Nasta wrote:
>Thanks for that info. The 68060 cleverly provides a thermal sensing
>resistor on chip, so at least temperature can be conclusively measured.
I see that you know what I mean ;-)
>First, there have been some impressive figures posted on the Q60 web site
>about the power consumption. From what data I could find, it seems that the
>060 has signifficantly lower power consumption than the 68040 - no doubt
>due to the lower supply voltage. What would be your assessment of this?
All 68060, even the full-blown, indeed consume significantly less power
than the 68040. Unless you overclock 68060 chips, or have no airflow, they
can be used without heatsink.
>Second, you had mentioned on the list that the Q60 cannot use a 68EC060.
>Would you care to explain in a bit more detail why not?
Of course the mainboard can use the 68EC060, but I wouldn't call that a Q60
anymore. The biggest disadvantage would be, that it could no longer run
Linux. So it would not even retain the features of the Q40. SMSQ/E also
uses the MMU. At the moment mostly for implementation of compatibility
features, but Tony Tebby asked for my promise that all machines have the
MMU. I think he had future improvements like memory protection in mind.
QDOS Classic can live without the MMU at the moment.
I know that both the Q40 and Q60 could be a lot cheaper if I had sacrificed
MMU and FPU, and went for the cheap EC CPU's. But I saw the lack of MMU and
FPU could block technical progress.
>MCF5102 @ 40MHz, $19 a piece, minimum order 50 pieces.
>68EC060 @ 66MHz, $10 a piece, minimum order 50 pieces.
Congratulations. Your prices for the 68EC060 are a *big* miracle!
Have you checked if the chips are OK?
>What would you do???
I would like to search if there were also full-blown chips in the list ;-)
>In short, I now have a batch of 68EC060. Using it on the GF presents
>a couple of challenges
>[...]
>The name 'GoldFire' may be changed since there is no more ColdFire
>CPU to justify the original moniker.
I expected that you someday announce a '060 board. I just didn't know when ;-)
>Let me also take the oportunity to answer a question before it is asked:
>I do not consider the Q40 or Q60 in any danger of competition at this time
>- the GF is still largely paperware [...]
Why deny competition? Real competition is a good thing! It encourages
technical progress and gives users a choice. Unfortunately paperware
competition has the tendency to make users wait instead of getting (and
thus supporting) what they can have now. "The grass is always greener on
the other side of the fence."
Lets face it: Some users interested in a Q40 did not get it, because they
waited for the GoldFire. Now that the GoldFire has been cancelled, the Q60
will also suffer a bit from your EC060 announcement. Don't get me wrong...
I don't complain about your latest announcement. I just don't buy that it
has no effect ;-)
Good luck with the design!
Peter
