Path: utzoo!yunexus!gen1!peter
From: peter@gen1.UUCP (Peter CAMILLERI)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: More than 32 bits needed where?
Keywords: variable sized addresses
Message-ID: <328@gen1.UUCP>
Date: 11 Feb 88 18:23:08 GMT
Article-I.D.: gen1.328
Posted: Thu Feb 11 13:23:08 1988
References: <4340@ames.arpa> <28200094@ccvaxa> <22931@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU>
Reply-To: peter@gen1.UUCP (Peter CAMILLERI)
Organization: gen1 - York University, Petrie Bldg, Downsview, Ontario CANADA
Lines: 22

It seems to me that the primary need for more than 32 bit operations lies
in the need to address large ( possibly networks of ) data arrays and such.

Perhaps the optimum soloution would be to have a machine in which the size
of an address where unkown. For example the inmos transputer contsructs
its address out of instruction components that can be concatenated to
form an arbritarily large value. Address then would essentially be passed 
betwwen machines in a string like format. Internally the address would be
evaluated to 64 or whatever bits. The advantages of this scheme are that
small program would not be penalized, and hardware can be upgraded with-
out trashing all of the softwrare.

No flames please. This is only an attempt to define a soloution that
won't "run out" in 10 years

Peter



-- 
Peter  Camilleri         UUCP:       ...!mnetor!yunexus!gen1!peter
                                       ...utzoo!/