Re: How many times must Apple make such DRASTIC architecture changes?

[reynolds@panix.com (Brian Reynolds)]

In article <96adnRRX4M_G8zXfRVn-rQ@comcast.com>,
Michael J. Mahon <mjmahon@aol.com> wrote:
>Roy Smith wrote:
>> Paul Schlyter <pausch@NOSPAMsaaf.se> wrote:
>> 
>>>But whenever that "4 GByte limit" becomes too limiting, it is possible 
>>>to start using different segments again. [...] don't expect this to 
>>>happen until more than 4 GBytes of RAM gets common.
>> 
>> 
>> If Moore's law holds, that only a couple of years away.  Today we're at the 
>> point where most desktops or laptops ship with at least 256 Meg, and it's 
>> not uncommon to find a Gig in a high-end personal machine.
>
>And we can expect that time to be accompanied by processors that
>can directly address 64-bit address spaces, with some fraction of
>the additional address lines implemented.

I've had a machine on my desk at home that has a 64-bit processor that
directly addresses 64-bit memory and runs a 64-bit OS with 64-bit
applications for almost four years now.  It currently has 1GB of RAM
and maxes out at 2GB of RAM, but that's because it's a bottom of the
line machine.  The higher end machines can have 8GB or 16GB of RAM.

No, it's not a Mac.  Steve Jobs was wrong.  Apple did not introduce
the first 64-bit PC.  Sun did with the SunBlade 100.

My laptop is a iBook G4.  It's a nice UNIX laptop, and it runs
mainstream applications.

-- 
Brian Reynolds                  | "It's just like flying a spaceship.
reynolds@panix.com              |  You push some buttons and see
http://www.panix.com/~reynolds/ |  what happens." -- Zapp Brannigan
NAR# 54438                      |