multiple cpu machines Re: rogues galleries - test-drb@ccmp.vtda.org

29 Nov 2006

 --- Jim Leonard <trixter at oldskool.org> wrote: 
...
  arcarlini at iee.org wrote:
 >>> How about the Sega MegaDrive/Genesis? That ran  a
...
  68000 and Z80.

 There have been many multi-cpu consoles; the Sega
 Saturn had two Hitachi
 RISC CPUs for core processing, plus a host of othe r
...
  stuff for CDROM,
 display, sound... The PlayStation 2 is also
 dual-CPU.  The PlayStation 3
 is a Cell monster, 7 cores you can play with, 
wrong!!! Some places state 9, but the last
*official* CPU diagram I saw has 8 cores.
One main core (slightly larger than the others)
and 7 co-cores. (Does that make sense?)

...
  although I think that's
 been discussed here already by Mr. Brutman.

 My favorite was the Atari Jaguar, which had no les s
...
  than:

 - a 32-bit RISC GPU
 - a 64-bit RISC "object processor"
 - a 64-bit RISC blitter
 - a 64-bit general purpose DSP for audio and other
 functions
 - a 68000 for general-purpose helper functions

 And to shuffle memory around, a 64-bit DRAM
 controller.

 The Atari Jaguar *should* have been the most
 kick-ass console of its
 generation (the blitter in particular was certainl y
...
  the most powerful of
 all the 5th-generation consoles).  But it was so
 complex that nobody
 could figure out how to program it properly. 
 Coupled with legendary
 Atari marketing fumbles, it died a quick death
 before a suitable "killer
 app" could be developed for it.

 Most coders unfamiliar with the system would treat
 the Jaguar as a
 68000-based machine with a giant framebuffer, like
 an Atari ST on
 steroids.  This was clearly not the best use of th e
...
  machine.  
The Atari Jaguar is basically a Super Spectrum
(SS).
No I'm not kidding (surely someone here can
back me up?). There is a page on the web
somewhere explaining how the guys that were
designing the SS ended up working for Atari. 
The SS evolved into the Atari Jaguar.

Also, with the CD unit fitted into the Jaguar
cartridge slot (so it could play Jaguar CD 
games - of which there must be about 6!)
that add's yet another processor or two
possibly.

Regards,
Andrew B
aliensrcooluk at yahoo.co.uk