🚀 go-pugleaf

Well... I've only read it through once, but my first impression
is that it would be a very elegent architecture for '94.  Passing 
packets of data around on smaller data buses isn't much of a 
new idea, but as a substitute for a wide PC expansion bus... 

Obviously in the era of the 8080 one would have been laughed
off the podium in making a suggestion that intrs and bus 
reqs could ever be handled in a timely manner.  Today, I
can't see it happening for '93, but then again chip designers 
amaze me at times.  

If we are talking about '94... let's just go all the way 
and have three pins: Vcc, Gnd, and fiber... OK, so maybe we
want one more Gnd :)  Really, though... if you are proposing to 
build in a lots of "smarts" into modem, floppy, lan, etc. type cards
then why not build in a fiber-optic interface?

Another thought when you were talking about wide-buses versus
your 8-bit proposal... someone is bound to bring up the fact 
that if your 8-bit bus is going to be sooooo fast with GTL, what 
is the problem with a 32-bit bus using GTL?  Of course, that 
would be PCI (or VL).

I think that for palmtops (or in '94 wrist-tops) definitely need 
lower pin count without cause a big loss in performance... and the 
hot-socket is definitely the way to go when presented with limited
slots... but I'm a little concerned about suggestions to bring 
such a technology to the desktop.

I *do* agree that ISA and EISA has GOT to go... as a guy who has
his PC at home stuffed with serial/modem ports, video capture
boards, and LAN cards, I don't enjoy juggling the limited number
of IRQs, ROM areas, and time slices...

Just think about the fiber proposal... I wasn't joking.

Later,
Tom

-- 
| Tom Barrett (TDBear), Sr. Engineer | tom.barrett@amd.com
| AMD PCD / Austin, TX  78741        | v:512-462-6856 / f:512-462-5155
| "No is Yes, and We are All FREE!"  | CO made a #2 no-no... PU!
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