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Re: PCI Trend



At 03:34 PM 1/21/97 -0800, Benson Cheung wrote:

Note. All answers are MY OWN PERSONAL OPINION, from the viewpoint of a
software engineer who specializes in device drivers for graphics
accelerators on mainstream PC's.

>1)  Support for 64-bit PCI bus.
>      (We know DEC makes 64-bit PCI-PCI
>        bridge today.)

Limited primarily to non-mass market high end workstations for the
forseeable future.  Perhaps some time after Merced ships (see answer to 4)
64 bit addressing will increase in importance.  

>2)  66 MHz PCI bus.
>      (Any 66 MHz PCI bus available now or in the future?)

The only forseeable 66MHz bus in the mass market will be the single slot AGP
bus dedicated for graphics.

>3)  Is 5V-compliant important for
>      a chip designed for 3V signaling
>      environment?

I'm a software guy.

>4)  Support for 64-bit addressing.

Intel's "Merced" P7 project is due around about then (mid 98), this will be
a true 64 bit chip supposedly.  I can't see mainstream systems needing more
than 4000 Megabytes of physical memory for a few more years.

-jrp
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j