True or False - AMD to make software "Dual Core to Single Core"

[Atari800]

This was from another site - one of those threads on INTEL vs AMD so this could be just BS

I couldnt find any info out there

It bears mentioning, AMD has come up with a way to enable dual core processors to be recognized as a single more powerful/faster processor for applications which are written for single core processors... This means dual core users wil be able to benefit on a much greater variety of applications and games. The process is a matter of new downloadable instruction sets for the system as opposed to a physical hardware change. Consequently when it becomes available in the coming months, present dual core users will benefit from it.... Intel is working on a similar process.

Tech sites and magazines should be running articles on it in the next few weeks...

If anyone knows what this technology is called

If anyone seen an article

If anyone seen anything - update this thread

If true then this may be what MAME is looking for to run CarnEvil at playable speeds

[Will]

Yes this is (at least partly) true. I read on TomsHardware, I think, that AMD was working on some microcode tricks of this nature. The article was VERY scant on details, but I can add this. To my knowledge there is no way for a current processor to have this added in as a downloadable. My guess is that it will be included in the instruction sets of some new processors on the way. Most moden processors feature "out of order execution" that allows incoming instructions to be optimized by rearranging ones that do not depend on each other. It is feasible for a single threaded application to be running on one processor, and that processor sees instructions that can be handed to another processor for completion based on independence of preceeding instructions. The main issue would be that there would never be a case where you could get double the performance, because most programs are inherently seqeuential. The second processor (or core) could help some, but probably only a little. The better option is for us all to just get better at multi-threaded apps I think the real plus of this technology was in the server market where a couple of quad core processors could appear as one, dividing up the work themselves, rather than depending on the compilers to do it.

Meh. My 2 cents...

[Tom Speirs]

Yes this is (at least partly) true. I read on TomsHardware, I think, that AMD was working on some microcode tricks of this nature. The article was VERY scant on details, but I can add this. To my knowledge there is no way for a current processor to have this added in as a downloadable. My guess is that it will be included in the instruction sets of some new processors on the way. Most moden processors feature "out of order execution" that allows incoming instructions to be optimized by rearranging ones that do not depend on each other. It is feasible for a single threaded application to be running on one processor, and that processor sees instructions that can be handed to another processor for completion based on independence of preceeding instructions. The main issue would be that there would never be a case where you could get double the performance, because most programs are inherently seqeuential. The second processor (or core) could help some, but probably only a little. The better option is for us all to just get better at multi-threaded apps I think the real plus of this technology was in the server market where a couple of quad core processors could appear as one, dividing up the work themselves, rather than depending on the compilers to do it.

Meh. My 2 cents...

I think multithreading is the way to go, GameEx is such an app where I've tried to take a little advantage. Me personally would rather have two cores/cpus than two "somehow" binded as one. I can only see the benefit of being for games, or emulation, as most good apps should be able to take advantage of threading.

EDIT: Im also really looking forward to the quad core cpus.

[Atari800]

Ok - I couldnt grasp "how" it would work at all nor could I find any info on this type of technology

I was thinking maybe predictive - something like High Level Emulation for single processor apps

CPU running the program, the other CPU analyzing the instructions and predicting its potential needs.

I know that is a little far fetched

Toms right - develop programs that are mult-processor aware

Best solution