Re: Important question to all Euphoria users
Hayden McKay wrote:
>
> Eu's new multitasking is still a single core application. There is one main
> thread that switches control to another proccess (ie: task_yield). Eu can't
> run two seprate processes in parallel (one must be qued after another). The
> only advantage is that we have timed process mechanism.
>
> Even though Eu can only utilize one proccessor, on a duel core system Eu
> can run on the main core while the OS will utilize the other core to run
> the background type stuff ie: virus scanners and other desktop resident
> proccesses.
>
> Note: A program useing more than one core does not benifit in any extra
> speed. The overhead of switching states and stacks etc, outwieghs
> the performance of a single inline thread.
>
A two thread program wont run twice as fast on a dual-core chip, because
of data exchanging between cores, cache time, other overhead. AMD multi- core
chips may run multi-threaded programs better than Intel chips because their
architecture is better. Intel basically "pastes cores together" sort of speak. A
well developed two thread program may run 75 to 125+ percent faster on a
dual-core processor; hyperthreading can further improve this.
> So in my opinion the only benifit of haveing duel cores is only of benifit
> to the OS in that a program won't have to be halted when the OS want's to
> update the clock or somethin' stupid like that.
The large majority of non-server applications are sequential, single threaded
applications. The OS may allow program processes to run on seperate cores, so
there is increased effeciency, but the programs themselves wont really perform
better, excect for increased built-in
CPU cache. Multi-threaded applications gain all the advantages above,
plus greatly increased performance and efficency, especially on chips
with more than two cores.
I've mentioned Intel and AMD are planning quad-core chips by 2007, so
programs with four threads may speed up 2-3 times verses sequential programs. In
general, as the number of core increase and the greater
number of threads used in apps, the better overall performance compared
to single threaded apps, despite mutex locking and other overhead.
Intel plans to have processors with hundreds of cores within the next decade (10
years), but I cannot really picture how they would manage
that while keeping the chip dimentions small. Imagine a CPU that is
the size and thickness of a standard CD jewel case (huge), with a
several thousand pin socket 
.
Regards,
Vincent
|
Not Categorized, Please Help
|
|
