> > There is no reason you couldn't take every single deterministic, P > > algorithm in the standard C++ libraries and implement it as hardware. > > Most programs would then be mostly written in assembly language, with > > constructions like > > binarysearch[sorted_array x, search_target y] replacing add a, mov y, > > etc etc. > > That approach went out with the introduction of the 4004.
yeah I know but with the technology today it becomes a very powerful tool. 95% + of the processing in a Nvidia Geforce4 is pure hard-wired logic. when you write an application that involves the Direct3d API, the vast majority of calls to the API go direct to hardware. you tell the card to apply a certain texture or shader or transform to a 3d object, and the chip grabs that object from it;s on-card RAM and runs it through the appropriate task-dedicated circuitry. This is why video cards have such insane bandwidth on their internal bus, throughput higher than 1 GB/sec is common on mid-range cards Even an old geforce 1 (worth about 20 bucks today) outperforms a top of the current line pentium or athlon in the 3d rendering domain. Imagine a motherboard that acted as the physical layer for a TCP/IP-based mesh network. This motherboard could have a number of slots for major card-based subsystems like graphics and sound, and multiple zif type sockets for several standardized chip sizes and pin configuration. And of course a CPU to play the role of conductor and traffic cop. there could be dozens of chip sockets on a given mother board, and you could connect motherboards to build a more powerful system. Then you simply add all the optional chips and cards you want(the system is a fully functional PC from the start). The thing is, once mass production of all this stuff starts, it's is just as cheap as a conventional pc is today. There is no fundamental technological upgrade, just a different way of using current tech. By having entire c++, java, etc. libraries in hardware on a base system, you take a huge load off the cpu. Instant supercomputer in a tidy 1000$ package. :) J Standley ------- To unsubscribe, change your address, or temporarily deactivate your subscription, please go to http://v2.listbox.com/member/?[EMAIL PROTECTED]
