Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!usc!sdd.hp.com!spool.mu.edu!uunet!sparky!dsndata!wayne From: wayne@dsndata.uucp (Wayne Schlitt) Newsgroups: comp.arch Subject: Re: R4000 "announcement" Message-ID: Date: 12 Feb 91 13:20:26 GMT References: <90@shasta.Stanford.EDU> <1991Feb8.055009.9883@ico.isc.com> Sender: wayne@dsndata.UUCP Organization: Design Data Lines: 40 In-reply-to: rcd@ico.isc.com's message of 8 Feb 91 05:50:09 GMT In article <1991Feb8.055009.9883@ico.isc.com> rcd@ico.isc.com (Dick Dunn) writes: > jackk@shasta.Stanford.EDU (jackk) writes: > > I read in a recent EE Times article that there are no working chips > > yet for the R4000. This type of pre-announcement is disturbingly > > reminiscent of IBM's "pre-announcement" of the 360/95 before > > there were even lab prototypes running... > > [ ... ] > I don't see much similarity. > it is, however, very similar to motorola's pre-announcement of the '040.... i hope that mips has better luck delivering a real product than motorola has had. from what i have read in EE Times, there appears to be several areas that mips is pushing the technology to the limit, and if any one area cant quite be done they could run into real problems. the r4000 looks like a real hot chip, but then, the '040 looked real good too... it's kind of sad... i have been a loyal motorola follower for years, but i think the delays in the '040 have kill the 68k line. in my book, the 68k is now a dyeing, but not yet dead line. it is no longer going to win new design ins, and the only major reason why people will stick to the line is 'cause they have software that can only run on the 68k. sure there will still be systems with 68k's in them for at least 5-10 years, and there will be new chips in the 68k line coming out, but the market share of the 68k is going to do nothing but drop... *sigh*. i _really_ hope that mips isnt pre-announcing stuff for the same reasons why motorola pre-announced the 68040... -wayne