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From: mccalpin@vax1.acs.udel.EDU (John D Mccalpin)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Killer micros clarification
Keywords: microprocessors vs microcomputers
Message-ID: <5899@udccvax1.acs.udel.EDU>
Date: 21 Mar 90 02:12:54 GMT
Organization: College of Marine Studies, Univ. of Delaware
Lines: 19

Perhaps it would clarify the discussion of KILLER MICROS and
single- versus multiple-user machines if we expanded Eugene Brooks
dictum:

     "There is no defense against the attack of the killer micros"

by noting that "micro" here means "microprocessor", _not_ "microcomputer"!

As Eugene has often pointed out, in order to make a machine capable of 
performing large scientific calculations, it is not going to look much
like a traditional microcomputer --- with a minimum of 128 MB RAM and 
a few GB of disk, it is still not going to be cheap enough for each
individual to have on the desk, but it is going to be powered by a cpu
of the same family as the machines available all the way down to the
"personal workstation" range.
-- 
John D. McCalpin                               mccalpin@vax1.acs.udel.edu
Assistant Professor                            mccalpin@delocn.udel.edu
College of Marine Studies, U. Del.             mccalpin@scri1.scri.fsu.edu