Limit branching: code like "a < b ? 1 : b < a ? -1 : 0" (yes, this is more or less my comparison function) is bad, because the CPU has to predict 2 comparisons,

Limit branching: code like "a < b ? 1 : b < a ? -1 : 0" (yes, this is more or less my comparison function) is bad, because the CPU has to predict 2 comparisons, and CPU prediction os probably right at only ~50%. If prediction fails, then the queue of already "parsed" instructions gets flushed, and the CPUs processing unit has to wait for new instructions. Code which does not branch usually runs faster. Therefore (a-b) would be a better comparison function, if you guarantee it does not overflow.