Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!usc!wuarchive!udel!mmdf
From: lou@vaxsc
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga.hardware
Subject: Re: Amiga Custom Chips - why hasn't C= made them faster?
Message-ID: <50069@nigel.ee.udel.edu>
Date: 8 Apr 91 16:37:54 GMT
Sender: mmdf@ee.udel.edu
Lines: 52

In article <1991Apr5.152157.13339@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu>, 
"Todd A. Green" <tagreen@bronze.ucs.indiana.edu> writes:

(in response to the discussion regarding VM for the Amiga)

>Can you say let's watch this window get paged in from disk? [insert
>yawn noise here].  Have you ever used virtual memory on a system with
>a relatively slow HD? Such as the Mac, NeXT, or MicroVaxII? (Not meant
                                                 ^^^^^^^^^^
>as a flame, but just as a curiosity.) I'm assuming that you are being

Guess where this message is coming from?

Anyway, this I agree with.  I constantly curse this "boat anchor"
because of verrrrrry long swap times.

>Don't get me wrong VM is nice and has its purpose, but it is NOT a
>substitute for RAM.  Case in point.  My workstation is a NeXT '030
>cube that used to have 8mb of memory.  A day (actually more like a
>minute :)) did not go by that I didn't have to wait on the machine as
>my processes got swamped into and out of memory.  You seriously can
>see your windows get read from disk. (It's kinda cool for about the
>first 5 minutes).  I've since upgraded to 16mb of memory and the
>performance increase is incredible. Like night and day...thought

I tend to think that it would be nice for a micro such as the A3000.
I agree that it is NOT an *adequate* subsitute for RAM.  It is nice
to be able to extend past your physical memory, but you can't depend
on it as a substitute for RAM.

In the Amiga's case, it may be useful for long animations, etc, just 
so that "average joe" can run them.  If you're building an animation
you would have to have the ram.  In my environment (NeXT 030, and
MicroVAX II) it helped to conclusively prove/disprove (respectively)
the need for more RAM to be purchased.  An animator may be able to 
finish a sequence while waiting on additional RAM as well, thus allowing
him/her to work even though the RAM hasn't hit the door yet.   

Oh yea, I never really thought my NeXT was very cool watching windows
swap in.  FrameMaker is almost useless, especially when you've got to
have a paper out in 2 days, and half of that time is spent swapping.
Oh well, I guess I'm just too critical.

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        -Lou Williams            Via Bitnet :   william8@niehs.bitnet
                                Via Internet:   lou@vaxsc.niehs.nih.gov
        Computer Sciences Corporation,    Research Triangle Park, NC
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        -Sometimes in order to feel better about yourself, you have to
        make others feel bad, and I'm tired of making others feel good
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