5 ms·

> While Inmos and the transputer did not achieve this expectation, the transputer architecture was highly influential in provoking new ideas in computer archite

by davidw 7y ago

> While Inmos and the transputer did not achieve this expectation, the transputer architecture was highly influential in provoking new ideas in computer architecture, several of which have re-emerged in different forms in modern systems. I have a vague sense that there's a rich vein of potential projects and maybe businesses in "before their time" ideas in the world of computing.

creddit 7y ago
If you want inspiration the Computer Chronicles was a show on PBS documenting in real time the process and rise of computers. I believe all episodes are on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/user/ComputerChroniclesYT https://www.youtube.com/user/ComputerChroniclesYT
- jdblair 7y ago
  With co-host Gary Kildall, of CP/M and Digital Research fame!
- K0SM0S 7y ago
  This is incredible. I think I've just found my new late-night / fall-asleep 'fictional' TV show — because it really feels that way, in our weird cognitive perception of the past. Thanks a lot for the pointer. This may spark funny and uncanny world-domination ideas! ( : A serious hint/note for the "futurologists" / innovation-driven folks out there — my people: look for what was true back then but is no longer, especially in the form of limitations or roadblocks or axiom (hard limit) to a design. Remove that piece and see what you get...
  - sifar 7y ago
    Couldn't agree more. A lot of things were invented in the 60's-80's which didn't work out due to lack of applications, technological limitations of those times etc.
dboreham 7y ago
A partial list: USB On-chip PLL clock generator Automatic power on reset On-chip programmable DRAM controller Hardware threading On-chip I/O DMA Concurrency and parallelism in programming languages
- layoutIfNeeded 7y ago
  I wonder if the Cell microarchitecture will make a comeback someday in some form.
  - lproven 7y ago
    I doubt it. As shipped, it was profoundly broken. Charlie Demerjian did a good exposé on this for the Inquirer, but the page has been taken down. Here is a blog post that references it, though: http://topofcool.com/blog/2006/06/05/sony-suicide-watch-ps3-hardware-not-looking-good/ http://topofcool.com/blog/2006/06/05/sony-suicide-watch-ps3-... The memory read speeds for the SPEs (Synergistic Processing Elements, or "APUs" these days) was horrible. It was about 3 orders of magnitude slower than it was meant to be. This is why the chip basically died. Memory read speeds for the SPUs were impossibly slow, meaning that they were crippled into uselessness, AIUI.
  - lproven 7y ago
    Some additional commentary from a blog analysing the Inq's story: https://assemblergames.com/threads/ps3-concerns-cell-architecture-has-very-serious-flaws.10201/ https://assemblergames.com/threads/ps3-concerns-cell-archite... «It means that no more than three of the SPE's can talk to the memory controller at one time using full capacity. Four SPE's will fill the bus, and the CPU controller will not be able to access the memory at all. [...] What you can do is have all the SPE's work at the same time, but using nowhere near the capacity they each have. Basically the PS3 gets punished for performing well, and tweaking cell for better results in the future seems to be a nightmare if not impossible. »
EdNutting 7y ago
Yes, hundreds, many of which are now being 'reinvented' or 'rediscovered'. Time to figure out how to persuade investors to get on board - processor architecture isn't one of their fads at the moment.
matheusmoreira 7y ago
The japanese tried to build massively parallel computers back in the 80s. The project ultimately failed because the performance of normal CPUs continued to improve. It looks like we are once again in an age where parallelism seems to be the only way out: CPUs have hit a thermal ceiling, speculative execution has led to vulnerabilities... Given the popularity of today's GPUs and their applications, I'd say the 5th generation computer project was ahead of its time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_generation_computer https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_generation_computer

by davidw 7y ago

creddit 7y ago

If you want inspiration the Computer Chronicles was a show on PBS documenting in real time the process and rise of computers. I believe all episodes are on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/user/ComputerChroniclesYT https://www.youtube.com/user/ComputerChroniclesYT

jdblair 7y ago
With co-host Gary Kildall, of CP/M and Digital Research fame!
K0SM0S 7y ago
This is incredible. I think I've just found my new late-night / fall-asleep 'fictional' TV show — because it really feels that way, in our weird cognitive perception of the past. Thanks a lot for the pointer. This may spark funny and uncanny world-domination ideas! ( : A serious hint/note for the "futurologists" / innovation-driven folks out there — my people: look for what was true back then but is no longer, especially in the form of limitations or roadblocks or axiom (hard limit) to a design. Remove that piece and see what you get...
- sifar 7y ago
  Couldn't agree more. A lot of things were invented in the 60's-80's which didn't work out due to lack of applications, technological limitations of those times etc.

dboreham 7y ago

A partial list: USB On-chip PLL clock generator Automatic power on reset On-chip programmable DRAM controller Hardware threading On-chip I/O DMA Concurrency and parallelism in programming languages

layoutIfNeeded 7y ago
I wonder if the Cell microarchitecture will make a comeback someday in some form.
- lproven 7y ago
  I doubt it. As shipped, it was profoundly broken. Charlie Demerjian did a good exposé on this for the Inquirer, but the page has been taken down. Here is a blog post that references it, though: http://topofcool.com/blog/2006/06/05/sony-suicide-watch-ps3-hardware-not-looking-good/ http://topofcool.com/blog/2006/06/05/sony-suicide-watch-ps3-... The memory read speeds for the SPEs (Synergistic Processing Elements, or "APUs" these days) was horrible. It was about 3 orders of magnitude slower than it was meant to be. This is why the chip basically died. Memory read speeds for the SPUs were impossibly slow, meaning that they were crippled into uselessness, AIUI.
- lproven 7y ago
  Some additional commentary from a blog analysing the Inq's story: https://assemblergames.com/threads/ps3-concerns-cell-architecture-has-very-serious-flaws.10201/ https://assemblergames.com/threads/ps3-concerns-cell-archite... «It means that no more than three of the SPE's can talk to the memory controller at one time using full capacity. Four SPE's will fill the bus, and the CPU controller will not be able to access the memory at all. [...] What you can do is have all the SPE's work at the same time, but using nowhere near the capacity they each have. Basically the PS3 gets punished for performing well, and tweaking cell for better results in the future seems to be a nightmare if not impossible. »

EdNutting 7y ago

Yes, hundreds, many of which are now being 'reinvented' or 'rediscovered'. Time to figure out how to persuade investors to get on board - processor architecture isn't one of their fads at the moment.

matheusmoreira 7y ago

The japanese tried to build massively parallel computers back in the 80s. The project ultimately failed because the performance of normal CPUs continued to improve. It looks like we are once again in an age where parallelism seems to be the only way out: CPUs have hit a thermal ceiling, speculative execution has led to vulnerabilities... Given the popularity of today's GPUs and their applications, I'd say the 5th generation computer project was ahead of its time. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_generation_computer https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fifth_generation_computer