Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!pacific.mps.ohio-state.edu!linac!midway!gargoyle!igloo!miroc!caw From: caw@miroc.Chi.IL.US (Christopher A. Wichura) Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.tech Subject: Re: Assembler Programming - Costs versus Benefits Message-ID: Date: 9 Dec 90 11:04:57 GMT References: <7160@sugar.hackercorp.com> <536@ssp9.idca.t <1990Dec7.103652.17887@cck.cov.ac.uk> Lines: 39 In article <1990Dec7.103652.17887@cck.cov.ac.uk> csg019@cck.cov.ac.uk (-~=Zaphod=~-) writes: >In article mt87692@tut.fi (Mikko Tsokkinen) writes: >> >> 90% of all games I have ever seen for amiga doesn't run with faster >>processors because the disk loader and other waiting is badly written. >>They use wait loops like this: >> >>wait move.l #2000,d0 >> dbra.s d0,wait >> >>And this the absolutely same code as comes from c-compiler when you use similar >>wait tactics. It seems too hard for 90% of programmers (on any language) to >>use CIA timers. On the other hand the assembler programs are more likely to >>crash because most of c-programs are written using the OS and the waiting is >>done using the OS functions (this can done as easily with assembler). > >Good point, but using different wait techniques won't help with disk speed, >this is becuase as far as i know (correct me if i'm wrong!) the disk DMA >speed is still the same, so you will still have to wait the same time for >the disk block to load on all config's. Yes, but that's the problem. The disk controller isn't running that wait loop. The CPU is. And on a faster machine it is going to finish that loop all that much faster. Thus, the company's mumbo-jumbo piece of crud loader thinks the drive has finished loading whatever it needed and goes on to the next step when, in fact, the drive has not finished. -=> CAW /////////////////////////////////////|\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\ Christopher A. Wichura |Real programmers don't play tennis, or caw@miroc.chi.il.us (my amiga) |any other sport that requires you to u12401@uicvm.uic.edu (school account)|change clothes. Mountain climbing is |OK, and real programmers wear their Please! Do not send mail to my school|climbing boots to work in case a account unless mail to miroc bounces.|mountain should suddenly spring up in I often do not check uicvm.uic.edu |the middle of the machine room. for periods in excess of a week. | --Unix Fortune \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\|//////////////////////////////////////