IBM and Motorola between them own all the rights to PowerPC
architecture, and IBM own rights to the PPC970 and POWER
architectures. I can't see IBM handing a PowerPC license to one of
it's biggest competing chip makers. If they did license PPCs to Intel
it would cost Intel a fortune, and thus Apple, pushing the price of
the chips out through the roof.
Agreed.
Personally if they do go I'd suspect they'll use IA64 chips or XScale.
XScale I'd give thumbs up to cause I have always been a fan of ARM
since I used an Acorn back in the late 80s - they have a lot of
pitential power as both a small scale CPU and a full-size one.
The XScale is a nice chip and is already in use in a desktop computer
sucessfully, the Castle Xyonix PC. Admitadly because it is still
essentially an Acorn machine and runs RISC OS, but it's a desktop
computer all the same. Does anyone here have an A64 computer at all?
I've heard they're good but never used one. I have held that my first
64-Bit computer will be a Mac come hell or high water, though Macs with
PC CPUs? Could fuzz that line a bit.
However if they turn to use of x86 derivative CPUs I would put some
consideration into the fasability of abandoning the platform.
Though I hate to admit it, I have been thinking the same thing and
would seriously consider Linux for a full-time desktop OS, I'd hate to
leave Apple and the Mac since the Mac is a great platform and Apple are
one of the few companies i'd hate to see go. But there is no way I
could use windows that's for sure.
I don't see there being a bright future in Intels IA64 chips, or
indeed in AMDs '64's. There have lately been a lot of rumors bubbling
under on connection to this about some sort of 'Transitive
Technologies' that allow supposedly seamless and fast PowerPC
operation on X86 platforms.
I read about that, can't remember where though, some kind of emulator
that turns on when you launch an app for an architecture other than
that of your hardware, then turns off when you're not using it anymore,
good concept but can that really work? They (the place i read it)
compared it to the switch between OS9 and OS X with emulating the
classic environment and the MC680x0 to PowerPC switch, again using
emulation.
That said there may be something I don't know about (wouldn't be the
first time!!) and Apple are not so short sighted as to dig themselves
into something that's going to cripple them 2 years down the line...
are they?
I'd hope that they knew what they were doing, they've lasted this long,
managed an architecture AND OS shift and one would hope that they had
an ace up their sleeve for doing something this radical. Another thing
I read was the possibility that Apple were after the Pentium D chip?
...*goes looking in safari history*...
Ahh yes,
http://www.wired.com/news/mac/0,2125,67749,00.html?tw=wn_tophead_1 .
<snip>
But why would Apple do this? Because Apple wants Intel's new Pentium D
chips.
Released just few days ago, the dual-core chips include a hardware copy
protection scheme that prevents "unauthorised" copying and distribution
of copyrighted materials from the motherboard", according to PC World.
Apple, or rather Hollywood, wants the Pentium D to secure an online
movie store (iFlicks if you will), that will allow consumers to buy or
rent new movies on demand, over the internet.
</snip>
What do you make of that? Seems like a hell of a lot of effort to go to
just to have an "iMovie Video Store"!
Dan
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