (ie:
waiting for a CPU time slice) over the past 1, 5 and 15 minute(s),
respectivly. Ie:

7:31  up 2 days, 18:44,  3 users, load average: 0.17, 0.04, 0.00
 
means that at 7:31pm, there was an average of:               
     0.17 processes waiting for the CPU in the past minute,
     0.04  "        "               "      "      " 5 minutes and
     0.00  "        "               "      "      " 15 minutes. 
 
jpp at ddmi.com