[MPlayer-dev-eng] [patch] prefer ALSA over OSS

[Attila Kinali]

On Fri, 4 May 2007 03:36:07 +0400
Vladimir Mosgalin <mosgalin at VM10124.spb.edu> wrote:

> In fact, modern CPUs are quite energy efficient.

This is definitly not true. Modern CPUs waste more energy
for nothing than you'd think. A current CPU has a static
power dissipation of about 1/3 of the total power. And
static means that it does not matter whether the CPU does
anything, it does not even need to be clocked.

The dynamic power is mostly dissipated within the clock tree
(another third, depending on the system up to half of the power).
Most of the power (not only of the clock tree, but in general)
is eaten by the wires within the CPU. The power that is actualy
needed to switch the transistors themselfs on and off is just
a fraction of the huge amount of power the whole CPU eats.

> Technology is
> advancing, too. They are becoming smaller and colder. 

No, they are _not_ becomming cooler. CPUs have reached a high
point of power dissaption a few years ago. It is not possible
to use more power within the CPU than around 100W. Well, it is
possible but the gear needed to transport that heat energy away
would be so expensive that noone would buy such a CPU.

> Energy saving modes are becoming more efficient.

They have to because hot spots the chips are the biggest
problem of modern VLSI design.

> Multicore processors get the ability
> to turn of some cores and even to rebalance speed, i.e. turn off one
> core and overclock another while generating the same heat when user runs
> some single-threaded cpu-hungry app.

Where did you get that BS from? You cannot switch of one core
and hope that the other can be overclocked to twice the speed.
For one the energy density of the one overclocked core would
cause all metal layers to melt within microseconds 
(ok, electromigration would kick in a lot earlier and destroy
all wires, before the device is even able to heat up that much).
And for another, you cannot increase the speed of light to
get your signals across the core.

> You don't have enough faith in
> modern technology. And as popularity of powerful smartphones and UMPCs
> rises, even more energy efficient cpus will be produced.

And you have no clue about modern VLSI design whatsoever but
still make claims about future development without even knowing
the current technical limitations.

			Attila Kinali

-- 
Praised are the Fountains of Shelieth, the silver harp of the waters,
But blest in my name forever this stream that stanched my thirst!
                         -- Deed of Morred