Topic: Anybody know much about PC chips?

[Jack Morris]

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/050528/intel_dual_core.html?.v=2

Just wondering what kind of impact these new Pentium D chips will have for home users. I'm wondering if it's worth buying?

[Nemesis]

http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/050528/intel_dual_core.html?.v=2

Just wondering what kind of impact these new Pentium D chips will have for home users. I'm wondering if it's worth buying?

It depends a lot on what you do. 

If you are a gamer, web browser or office software only then at present no. 

If you do a lot of multimedia manipulating (and your OS supports multiple cores) then yes. 

Also if you run multiple CPU intensive programs at once it again becomes a yes (with the right OS)

If buying a new computer for long term use then it is a conditional yes.

Windows Pro versions should use the 2nd core.

The Athlon 64 X2 chips offer the same dual core feature.

[Jack Morris]

Thanks Nem! 

[Iceman]

Windows XPPro does NOT support dual core IIRC.

[Nemesis]

Windows XPPro does NOT support dual core IIRC.

I don't use XP so I can't be sure.  The Win2KPro version that I use supports two CPUs and so should support the 2nd core.  I assumed perhaps falsely that the same would apply to WinXP Pro.

The quote below is from AMDs site:

OS Dual-Core Support

Operating System Planned Availability Date
Microsoft® Windows® Server (2000 and above) Now
Microsoft Windows XP Professional Now
Microsoft Windows XP Home Edition Now
Red Hat Enterprise Linux 4 Update 1 Spring 2005
Solaris 10 Now
SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server 9 Now
SUSE LINUX Enterprise Server 9 Service Pack 1 Now

It indicates that XP Pro and home both support dual core.  The home version support surprised me. 

The following is from Microsofts site:

Intel also recognizes that operating systems such as Windows XP*, Windows Server*, various Linux vendor offerings, and others are already threaded to take advantage of HT and multi-core technologies. In addition, Intel has strongly advocated that software vendors license their offerings based on socket, not the number of execution cores. Intel applauds Microsoft's recent announcement that it will license operating systems on a per-socket basis versus a per-core basis and hopes other industry vendors will follow suit.

[Tus-XC]

Windows XPPro does NOT support dual core IIRC.

Xp pro definatly does support dual core, as it would see it as 2 seperate processors (thats also how it inteprets ht).  alli need to do to confirm that is go to task manager and look at the peformance tab and see 2 distinct to processors (ht simulates another processor)

[Nemesis]

Something that could backfire on Intel with these chips

Link to full article

The magazine said Intel has enabled digital rights management (DRM) for these products, but an Intel rep confirmed the 945 would help implement Microsoft's DRM at a chip level, although he wouldn't discuss the details.

DRM is the entertainment industries way of saying you can only use that music/movie/program when and how we say you can.  Just like the Intel processor ID # they implemented back in the Pentium 3 days they might face a consumer backlash on this one.  Note they discontinued the ID #.

[Javora]

Something that could backfire on Intel with these chips

DRM is the entertainment industries way of saying you can only use that music/movie/program when and how we say you can.  Just like the Intel processor ID # they implemented back in the Pentium 3 days they might face a consumer backlash on this one.  Note they discontinued the ID #.

Nice catch, well that little bit of info may just push me over the edge and buy an AMD for my next system.  Are you sure Intel discontinued the ID numbers, I thought Intel just turned them off by default.

[toasty0]

I know that Ruffles have Ridges and that's why Klingon's eat nothing else...

[Nemesis]

I know that Ruffles have Ridges and that's why Klingon's eat nothing else...

I eat Pringles without ruffles.

[Nemesis]

Nice catch, well that little bit of info may just push me over the edge and buy an AMD for my next system.  Are you sure Intel discontinued the ID numbers, I thought Intel just turned them off by default.

They turned them off by default in the P3, then people learned how to write programs that turned them on against the owners wishes.  My best information is that they discontinued them whent they created the P4.  Unfortunately AMD may also be on the DRM boat.  Microsoft definitely is. 

The goal from Microsofts side is to have the DRM built into the CPU motherboard BIOS and OS.  Then only "trusted" OSs can be loaded which means only commercial OSs.  Which means no Linux or BSD.  What is left?  Windows and Mac.   

One can only hope for a massive backlash and refusal to buy DRM enabled hardware and software.

[Dash Jones]

As far as I know, AMD signed onto the DRM boat 3 years ago, but only to be in conjunction with MS's next OS.  Read it in PCMag...around 2.5 years ago.  At the time MS was trying to convince Intel but wasn't being greatly successful, but they were optimistic that by the time Longhorn came out, Intel would be in cahoots along with them as well.

I haven't heard anything saying that AMD decided to renege on the deal with MS, though anything could happen in that length of time since I read up on it.

[Javora]

They turned them off by default in the P3, then people learned how to write programs that turned them on against the owners wishes.  My best information is that they discontinued them whent they created the P4.  Unfortunately AMD may also be on the DRM boat.  Microsoft definitely is. 

The goal from Microsofts side is to have the DRM built into the CPU motherboard BIOS and OS.  Then only "trusted" OSs can be loaded which means only commercial OSs.  Which means no Linux or BSD.  What is left?  Windows and Mac.   

One can only hope for a massive backlash and refusal to buy DRM enabled hardware and software.

Oh ok, thanks for the information.  I didn't know that people were doing that with the numbers on the Intel chips.  And I agree totally about the DRM junk.

[Nemesis]

Something that could backfire on Intel with these chips

Link to full article

The magazine said Intel has enabled digital rights management (DRM) for these products, but an Intel rep confirmed the 945 would help implement Microsoft's DRM at a chip level, although he wouldn't discuss the details.

DRM is the entertainment industries way of saying you can only use that music/movie/program when and how we say you can.  Just like the Intel processor ID # they implemented back in the Pentium 3 days they might face a consumer backlash on this one.  Note they discontinued the ID #.

Intel denies the DRM in the Pentium D:

Link to full article

The Intel Pentium D Processor and the Intel 945 Express Chipset family do not have unannounced embedded DRM technologies.

While Intel continues to work with the industry to support other content protection technologies, we have not added any unannounced DRM technologies in either the Pentium D processor or the Intel 945 Express Chipset family.

I would guess that a backlash had begun and Intel felt compelled to deny this to protect themselves.  I hope so because then they might reconsider any future plans along these lines.

[Iceman]

I stand corrected.