jrubins:
PID are fairly slow algorithms by nature, they are designed for systems where there is lots of lag and overshoot, noise, or ripples.
I don't think that's at all accurate. PID is designed for controlling linear dynamic systems. A PID controller can be as fast or as slow as you want, and they are absolutely the right way to control something like a throttle where you want maximum responsiveness and yet avoid oscillations and overshoots.