Kernel: modules vs. built-in

[Gnu/Vince]

I'm a simple guy. And I like to keep my kernel as small as possible. But I happen to need lots of thing in my kernel. Is it more effective to load as many things as modules or to load everything in the kernel (and have +1Meg kernel)?

[Derango]

Basicly, everything I've read so far indicates that its best to load everything into the kernel unless:

Its a device you think you might need in the near future but you don't have it now

or

It's a device you have now that you don't use all the time.

That way, if you need support for the device, you can just load the module instead of recompiling the kernel.

[Gnu/Vince]

How big is your kernel. I'm concerned that a kernel too big will "lag" my system. I like kernels below 650 K (I have 2.4.1 BTW)