Sender: D_J (mad madness, why bother to care) layout name: Embedded (875)
Title: Two geniuses for Crusoe processor design
Sending Station: China BBS Station (TUE, 14 Nov 2000 22:55:11)
Note: ordinary
Venters who can threaten threat to Intel have finally appeared, it is Transmeta.
The company released the X86 interchanged CPU "Crusoe" published in January 2000, which has been subject to Intel in a considerable time.
The company dominated the microcomputer industry brought a lot of impact and got a fanatical support. In April, Corpital Computer Company,
AOL company, Sony, etc. decided to invest in the company.
There are also some manufacturers, such as AMD and Cyrix companies, develop X86 interchange CPUs, proposed to Intel
Challenge. But the previous interchange CPU manufacturers are challenged with low prices for weapons. This method,
Once Intel, the price is lowered, the product price is compete, and those interchangers will be unfavorable.
The status, so these manufacturers have never brought threat to Intel.
The difference between Transmeta Company and the above-mentioned interchanger is not in price, but intel
The performance does not have performance as a weapon to occupy the market. The biggest feature is low power consumption.
The power consumption of Crusoe working in 500 MHz is less than 2W. With Intel for laptop
Compared with the CPU "Mobile Pentium III" with an overwhelming advantage. If you use a CrusoE processor,
"You can extend the battery driver time of the laptop to about 5 hours" (this is in the next model of VAIO)
Using Crusoe's Sony to reveal). In fact, in addition to Sony, there are NEC, Fujitsu, Hitachi Production Institute.
IBM has also started to develop laptops with Crusoe chips. Using Crusoe at the end of this year
The laptop will probably be placed in the store.
Dave's idea, Linus implementation
Speaking of Crusoe's technology, I can't forget the names of the two genius. One is DAVE DITZEL, he is
In 1980, the first time I published the technical personnel of RISC CPU paper. PowerPC, Compaq (original DEC)
Alpha, Hewlett-Packard's PA-RISC and other RISC type CPUs are developed based on his thesis.
Ditzel established Transmeta in 1995 to develop new CPUs. Ditzel at the time
The circuit structure of the CPU gradually tends to be worried. Because the complication of the circuit, the number of transistors will be caused
The increase in volume, resulting in an increase in cost and power consumption, and this disadvantage is where the computer designer is headache.
To this end, Ditzel thought of VLIW technologies that were simple but higher than performance. VLIW technology is simple
The circuit is simultaneously executed, and the overall structure of the CPU can be simpler. In fact, Crusoe's number of transistors
(In addition to the logic circuit part outside the cache) is 2.8 million, only about half of Pentiumiii under the same conditions.
The circuit is simpler, and the power consumption of Crusoe will naturally decrease.
However, the command set of the CPU introduced by VLIW technology has a fundamental difference in the structure of the X86's instruction collection.
Unable to directly produce X86 interchange CPU. To solve this problem, Ditzel is known to CRUSOE.
Simulation Technology of "Code Morphing Software". Code morphingsoftware is a collection of x86 instructions
The software that transforms to the VLIW instruction, which is loaded on Crusoe, transform the X86 command accepted by Crusoe to VLIW
After the order is executed.
It has made great contributions to this idea is another genius - LinustorValds. He is known for the founder of Linux, and after Finland has passed the university era, I came to the United States in 1997.
Join Transmeta. Code Morphing Software is developed by TorvalDS.
Compared with Pentiumiii of the same operating frequency, CRUSOE is 80-90% of the latter. But from Crusoe is
In fact, this is quite amazing in the fact that the simulation principles work. If the simulation is not efficient, high speed
VLIWCPUs are also unable to have the same level of performance with past CPUs. That is, CRUSOE is the most important technology
It is Code Morphing Software.
Software engineers are the company's assets
When Torvalds was first entering Transmeta, some people said that "how the software technicians do this can enter
Chip manufacturer? ", But Crusoe's completion, indeed free of software technicians such as Torvalds.
Crusoe is not only a low power-consuming CPU, as long as Code Morphing
Software It can also become other CPUs. If it can be popular as an X86 interchange chip, it will have a greater development in the future. In fact,
Transmeta has begun to study byte code code MorphingSoftware, a trial system for Java.
Java chip working in Crusoe. Code Morphing, as long as you can make a collection of instructions for PowerPC
Software will not only just a dream. (Nikkei Mac)
-
※ Source: China University of Science and Technology BBS Station [bbs.ustc.edu.cn]
