*BSD News Article 39750


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From: john@tyrell.net (John A. Matzen)
Subject: Re: Interested in PowerPC for Linux / FreeBSD / NetBSD?
Message-ID: <D12MGt.1L9@tyrell.net>
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References: <3cit0i$mjf@tut.msstate.edu> <3clp1c$q6p@news.iastate.edu> <3cphs0$l6e@ddi2.digital.net> <stephenkD0vyyn.1GG@netcom.com>
Date: Mon, 19 Dec 1994 18:38:52 GMT
Lines: 67

Stephen Knilans (stephenk@netcom.com) wrote:

: Intel has OFFICIALLY said that THEY will determine if the user REALLY needs
: a new chip, and will SEE what they can do, even POSSIBLY replacing the chip!

: My company has many customers that use different platforms.  They have some
: PRETTY complicated routines that are interfaced VIA C to DBL.  THANK GOD
: NONE has of yet used a pentium, though one almost did!  Would Intel have 
: paid my company for losing MY time while *I* investigated a problem that 
: THEY knew about 6 MONTHS ago?  HECK NO, they might not even replace the
: chip!  They would figure WHY would a BANK need that precision, because THEY
: work with dollars and cents?  

If a bank is using the FPU to do numerical calculations, they could be loosing
hundreds of pennies every day due to rounding errors.  It doesn't matter
how many digits of precision the FPU is using.

: to have it's K5 chip ready by late next year.  Intel however, should
: have its 188Mhz pentium shipping by then".  NOW, they have FRONT PAGE
: articles talking about the FUROR that has been brought up.  In the 
: middle, one wrote of how INTELS failures will draw more suspicion to
: cyrix and AMD(the two MAIN competitors).

And who is to say the K5 won't have any bugs?

: HUH, THAT'S A LAUGH!  I knew of AMD BEFORE they dealt with INTEL.  They 
: were, and ARE, respected for making high quality VLSI chips very fast.
: They have, to the best of my knowledge, NEVER had this problem.
: They had a better version of the 386/387 out before Intel!

The counselor is only speculating, your honor!

: Cyrix was very respected at, get this, making faster and more PRECISE
: FPUs!  

So lets give Cyrix a trophy...I have a 33MHz Cyrix 486DX CPU
running just fine in a 50MHz motherboard.  That doesn't mean that I'll
ever buy another Cyrix CPU.  BTW, Cyrix CPUs won't run on some motherboards.

: WHY, would INTELS problems make me suspicious?  INTEL, THEMSELVES, made
: sure that AMD can use NO intel logic!

: BTW I know that ANY company can make a mistake.  I know that ANY company 
: can have recall problems.  What *I* don't like is that Intel didn't even
: disclose this problem until a scientist had ALREADY waisted much of his
: time, tracked the bug, and asked Intel about it.  Intels response?  OH,
: we knew about that 6 MONTHS ago, and are looking into it!  

Intels response?  Perhaps not.  Maybe it was the response of a receptionist.
you never know.

: My boss spoke of their limited capacity!  That is a bunch of HOGWASH!  
: They had a production capacity problem with the 286, and enlisted the
: efforts of IBM, AMD, and others.  NOW, however, only IBM is allowed to
: make their 486.  Is ANYONE allowed to make their pentium?  I guess not,
: since IBM stopped purchasing the pentiums!  

: If they DARE to use the complaint "we have limited capacity", you can 
: call to their rememberance how they once filled that need, and have since
: spent a BUNDLE suing them so they couldn't use the knowledge they gained
: LEGALLY!  

: Steve
: stephenk@netcom.com

: BTW, as I stated, my company holds no interest in my opinion.  ALSO, 
: the above IS true!