Path: utzoo!utgpu!water!watmath!watdragon!watsol!tbray
From: tbray@watsol.waterloo.edu (Tim Bray)
Newsgroups: comp.arch
Subject: Re: Benchmarking
Message-ID: <9210@watdragon.waterloo.edu>
Date: 20 Oct 88 16:11:29 GMT
References: <4655@winchester.mips.COM> <572@jim.odr.oz> <3913@encore.UUCP>
Sender: daemon@watdragon.waterloo.edu
Reply-To: tbray@watsol.waterloo.edu (Tim Bray)
Organization: U. of Waterloo, Ontario
Lines: 17

In article <3913@encore.UUCP> bzs@xenna (Barry Shein) writes:
>Hypothesis: This processor/memory combination is faster than that
>one on simple integer operations.
>Hypothesis: This system is faster at running large programs which
>stress the virtual memory system.
There is an implicit claim here that one can divide programs into
equivalence classes with names such as 'simple integer operations' and
'virtual memory stressers'.  I don't believe that.  Benchmarks are like 
trying to count feathers with boxing gloves on, but they won't go away,
sigh...

>Then there's the old rule of thumb that the speed of a computer system
>is measured from the moment you get an idea in your head to the moment
>you have the answer in your hands, any other measure is superfluous.
Hear, hear.

Tim Bray, New Oxford English Dictionary Project, U of Waterloo