What will thousands of CPU cores unlock?

We have signals that Intel isn't going to settle with 8 or 16  
processor cores and then revert back to let's-add-more-MHz contest.  
They are going to add 32, 64, 128, 512, 1024 and 2048 cores per CPU.  
(Reference: http://tinyurl.com/4pkslx) ... expect to see 8-core 500  
Mhz Intel Atom processors for ten dollars each.

We have signals that at least Apple is trying to make it easier for  
developers to use those cores. "Snow Leopard’s Grand Central Dispatch  
does [...] packetizing tasks [processes] into Blocks and routing them  
to available processing cores as efficiently as possible. It can also  
manage the big picture for the whole system, adjusting how it balances  
its tasks as the performance load increases." (Reference: http://tinyurl.com/62zluv)
  ... expect that Linux and others to do that too.

We know from history that so far people have found ways to utilize the  
full capacity of their computing equipment. As one Slashdotter noted:  
"What difference is it going to make? This is, IMHO, the wrong  
question to be asking. Asking how current tasks will be optimized to  
take advantage of future hardware makes the fundamental flawed  
assumption that the current tasks will be what's considered important  
once we have this kind of hardware." (Reference: http://tinyurl.com/5dryxk)

What would it unlock for You as an interaction designer, if you knew  
that you had 100 times more CPU power in your mom's mobile phone and  
desktop? Here's some food for thought: http://edge.org/3rd_culture/anderson08/anderson08_index.html

Petteri

--
  Petteri Hiisilä
  palvelumuotoilija /
  Senior Interaction Designer
  iXDesign / +358505050123 /
  petteri.hiisila@...

  "In this island, everything happens for a reason."
   - John Locke, LOST

________________________________________________________________
Welcome to the Interaction Design Association (IxDA)!
To post to this list ....... discuss@...
Unsubscribe ................ http://www.ixda.org/unsubscribe
List Guidelines ............ http://www.ixda.org/guidelines
List Help .................. http://www.ixda.org/help