Re: MMX Technology

Tom Griest (labtek@CS.YALE.EDU)
Wed, 25 Jun 1997 23:38:43 -0400 

Date: Wed, 25 Jun 1997 23:38:43 -0400
Message-Id: <199706260342.XAA22409@RA.DEPT.CS.YALE.EDU>
From: "Tom Griest" <labtek@CS.YALE.EDU>
To: Multiple recipients of list <conntech>
Subject: Re: MMX Technology

> We are updating and creating two new computer classrooms; hence a major 
> investment in computer technology.  The Academic Computing Director and 
> myself had specified a Compaq Deskpro 4000 for the two labs.  This caused 
> some controversy with other interested parties on campus, who think that 
> MMX technology is the way to go.

[snip]

Don't be misled by the hype Intel is spreading.  They
are hoping to keep demand high, but the software is not
really there yet for applications that really need MMX.
Even the new voice recognition applications do not
require MMX technology.

Most people think that MMX technology is over-priced for
its current value, but that in the long run (two..four
years) it will become the most common configuration.  Note
that there are millions of non-MMX machines out there today
that will still be operational 5 years from now... and
this will prevent most software companies from providing
MMX-only solutions.

You always have to trade-off the hassle of upgrades for the
benefits of being current and getting the greatest
price-performance ratios.  If I had to make a decision
today, I would by a system with a motherboard that can
handle at least 200MHz MMX processors (including M2 and
K6), but would put a 133 or 150MHz Pentium in it.  Why?
Because 133MHz is fine for anything you are likely going
to need for the next two years (it is adequate for 'video
conferencing') and in two years you can upgrade to a 200MHz
M2 after the bugs have been worked out and the price is
next to nothing.  Spend your money on getting 32MB of RAM
as this really has more to do with typical performance
than a few CPU clocks, and RAM prices are below cost right
now.

Upgrading the processor is very simple as they are socketed
in zero-insertion force (ZIF) sockets.  The savings in
cost today, will allow you to have a processor that is
twice as fast in two years... and it will have MMX to boot!

You need to get it in writing from the vendor that the
machine you buy fully supports the 200MHz MMX-Pentium,
Cyrix M2, or AMD K6 processors.

-Tom