Discussion Processor Periods and Core Trends

[jnjnilson6]

What timeframe did Processors under 10 MHz, 100 MHz, 1 GHz and 2 GHz occupy?

What was the timeframe of Dual-core Processors, of Quad-core Processors, of Hexa-core and Octa-core ones and of such harboring more cores still?

I have the general idea regarding all those questions but within the multicolor perspective and diversity of personal opinion I would be glad if you provide your personal opinion and within the incandescent drift of memory illuminate the periods you have personally found most connected to the above hardware, most amicably concerned in a ubiquitous timeframe. The trends have been changing like the glistening remorselessness of skipping white sun-shards strewn upon the ocean; and they have been always exhilarating and mysteriously enchanting.

 

[USAFRet]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_general-purpose_CPUs

https://www.vartechsystems.com/articles/cpu-history

https://www.computerhope.com/history/processor.htm

 

[jnjnilson6]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_general-purpose_CPUs

https://www.vartechsystems.com/articles/cpu-history

https://www.computerhope.com/history/processor.htm

What's your personal opinion on a selection of CPUs, though?

For example - in 2010 single core CPUs could do well, dual core CPUs were very good and quad core such were considered enthusiast. By 2018-2019 CPUs like the Core i7-3770K were considered demode. I am writing because the periods overlap one another and the timeframe of Quad-cores for one person may be the timeframe of Dual-cores for another.

 

[USAFRet]

What's your personal opinion on a selection of CPUs, though?

For example - in 2010 single core CPUs could do well, dual core CPUs were very good and quad core such were considered enthusiast. By 2018-2019 CPUs like the Core i7-3770K were considered demode. I am writing because the periods overlap one another and the timeframe of Quad-cores for one person may be the timeframe of Dual-cores for another.

Software changes to meet the available hardware.

A single core CPU from 2010 would fall to its knees and cry, if faced with software from 2024.

If you want to use 15 year old software, then 15 year old hardware will work just like it did on Day 1.

 

[jnjnilson6]

Software changes to meet the available hardware.

A single core CPU from 2010 would fall to its knees and cry, if faced with software from 2024.

If you want to use 15 year old software, then 15 year old hardware will work just like it did on Day 1.

I agree absolutely! Thank you for the attentiveness.

Software is getting worse though. Everything is money and most people are not as talented in all spheres, including programming, in the current century and times as they were before a number of decades. It's like this with everything. The novelists of the past wrote about beautiful gardens and moonshine passing through disheveled darkened hedges and damsels looking remorselessly, with a tinge of dying sadness, toward beauty and eternity... Today nobody writes about art. They write to get easy money. I am saying this because it happens in all spheres, not only that of software development.

 

[hotaru.hino]

Software is getting worse though.

Is it getting worse, or are people asking more things out of it? 25 years ago, operating systems didn't have to worry about having a WiFi stack, managing a PCI express hub, or even worry about the same internet security threats. Plus the interfaces that were common enough at the time (e.g., serial port, parallel port, PS/2 port) were dead simple and expected some other application to figure it out, except the PS/2 port since that was the primary input.

 

[Priscus]

When AMD brought out a 64 bit processor, I felt that I had to have one, so circa 2005, I put one onto a mobo made by Abit, Anyone remember the company which targeted the enthusiast rather than the volume market?

A year or so later, they brought out a dual core version, (more or less same clock speed) I upgraded my rig, which I still have: this was the highest spec processor that I could use in the 939 socket mobo.

Heck! I was expecting a performance boost.

What did I get: a noticeable performance deficit!

Later, I was to learn that my applications then used, did not derive any benefit from the dual core, but suffered a 15% deficit in setting up! I only ever used this machine for word processing and web browsing, so not demanding apps.

I was able to get a 64 bit OS: SuSe Linux, but back then I only had access to 32 bit Windows XP. Perhaps I would have seen benefits when 64 bit XP became available, but since it did not run my apps, I never installed 64 bit XP.

 

[USAFRet]

Is it getting worse, or are people asking more things out of it? 25 years ago, operating systems didn't have to worry about having a WiFi stack, managing a PCI express hub, or even worry about the same internet security threats. Plus the interfaces that were common enough at the time (e.g., serial port, parallel port, PS/2 port) were dead simple and expected some other application to figure it out, except the PS/2 port since that was the primary input.

Indeed.

A single ray traced image used to take literally all night. Click Go, and let it run overnight.
Today, almost 60 frames per sec, in the context of gameplay.

 

[jnjnilson6]

Indeed.

A single ray traced image used to take literally all night. Click Go, and let it run overnight.
Today, almost 60 frames per sec, in the context of gameplay.

Still though, on an entirely clean Windows 11 Pro system, when a Core i7-12700H goes up to 92 C and stays there until you kill all Chrome processes through the Task Manager (this occurs only when many tabs are opened), you'd start thinking how 'well' the software is actually written. Same software which did the same things on a Sempron 3300+ (1 core / 2 GHz) and 896 MB RAM in 2011 in Chrome seems to be killing a 14 core / 20 thread CPU in terms of temperature in its latter versions today. I am certain the problem is on the software side as the machine performs and runs applications smooth as butter.

 

[USAFRet]

Still though, on an entirely clean Windows 11 Pro system, when a Core i7-12700H goes up to 92 C and stays there until you kill all Chrome processes through the Task Manager (this occurs only when many tabs are opened), you'd start thinking how 'well' the software is actually written. Same software which did the same things on a Sempron 3300+ (1 core / 2 GHz) and 896 MB RAM in 2011 in Chrome seems to be killing a 14 core / 20 thread CPU in terms of temperature in its latter versions today. I am certain the problem is on the software side as the machine performs and runs applications smooth as butter.

None of my Win 10 or 11 systems have seen "92 C".
I suspect poor cooling situation.

 

[jnjnilson6]

None of my Win 10 or 11 systems have seen "92 C".
I suspect poor cooling situation.

You ought to. This is something I'd suspect too. But the machine is completely clean and the fact that after closing Chrome the temperature continues like that indefinitely but ends immediately when closing 2 Chrome processes from the Task Manager (those Chrome processes, for some reason, continue running after Chrome is closed) makes me entirely think I should base that on the software. I can listen to music, watch 8K videos, do practically anything and the temperature would be normal; but after opening a certain number of Chrome tabs it would spark up like that and remain high (with the CPU providing low usage as usual). Earlier versions of Chrome did not do this. There was an Intel Arc Control driver which also upped the temperatures immensely and after writing on Intel's forum they thanked me and in the newer versions the problem was resolved.

Thank you for sharing your opinion; it is indefinitely valuable! I'm inclining majorly toward the software side because of the bizarre behavior explained above concerning the upping of the temperatures and their downfall.

 

[USAFRet]

Ryzen 5 5600X
64GB RAM
Selection of SSDs
1660ti GPU

Currently:
2x Firefox instances open, 3 dozen tabs across the two instances.
MS Word
3x File Explorer instances
Reolink camera client (monitoring 2x security cameras)
TinyVNC
BambuLab client, printing something on the 3D printer and monitoring its video in realtime
HWMonitor

49-50C

EDIT:
And then, opening Chrome, and a dozen tabs to various places. (with all of the above still running)
Briefly rises to 61C, then stabilizes back at 51C

 

[hotaru.hino]

Still though, on an entirely clean Windows 11 Pro system, when a Core i7-12700H goes up to 92 C and stays there until you kill all Chrome processes through the Task Manager (this occurs only when many tabs are opened), you'd start thinking how 'well' the software is actually written. Same software which did the same things on a Sempron 3300+ (1 core / 2 GHz) and 896 MB RAM in 2011 in Chrome seems to be killing a 14 core / 20 thread CPU in terms of temperature in its latter versions today. I am certain the problem is on the software side as the machine performs and runs applications smooth as butter.

Using one application to blame "software is a problem" in its entirety isn't an entirely convincing argument.

Also the "same software" isn't doing the same things. Are you actually running the exact software configuration on this 12th gen machine as the Sempron machine? If not, at least the same version of Chrome? I can guarantee you back then was simpler times.

 

[jnjnilson6]

Using one application to blame "software is a problem" in its entirety isn't an entirely convincing argument.

Also the "same software" isn't doing the same things. Are you actually running the exact software configuration on this 12th gen machine as the Sempron machine? If not, at least the same version of Chrome? I can guarantee you back then was simpler times.

Thank you for your opinion. 👍

Depends on the software. You may write a program on Visual C++ 6.0 which uses 4 MB RAM and it may be greater and more powerful than a program written on the latest Studio that requires 40 GB.

 

[jnjnilson6]

Ryzen 5 5600X
64GB RAM
Selection of SSDs
1660ti GPU

Currently:
2x Firefox instances open, 3 dozen tabs across the two instances.
MS Word
3x File Explorer instances
Reolink camera client (monitoring 2x security cameras)
TinyVNC
BambuLab client, printing something on the 3D printer and monitoring its video in realtime
HWMonitor

49-50C

EDIT:
And then, opening Chrome, and a dozen tabs to various places. (with all of the above still running)
Briefly rises to 61C, then stabilizes back at 51C

Getting 50 C currently with 20 tabs in one Chrome window and 2 tabs in another. Also have 12 programs that appear when I hit the 'up arrow' on the taskbar next to the language bar.

It will basically remain like that until I open a great quantity of tabs. Then it will go to 92 C and stay there. When I close Chrome it will still stay at 92 C. I will have to open the Task Manager and manually close the 2 Chrome tasks which do not disappear with the closing of Chrome and then magically and immediately the temperature will go back down again.

 

[hotaru.hino]

Depends on the software. You may write a program on Visual C++ 6.0 which uses 4 MB RAM and it may be greater and more powerful than a program written on the latest Studio that requires 40 GB.

And the opposite is true. In addition, the tool chain has nothing to do with the relative quality of the software. However, I'd argue that using a tool chain with more useful features will often lead to better quality software because it's easier to achieve that.

You can code entirely in notepad and a command line compiler if you want. But have fun debugging it.