From: mcrocker@titan.ucs.umass.edu (MATTHEW S CROCKER) Subject: Re: To cache or not to cache. Which machine to buy. Date: 12 Feb 1993 14:30:51 -0500
In article <1993Feb12.020228.755@rkbhome.jti.com> richb@rkbhome.jti.com (Rich Braun) writes:
>It occured to me that I hadn't seen a posting on this thread with a
>definitive answer to the subject line.
>
>I bought a 486SX/33 motherboard with no external cache. The processor
>chip contains 8Kb of cache. For those who are choosing between SX and
>DX, take note of the previous posting which described how the 486SX
>came into existence. The 386SX was pure crap; it was much slower than
>a 386DX because it had a smaller internal bus. (Hence the popular
>connotation SX='SuX'.) The 486SX is a fine product, equivalent in every
>way to the 486DX except that it lacks the floating-point accelerator.
>I'd be curious to know if there are any Linux applications which run
>significantly faster on a DX than on an SX. I saw no reason to shell
>out the extra $150 for floating-point performance.
I believe X uses the FPU for drawing curves and such, maybe for fonts
also??
>
>Soon after buying my system last month, the store started offering an
>external 256K cache version of the motherboard for just $60 extra.
>I'm curious as to how much performance difference there is between
>these two hardware products, given the usual mix of Linux applications
>(X, gcc, etc). Not that it matters for me--my system is already in
>place--but it might benefit others who have taken the Linux plunge and
>are considering taking advantage of today's low PC prices to set up a
>real home workstation.
>
>-rich
on another note. I have 256kb external cache. With my micronics MB I
can specify which region of RAM I want cached. If at all possible
could I cache the area where the kernel lives only? this would in
effect allow my to keep 90% of the kernel in the cache that should
speed things up shouldn't it? Could linux do this itself on boot up?
my kernel is only @ 327k
-Matt
--
- Matthew S. Crocker Crocker Communication Center
mcrocker@titan.ucc.umass.edu PO BOX 714
Greenfield, MA 01302-0714