A runtime system, program product and method for determining a mode of operation for a software component, comprises steps of a) running in a first implementation mode; b) determining a first cost associated with running in the first implementation mode; c) determining a second cost associated with switching to a second implementation and running in the second implementation mode; and d) comparing the first cost with the second cost; and e) providing a recommendation to switch to the second mode based on the comparison of the first cost with the second cost. According to another embodiment a deterministic 3-competitive algorithm is used to solve this problem. We also show that this matches the lower bound, as any deterministic algorithm cannot be better than 3-competitive. According to another embodiment a probabilistic algorithm is also used to solve this problem as well.