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From: dillon@best.com (Matt Dillon)
Newsgroups: comp.unix.bsd.freebsd.misc
Subject: Re: Parity SIMMS really necessary?
Date: 11 Dec 1995 17:03:11 -0800
Organization: Best Internet Communications, Inc. (info@best.com)
Lines: 35
Distribution: world
Message-ID: <4aikcf$oi2@blob.best.net>
References: <49lbnr$4fq@interport.net> <49qabp$efi@zuul.nmti.com> <49vn5p$i7i@canyon.sr.hp.com>
NNTP-Posting-Host: blob.best.net
:In article <49vn5p$i7i@canyon.sr.hp.com>,
:Darryl Okahata <darrylo@sr.hp.com> wrote:
:>Peter da Silva (peter@nmti.com) wrote:
:>
:>> I'm obviously naive. I had no idea they even *made* non-parity SIMMs.
:>>
:>> The whole idea of putting that much memory in a box without at *least*
:>> parity (and preferably ECC) makes me sick in the stomach.
:>
:> In that case, you'd better be aware that, currently, *MOST* Pentium
:>systems being sold DO NOT CHECK PARITY. In fact, they cannot check
:>parity because the chipset they use (Intel's Triton I) does not and
:>cannot check parity. Intel's Triton I chipset is one of the most-used
:>Pentium chipsets.
:>
:> You can imagine the complaints brought up by various people ....
:>Unfortunately, the "low-cost" solution wins out in the uninformed PC
:>marketplace ....
:>
:> Intel's new Triton II chipset supposedly supports parity, as well
:>as ECC. The word on the street is that Triton II motherboards may not
:>be available in quantity until February or so, although, rumor has it,
:>a few might be available this month. [ No, don't ask me where -- I have
:>no idea. ] However, to support ECC, we may have to buy 40(?)-bit
:>memory, as ECC supposedly needs two (2) extra bits per byte, while
:>parity needs only one. I hate to think how much that'll cost ;-).
ECC on a 32 bit wide word would require an additional 6 bits at
a bare *minimum*.
-Matt
--
Matthew Dillon Engineering, BEST Internet Communications, Inc.
<dillon@best.net>
[always include a portion of the original email in any response!]