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From: josh@hi.uucp (Josh Siegel )
Newsgroups: comp.graphics
Subject: Re: Amiga World Ray-tracing article...
Message-ID: <4622@hi.uucp>
Date: Sun, 19-Apr-87 01:56:00 EST
Article-I.D.: hi.4622
Posted: Sun Apr 19 01:56:00 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 19-Apr-87 17:40:33 EST
References: <629@puff.WISC.EDU> <2985@sdcsvax.UCSD.EDU> <647@puff.WISC.EDU> <239@rocky.STANFORD.EDU> <4612@utcsri.UUCP>
Reply-To: josh@hi.UUCP (Josh Siegel)
Distribution: comp
Organization: U. of New Mexico, Albuquerque
Lines: 62
Keywords: cost

In article <4612@utcsri.UUCP> buchanan@utcsri.UUCP (John Buchanan) writes:
>In article <239@rocky.STANFORD.EDU> ali@rocky.UUCP (Ali Ozer) writes:
>>still use my Amiga. And thanks to multitasking you do not need to sit and
>>watch your Amiga grind away on ray-traced images. Besides, the
>
>Hmmm Last starfighter ship = 250000 polygons.  
>     Amiga memory          = 512000 bytes
>     2 bytes per polygon   = 500000 bytes.   ( it seems that under estimating
>					       is the name of the game.)

I think it will be far more then 2 bytes...

>			     ===============
>     Memory available for
>     raytracer.            =  12000 bytes.   
>
>
>     I fail to see where the multitasking system will reside.  I'd also
>     like to see at least 24 bits per pixel.
>
>John W. Buchanan                  Dynamic Graphics Project

Gads!  What are you trying to prove?  That a amiga is NOT a cray?

We know this!  The point is that for what we pay $800.00, we have
a computer that runs very nicely and can do some real number crunching.

Also,  lets look at DPW render system.  How much does it cost? $18.00?!?!?

How much does WaveFront cost?  $75,000!!!!

How much does a Cray cost?  Oh... $5,000,000 for the cray (that uses
 human blood) and $5,000,000 for the room.   (A generalization from
 a Los Alamos friend)

Lets sum it up...

Cray:
	30 seconds
	Software: $75,000 for something optimised for a Cray
	$5,000,000 for the computer (maybe more) (with vt100)
	NO colors

Amiga:
	1 hour
	$18.00 for something optimised for a Amiga
	$1500.00 for the computer (with display)
	4096 colors


You may say... The cray can feed another computer to display
 the works of art... SO CAN THE AMIGA!!!!

Lets try to keep this in perspective....

			--Josh Siegel


-- 
Josh Siegel		(siegel@hc.dspo.gov)
                        (505) 277-2497  (Home)
		I'm a mathematician, not a programmer!