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Technology Stocks : Intel Corporation (INTC)
INTC 36.78+2.7%Nov 26 3:59 PM EST
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To: muzosi who wrote (127574)2/16/2001 3:12:39 PM
From: fingolfen  Read Replies (1) of 186894
 
Actually it's not quite that simple... though everyone would like to pretend it is.

There are several currently available applications for which the Pentium 4 shows a marked performance improvement over both the K7 and the P3. Intel is, of course, quite keen to point that out on their website. Those applications do not, however, represent the sum total of currently available software... and may not be programs certain individuals prefer.

Then there are the various benchmark suites. At once we are hit with another Rorscharch test... those that show the K7 performing better are "unbiased," and those that show the P4 performing better are "stooges of Intel." The truth is lost in the pointless partisan bickering.

I think probably the most damning statement about benchmarks today is actually the Raytracing example on Ace's. The original Raytraching "benchmark" showed the 1.2GHz K7 in the lead with a hefty advantage over both the P3 and P4. A simple recompile improved not only the K7's score, but DRASTICALLY improved the P4 scores... A P4 recompile improved the P4 score even further. So this begs the question... what is the benchmark REALLY measuring? Why does a simple recompile so radically alter the performance? Is there such a thing as a unbiased benchmark these days? Why the vast proliferation of cryptic, but valid sounding, benchmarks?

It seems to me that the IT community has degenerated into a high school mentality of "us vs. them." Vast numbers of individuals pick their favorite team and set out to "prove" why they're best... As in war, the first casualty is the truth...
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