I read an interesting article a couple of months ago (which I can't remember even the title of now) but which has stuck with me because of the relation of its theme to Rambus.
The article was discussing the forms of evolution which technologies have taken, not only recently, but over the centuries. The point which impressed me was the concept that the types of technological improvements which are the most dynamic (and ultimately the most profitable) are those which do not simply extend a linear process one or two steps further, but instead are those which are "enabling technologies". Enabling technologies solve fundamental problems in their own disciplines but, far more importantly, solve fundamental problems in related disciplines. These are breakout technologies which, in turn, foster further innovation and additional breakouts in other disciplines. kind of like solving the Gordian knot.
It seems to me that Rambus fits this profile perfectly. Not only does it improve memory speed and related issues....it also allows microprocessors to actually function at new, higher speeds. Without Rambus a one gigabyte Pentium III cannot provide meaningful improvement over a 450 megahertz Pentium III (as I understand it). this problem for Intel will be resolved by Rambus' enabling technology. When successful, if the article's premise is correct, the Rambus enabling technology will not only facilitate improvement in microprocessors and other industries, but actually foster creation of such new products and, maybe, industries--because it is then possible for such new products to meaningfully exist.
I don't know....kind of interesting concepts. |
