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Subject: Re: Introducing "No-Moore's Law"

Author: Jeremiah Penery

Date: 11:52:02 03/08/03

Go up one level in this thread


On March 08, 2003 at 01:37:18, Robert Hyatt wrote:

>On March 08, 2003 at 00:42:23, Matt Taylor wrote:
>
>>On March 07, 2003 at 23:37:24, Robert Hyatt wrote:
>>
>>>That's the point.  Yes, I suppose you could make a case that anybody should
>>>read the docs before they use the product.  But in reality, you know that
>>>nobody does, because the assumption is that all vehicles use currently available
>>>unleaded fuel unless great big warning signs are everywhere...
>>
>>Your analogy is flawed at the core. A better analogy would be condemning
>>Plymouth for releasing an automobile with a big sign on the side that says,
>>"Leaded fuel," when it breaks after the owner puts in unleaded gasoline. The K6
>>has a big stamp on it called CPUID that says, "I can't do cmovcc."
>
>It doesn't have a "big stamp" which is the problem.  It has a Big Stamp that
>says "X86 compatible".  And back on page 400 you discover "but the cmovxx
>instructions are not implemented in this processor."
>
>What is a "big stamp" to you is a fine-print disclaimer buried on page 400 to
>a "grandmother program developer."  :)

You don't even have to look at the manual for this.  It's like the car scenario,
where if you tried to put unleaded gas in the leaded car, a voice came out of
the gas tank and said, "I don't run on unleaded gas!"  The processor tells you
it doesn't support CMOV.  It's your fault if you still try to use it.

>>>I saw them sitting side-by-side in comp USA.  With signs saying "Built with
>>>an AMD inside."  And magazine adds hanging in front of them showing the infamous
>>>"faster but cheaper".  If they are put side by side, and even AMD compared
>>>price and performance, it is certainly _reasonable_ to consider them to be
>>>compatible.  After all, nobody compares a gas automobile to a diesel auto
>>>without _explicitly_ pointing out the pros/cons of the non-standard fuel.
>>
>>Dell sells Pentium 3 systems side-by-side with Pentium 4 systems.
>
>Notice anything different?  Pentium 3.  Pentium 4.  They _clearly_ identify
>what is "inside" is a pentium-X.  That's a bit different than just selling

The AMD machines _clearly_ identified that they were, in fact, AMD machines too,
so I'm not sure what you're getting at.

>something that is compared to the pentium II in your own ads, but which is
>not quite a pentium-II in fact...

By selling them side-by-side, Dell is comparing them.  But Pentium3 is not quite
a Pentium4 in fact...

>99% of crafty users don't have any idea how to compile the thing...

And probably 99% of that group of people is using Windows, so they use the
executable that runs on all processors.  It's a non-issue for them.


BTW, I'm still waiting for those SPARC/MIPS benchmark numbers, as well as the
SPARC sales numbers.



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