From: David Waite <mass@ufl.edu>
  To  : ggi-develop@eskimo.com
  Date: Thu, 9 Jul 1998 19:37:41 -0400

[off-topic] RE: Fast lines

> Jon M. Taylor wrote:
<snip>
>	It would be better to give your CPU instructions for fast >vector
>and maxtrix logic, colorspace conversions, fourier transforms, and >any
>other mathermatical or logical operations that OpenGL would use.  >It is a
>bad idea to tie your hardware into one API.

Riight =-) Plus, if you tie it to the 1.2 version of an API, you are going
to be in trouble when 1.3 comes out...

>	Six of one, half a dozen of the other.  It is a "media >processor",
>according to current industry jargon.  A lot of people think that >this is
>the way the industry is heading - eventually all the hardware logic >in a
>computer except maybe some bus glue will all be in one ASIC.  Now >that
>hardware is so cheap and powerful, the massive speed and >flexibility
>increase that you get by unifying your logic and throwing away the >busses
>more than compensates for lack of modular upgradeability.

Yes, but you then have problems such as:

-'my video card isn't working'... 'well, Replace your computer!'

-'well, we messed up the left channel of the integrated sound card, should
we try making another round of silicon, or just ship it in mono?'

Also, since at my job we mess with large volumes of custom hardware, I can't
see this in the forseeable future.

>	Here's something else to consider, too.  USB and its >successors
>will bring us universal external peripheral expandability.  This >reduces
>the need (and desireability) of having DACs associated with your >video and
>audio hardware - just send the data in binary form to any external
>peripheral (USB monitor, USB stereo, USB modem, etc).  Your >"computer"
>should only have to deal with constructing a rectangular array of >colored
>pixels, not the task of turning that data into analog electrical >signals!

Definately the successors, USB I believe is only 12 megabit/s, and I'm
unsure whether it is packet-based or (I think) time-share based. Hopefully
it isn't time-share based, because then two USB keyboards would make your
USB camera not work.

USB soundcards sound very cool, the ones integrated into external speakers..
they pull supposedly can pull off the system's power through the USB bus, so
that the USB cable is the only cable needed. Also, USB is 'plug-and-play' so
when you plug in the speakers, teh OS can look up the new device, plug in
the drivers and play a soft 'bing!' to let you know your new sound device
works.

>	That was a blatant attempt to artificially segment the market >and hang
onto their crumbling high-end.  So is Xeon.

No comment =)

-David Waite