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More IBM 64-bit Chip Speculation

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Apr 12, 2001
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Silicon Strategies writes more of the upcoming 64-Bit PPC from IBM, with further speculation/quotes from Glaskowsky, editor in chief of The Microprocessor Report:

"Apple would have to be crazy not to use this part," said Glaskowsky. "Its performance will be in the upper reaches of any CPU. I can't comment on its speeds, but they are good numbers. Apple would be able to produce for the first time machines that not only have great performance but support full 64-bit addressing."
Click to expand...

The Microprocessor Forum starts on October 14th.
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2002/10/09/more-ibm-64-bit-chip-speculation/
This just adss fuel to the fire

This just adss fuel to the fire. I hope that Apple will use this chip, and that it will be out by MWNY. That is my bope, if it is, they can count on me to buy it. The G4 is apporaching 2 years old.

My question is: If Apple wanted to change OS X into a 64-bit operating system, how long would that take? And if so, when they release the IBM chip, do they have to have a 64 bit operating system, or will they just wait. Personally, I think it is perfect: the IBM chip comes out at MWNY with a shipping date in august, and at the same time, 10.3 comes out, with that same shipping date, therefore a 64-bit operating system.

What do you guys think?
 
Originally posted by DavidCL23
Do you think this IBM processor takes too much power to be put into a Tibook?
Click to expand...

I bet it could be put in an tiBook, but I wouldn't expect the longest battery life...
 
Just a hunch, but with comparative cache levels and equal bus speeds, I'd guess that our rumored processor would run roughly 30% on the same tasks as our aging G4 (this based on information from AMD on the performance of the Opteron). So, this may be a very good thing, especially when developers begin to utilize the 64-bit architecture of the processor, which could yield even greater performance increases at the same processor clock speed.
 
Re: This just adss fuel to the fire

Originally posted by MacManiac1224
This just adss fuel to the fire. I hope that Apple will use this chip, and that it will be out by MWNY. That is my bope, if it is, they can count on me to buy it. The G4 is apporaching 2 years old.

My question is: If Apple wanted to change OS X into a 64-bit operating system, how long would that take? And if so, when they release the IBM chip, do they have to have a 64 bit operating system, or will they just wait. Personally, I think it is perfect: the IBM chip comes out at MWNY with a shipping date in august, and at the same time, 10.3 comes out, with that same shipping date, therefore a 64-bit operating system.

What do you guys think?
Click to expand...
I think you are right! OSX.3 is the 64Bit version. However, not sure when they will be released? My only concern is that by the time that this chip is released, it will be running late when compared to other desktop 64Bit processors.
 
let's see... Apple goes this route to prove they aren't crazy... and then there is a shortage of 64bit chips... pissing all the people off who ordered new macs. i'd hope this wouldn't be something that would happen.
 
Re: This just adss fuel to the fire

Originally posted by MacManiac1224
This just adss fuel to the fire. I hope that Apple will use this chip, and that it will be out by MWNY. That is my bope, if it is, they can count on me to buy it. The G4 is apporaching 2 years old.

My question is: If Apple wanted to change OS X into a 64-bit operating system, how long would that take? And if so, when they release the IBM chip, do they have to have a 64 bit operating system, or will they just wait. Personally, I think it is perfect: the IBM chip comes out at MWNY with a shipping date in august, and at the same time, 10.3 comes out, with that same shipping date, therefore a 64-bit operating system.

What do you guys think?
Click to expand...

As I understand it... MacOS X is already what Apple refers to as "64-bits clean". Meaning, that... Although, they're not issuing 64-bit instructions, all registers and memory spaces use 64-bit addresses padded with 32-bits of zeros (this is could be entirely inaccurate as to how that works). I remember hearing lots of stuff about how MacOS System 6 and above were "32-bits clean" when we started getting the 68020 and 68030s which were 32-bit processors.

Regardless, I do know that Apple claims OS X is "64-bits clean" so it would run unmodified on a 64-bit processor.

How long would it take them to retool the software for 64-bit instructions? <grin> Since it's the same compiler and basically the same instruction set... it could be as easy as... a recompile.

: )

Binky
 
Re: Re: This just adss fuel to the fire

Originally posted by DharvaBinky


As I understand it... MacOS X is already what Apple refers to as "64-bits clean". Meaning, that... Although, they're not issuing 64-bit instructions, all registers and memory spaces use 64-bit addresses padded with 32-bits of zeros (this is could be entirely inaccurate as to how that works). I remember hearing lots of stuff about how MacOS System 6 and above were "32-bits clean" when we started getting the 68020 and 68030s which were 32-bit processors.

Regardless, I do know that Apple claims OS X is "64-bits clean" so it would run unmodified on a 64-bit processor.

How long would it take them to retool the software for 64-bit instructions? <grin> Since it's the same compiler and basically the same instruction set... it could be as easy as... a recompile.

: )

Binky
Click to expand...
Now thats what I like to hear! Hope you are correct.
 
processor question

okay let me get this straight im getting confused with these bits. So we want a 64bit chip, what bit do pc's use? and what bit is mac using now??
 
Now, will this come out early next year, or late next year, or next year at all? I am betting that the g5 will come Jan of next year, and then the power4lite/GPUL powermac will come out later next year, but it will keep the title of 'g5'.
 
sdafdafd

okay let me get this straight im getting confused with these bits. So we want a 64bit chip, what bit do pc's use? and what bit is mac using now??
 
Generally....

A movement of any BSD or 'nix in general simply requires a recompile. If apple has been playing their cards correctly then all kernel memory calls will be in place correctly for 64bit and it would only require a recompile. As for Mac OS X itself, not darwin, I don't think there would be any major problems. The only big problem would be what applications would be.

Today's app's are compiled in 32bit. If you go and compile in 64bit then it isn't backwards compatible. Would apple have to have 64bit app's compiled on install? I doubt it, really messy. I guess they will just introduce 64bit across the entire line at once, to enable everyone to get the required speed boost without any nasty consequences.
 
Originally posted by gandalf55
let's see... Apple goes this route to prove they aren't crazy... and then there is a shortage of 64bit chips... pissing all the people off who ordered new macs. i'd hope this wouldn't be something that would happen.
Click to expand...

HAHAHAHA, Please don't remind us of the past.:(
 
Re: sdafdafd

Originally posted by retaks
okay let me get this straight im getting confused with these bits. So we want a 64bit chip, what bit do pc's use? and what bit is mac using now??
Click to expand...


32 biy is what all current CPUs are at now, PC or Mac.
AMD's upcoming Clawhammer along with Intel's Itanium and this IBM chip are all 64 bit.
 
okay let me get this straight im getting confused with these bits. So we want a 64bit chip, what bit do pc's use? and what bit is mac using now??
Click to expand...

The G3, G4, Celeron, Pentium III, Pentium 4, Athlon XP and Athlon MP are all 32bit cpus, this covers all the desktop cpus in PCs you can buy right now (the mac is Personal Computer aswell).

As for these endless speculations about both the chip and whether apple will use it. I just hope this isn't all BS or wishful thinking and something actually happens next year. Just after the G3 was introduced there was talk of the G4 and a future version of it with the features IBM have in the chip available by late 2002. The article was so old it even had 1200MHZ!!!!! in big letters in the article as if that was blistering speed. At the time G3s were at 266Mhz and the Pentium II and K6 cpus were at 600Mhz.

I summarised it in this message

There's been talk of the G5 in one form or another for years, people were even swept up into the idea that apple would be the first company to release a desktop PC with a 64bit cpu and OS because of it. Baring in mind how close the windows world is to getting 64bit desktop cpus and how far away it seems before apple will, this seems very disappointing with the situation we're in now.

Saying that and being WAY too optimistic, when a next generation powermac comes out and intel keep using design compromises to push their clockspeeds higher we could be in a situation of apple running those snail ads again by this time next year.

Imagine it :

5Ghz Pentium 4, 1 instruction per clockcycle, huge power requirements and elaborate cooling methods.

2Ghz PowerPC, 8 instructions per clockcycle, low power and turbine cooled.
 
Re: sdafdafd

Originally posted by retaks
okay let me get this straight im getting confused with these bits. So we want a 64bit chip, what bit do pc's use? and what bit is mac using now??
Click to expand...
32 and 32.
 
Re: sdafdafd

Originally posted by retaks
okay let me get this straight im getting confused with these bits. So we want a 64bit chip, what bit do pc's use? and what bit is mac using now??
Click to expand...
32 retaks. Intel's Itanium uses 64 and we (macs) use 32 as well.
 
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