Re: Innovative Systems Floating Point Engine Rev B 1988

[Mike Westerfield <MikeW50@aol.com>]

On Aug 4, 7:19 am, "Yvan" <yvan_d...@gmx.net> wrote:
> Hi,
>
> I found a Innovative Systems Floating Point Engine Rev B 1988.
>
> First, what is it? Can I use it in my IIgs? Do I need any software or
> drivers? Are there any documentations anywhere?
>
> Cheers
> Yvan

Hi Yvan,

There is a software patch that allows this card to intercept and
handle any calculation normally routed through the SANE numerics
package. That works pretty well, but there is significant overhead--
enough that some calculations are about as fast in software. (Not all,
and not the more complex calculations.)

There are also compiler directives for the ORCA languages that will
bypass SANE and tap directly into the card itself. This is
considerably more efficient, and works for long integer math as well
as floating-point. It turned out that short integer math takes less
time in software than the overhead of using the card, so the ORCA
languages do not use the card for short integers.

All in all, it's a great card if you intend to do any number-
crunching, especially in software you write. Congratulations on
finding one.