x86 Intel processors , 'Rosetta' and PowerPC compiled Software

Hopefully, this will finally help answer that perennial question "What sort of Computer Should I Buy?" or "Do I buy a Mac or PC?" Well the answer is simple really, "It will be one using an Intel Processor! - Ah... but - which one..........?"

SGI has moved to Intel processors as well! Anybody know if the other workstation manufacturers have switched to Intel? Sun?

I'm making a fanciful prediction here, laugh if you want, but I'm predicting that all computers will eventually use Intel or Intel based processors. (Sorry, couldn't resist... The temptation was too great.)

The thing that really peaves me about SGI's move to x86 architecture is their decision to drop their outstanding and mature OS, IRIX, in favour of Linux. Yuck!

Sun is also moving to Itanium2 and Opteron processors.

It's not that they dropped IRIX, it's just that they don't run IRIX on the x86 based systems. IRIX still comes on MIPS based SGIs, but Linux only comes on the x86 ones. Some companies are very heavily lodged in custom code tuned for MIPS CPUs, also putting IRIX on x86 would only encourage cheap PC running pir8 copies to get the slick and solid OS. If a company wants the history and trackrecord of IRIX, they buys MIPS systems. MIPS is still a pretty good CPU, if you ignore the Mhz wars.

It's not that they dropped IRIX, it's just that they don't run IRIX on the x86 based systems.

Just to clarify, SGI uses Itanium, not x86. (And, yes, they're about the only company left which still believes in Itanium.) And unforunately for all practical purposes they *have* dropped IRIX and MIPS. They still sell them, but that's only for supporting existing customers. They essentially halted all new MIPS-based hardware development several years ago. (Their newest "workstation", itself almost two years old, is a hacked-down version of their Origin 3000 architecture, which is one of the reasons that it's obscenely expensive.)

It's really, really depressing, the state SGI is in right now. They're going to linger for at least a few more years, to support the machines they've sold to the government, but... their future is rather dim.

Anyway.

SGI. Let me begin.

XFS is a great file system, IRIX is a great OS.

The day NVidia was started by mostly ex-Irix guys was the day that IRIX stopped be relevant in modeling and rendering.

The resistance to making IRIX x86 due to "pir8"ing, was the biggest mistake ever. Solaris is getting a second life now (more so than AIX, HPUX or IRIX will ever get again, ever ever) because its open. And when its out in the open, its actually HARDER to pirate. Think: if you steal Sun's IP now, its easy to prove it was stolen since the source is open.

Then SGI had to move to Itanic, another mistake (Opteron, anyone ?). Because of SGI's complete lack of foresight , they were ill prepared to move from the drastically inferior and outdated MIPS platform.

I run torture tests on *NIX boxes, and to suggest that Solaris is any less robust than IRIX would be silly, and yet, Sun is finding a way to survive in the new era. I though opening Solaris would have been fatal, but its quite the opposite.

Its funny to read this in late 2007 and you should realize by now its not even a Mhz war that was lost, the stuff SGI does now is arcane and niche and barely relevant anymore.

I've got buds at work who worked for SGI, and the stories are great, and there is always that "kitlist" camaraderie about SGI, but that company is not talked about anymore. Its sad.

Forget MHZ, its about SPEC. And MIPS isn't there anymore. Its dominated by the XEON 5160 now, and by the Power5+, and a little smattering of Opteron and some Itanium junk.

I think it's important to note that the Itanium (and more importantly, its failure in the marketplace) was a big setback for a lot of companies, not just SGI-- it just affected SGI more because they were quickly becoming obsolete

The majority of computers today are cell phones, portable music players and game consoles! I have yet to hear of even one of these computers using an Intel processor. Apple's iPhone uses an ARM processor. Get a clue.

Intel is an ARM licensee.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARM_architecture

Hey, check this out! LSI uses an INTEL IOP333 in the MegaRAID SAS 8304ELP, a StrongARM processor, by, guess who ... Intel.

Read about Intel ARM I/O processors in most of LSI's storage HBAs:
http://www.lsi.com/files/docs/techdocs/storage_stand_prod/sas/mr_sas_stor_ug.pdf

You need to "get a clue" when it comes to talking about CPUs and about Intel.

Also, if I don't remember correctly, OS X runs on Intel reference motherboards on Intel CPUs.

To think that Intel is ignoring ARM... Well this is interesting. While they have produced several ARM products, and even worked on the StrongARM and made it into the Xscale processor. I'd be surprised if you haven't heard of Xscale) , Intel has since sold the Xscale IP off to Marvell. I'm sure that the hugely profitable industry leading silicon vendor [they do have the best know how in terms of making silicon in high yields, name ANY other silicon made in 45nm RIGHT NOW, yet they have them in production!] will come up with more powerful low power designs than ARM could ever hope for.

Intel knows its about efficiency per watt, and they will deliver low-power, speed and they will make money with decent yields.

Also, IBM makes the Power5+, and they probably capture about 0.0001% of the "processor market" with it. By your logic, supercomputing networks should be made from a pile of cruddy cell phones? IBM should just stop making Power5+ silicon and give up and let all the cell phones in the world unite to solve all problems? Its not the number of computers today that are a certain architecture, but a mixture of profitability, speed, reliability and time to market on advances in the architecture. Intel has proven with the Core 2 / Woodcrest that they can make affordable profitable silicon that tops the SPEC lists.

The majority of computers today are cell phones, portable music players and game consoles! I have yet to hear of even one of these computers using an Intel processor. Apple's iPhone uses an ARM processor. Get a clue.

I love it when the phrase "get a clue" is embedded in a clueless statement.

You know your "game console" example? You've not heard of a little something called the Xbox? They sold, what, about 30 million of them? All powered by nasty little Pentium III-derived CPUs.

--Peace

You need to "get a clue" when it comes to talking about CPUs and about Intel.

Everyone play nicely, please.