Tony:
"The HP FYI is touting their latest workstation based on the PA-8000 RISC chip as taking the lead for world's fastest workstation, , etc., etc. They have a graph of processing power vs. time, 1986 to 1996 and beyond. Anyway, the one they're touting now is at about 400 SPECint92. In what looks like next year (small graph), they get to about 500 with the PA-8200. Then, they have a discontinuity in the vertical, or performance axis. After that, they show no more PA---chip based workstations. Just Intel Merced. The reason they had to do a discontinuity in the vertical axis is that the performance, with the Merced, jumps to over 2000 SPECint92 in 1998. That would have put it off the graph! That's a 4X performance jump in one year!"
If the latest workstation (PA-8000 RISC chip) is 400 SPECint92 and next year it's a (PA-8200 RISC chip) 500 Specint92 and the Merced in 1998 is 2000SPECint92, what does this mean in terms understandable to a non-techie? Please interpret.
Second question: what will be possible to do on these workstations that isn't being done on them now.
Third question: Please explain the difference between a 400 SPECint92 workstation and today's top-of-the line PC.
Thanks.
Barry |
