Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!mailrus!cs.utexas.edu!uunet!ficc!peter From: peter@ficc.ferranti.com (Peter da Silva) Newsgroups: comp.arch Subject: Re: Speed costs (Re: MWC's Coherent - A Lemon...) Message-ID: <5CT35R7@xds13.ferranti.com> Date: 30 May 90 23:02:22 GMT References: <2793@crash.cts.com> <265D2FE5.2513@tct.uucp> <640@sibyl.eleceng.ua.OZ> Reply-To: peter@ficc.ferranti.com (Peter da Silva) Organization: Xenix Support, FICC Lines: 18 In article <640@sibyl.eleceng.ua.OZ> ian@sibyl.OZ (Ian Dall) writes: > We all have to get used to the fact > that memory is now about $80/MB and swap space is about $10/MB. Yes, memory is cheap. It's not free. And when you run out of it, it gets very expensive indeed. Anyone who's tried to do something a little too big with X and run out of what seemed like plenty of RAM when you bought it knows what I mean. Can you say "thrashing"? Also, cutting down program size also speeds things up: paging isn't free, either. Finally, that $80/MB is misleading. First, machines generally have a hard limit as to how much memory can be crammed in. After that there is a *sharp* knee in the price curve. Second, that memory has to be addressed, which takes silicon, PCB area, and traces. Multiply by your production run and you can save big bucks by being a little skimpy on memory. Besides, it will increase the sale of those expensive add-on boards and upgrades. -- `-_-' Peter da Silva. +1 713 274 5180. 'U` Have you hugged your wolf today? @FIN Dirty words: Zhghnyyl erphefvir vayvar shapgvbaf.