Re: I am working on a GS accelerator, can you help?

[sheldon@atlcom.net (Sheldon Simms)]

In article <X6VF1e2w165w@ospnet.nshore.org>, chessie@ospnet.nshore.org
(Adam Barr) wrote:

> sheldon@atlcom.net (Sheldon Simms) writes:
> 
> > In article <ericlob-1212982353420001@ts001d34.ric-wa.concentric.net>,
> > ericlob@cris.com (ericlob) wrote:
> > 
> > > As long as we're pipe-dreaming, I'd also drop the 65816 and go with some
> > > cheap but speedy RISC chip and write a 65816 emulator for it. I'm not sure
> > > how much faster it would be (if any) than a 20MHz '816 but any "native"
> > > apps written for it would be much faster.
> > 
> > And put a VGA controller on it, so that all video access can be done at
> > top speed - and you get better graphics to boot... at which point I ask,
> > why not just go buy an iMac and run Bernie?
> > 
> > -- 
> > W. Sheldon Simms III   |   2000 is *still* the 20th century
> > sheldon@atlcom.net     |
> 
> I have an iMac and I do run 
> bernie, but I don't think bernie so too super, the graphics are not as 
> good as a real GS

I don't have a powermac or Bernie, so I'm just guessing, but this sounds
like the SecondSight syndrome - rendered on a modern monitor, you get to
see how bad the IIgs graphics modes are by todays standards.

> and I run into problems often with it. Why run a GS at 
> all, just run a mac if you are going to just run emulators.

This was kind of my point. I think an accelerator would be great, but
if you start putting RISC chips on there and emulating a 65816 in software
then you might as well just use an emulator, IMO.

> If this 
> accelerator ever works out we will see what you all think then. There 
> will be no VGA, or ram on it or any other smart ass suggestion. I just 
> want something to speed up my GS.

Well I've thought about this a little bit, and personally I would put
RAM on it, since RAM is pretty darn cheap these days I'd say screw the
cache, and all the complexity it adds, just put all the RAM right there
on the board. Putting VGA on the board is something that would be really
slick, (and would help speed up the system) but it's really overkill.

-- 
W. Sheldon Simms III   |   2000 is *still* the 20th century
sheldon@atlcom.net     |