Posts by ML1

1) Message boards : Politics : Computers & Technology 3 (Message 1883805) Posted 3 days ago by ML1 Post: Only in the freedoms of America?... Hey America! Your internet is going to be so much better this January But probably not in the way you'd hoped... ... More Americans than ever are going to have access to fast internet as well as a greater choice of providers. What's all the more amazing is that this improvement will come without requiring any extra investment by broadband providers and without anyone needing to pay more or even change their plans or provider. How is this possible? Simple: the Federal Communications Commission is going to redefine how it measures internet access... OK, so just redefine 'freedom' also?... IT is what we allow it to be... Martin
2) Message boards : Number crunching : AMD EPYC Benchmarks Smash the WinTel Hedgemony?... (Message 1883185) Posted 6 days ago by ML1 Post: The AMD Threadripper is looking very good: AMD Ryzen Threadripper 1950X Review AMD's 16C/32T Ryzen Threadripper is likely the biggest processor release of the year, quite literally. And that's saying a lot, given the company's rapid-fire releases addressing almost every facet of the desktop market. Now AMD is attacking Intel's high-end desktop stronghold with up to 60% more cores, 36% more PCIe lanes, and 68% more cache than the comparably-priced Skylake-X models. AMD also doesn't hack and slash at its product stack by culling I/O, so the company offers the same connectivity, even on its least-expensive models... ... Much like the rest of its Ryzen line-up, AMD's Threadripper processors offer more cores than Intel at every price point. This time, however, we also get 64 PCIe 3.0 lanes (four of which are dedicated to the chipset) that outweigh Intel's [not yet available] 44-lane flagship Core i9-7980XE. ... AMD includes all 64 lanes with each of its three Threadripper models, whereas Intel reduces connectivity for Skylake-X processors below $1000... ... Threadripper features independent dual-channel memory controllers, one per die, that combine to provide quad-channel support with varying data transfer rates (outlined below) based upon memory configurations. The platform supports ECC memory and a functional limit of 256GB of RAM, though it can support up to 2TB of capacity as memory density increases... ... we're here for performance testing. Let's see if Threadripper lives up to the hype... ... [Overclocking, AMD shows] A real temperature of approximately 60°C serves as a great demonstration of why solder is superior to thermal paste. Intel's Core i9-7900X could have had so much potential if the company hadn't taken the easy way out... ... AMD’s mainstream Ryzen CPUs heralded the return of competition in the desktop processor market. Now, AMD brings the same Zen architecture and strategy to the high-end desktop, and we’ve already seen Intel’s reaction in the form of lower prices for its (still-pricey) Skylake-X line-up... ... Threadripper shines in our benchmarks written to exploit as many cores as you can throw at them. Threadripper outpaces the similarly-priced -7900X in rendering, encoding, and compression. As expected, it isn’t quite as nimble in lightly-threaded applications, such as decompression and portions of the Adobe suite. Those applications continue to favor Intel’s IPC throughput and frequency. After the Ryzen launch, AMD was faced with the challenge of quickly maturing its motherboard ecosystem and convincing game developers to optimize existing titles for the new architecture. The company has met with success on many fronts in a relatively brief time... Those who need what Threadripper offers likely already know. And if that's you, we have to imagine you're elated to know there's an alternative to Intel's steep buy-in, particularly now that AMD is winning in benchmarks it hasn't won in a very long time. Verdict If you need Threadripper, you’ll know it. Heavy multitaskers, streamers, those who regularly use heavily threaded applications or have heavy PCIe requirements will all experience competitive performance. The recommendation comes with a caveat, though; if you’re looking strictly for the best gaming performance, you are better served with other alternatives [until optimized for Ryzen]. Indeed an impressive launch! Happy fast efficient crunchin'! Martin
3) Message boards : Number crunching : Thoughts on the new Intel X299 platform? (Message 1882890) Posted 7 days ago by ML1 Post: ... but don't like the idea of having to use Windows 10.... Having to? No possibility of running 7 on it?? WTH? What's this BS about CPU specific OS's? It's an x86 proc, right? Or are we now in a post x86 world? If so I missed that memo. If it doesn't run all the latest and greatest features of the Proc, I don't care. But you're saying that during the Win 7 install, the OS pops up and says that it is not a compatible CPU? And no workarounds? Wow, just wow. Welcome to the New Marketing whoring where "compatibility" is a rebranded Marketing insisting that you MUST UPGRADE every 6 months... Call that freedom? ... 'cos I don't! IT is what we allow it to be... Martin
4) Message boards : Number crunching : Thoughts on the new Intel X299 platform? (Message 1882888) Posted 7 days ago by ML1 Post: ... AMD new chips and GPUs should prove interesting. I wouldn't mind building one myself but don't like the idea of having to use Windows 10.... Go Linux. Works well. Take care not to get too drunk on the freedom from Licensing restrictions! ... Happy fast crunchin', Martin
5) Message boards : Politics : Shocking! (Message 1882659) Posted 10 days ago by ML1 Post: in a disjointed and often ineffective and inconsistent manner, with less regard to fire safety than should be the case. Possibly due to the incredibly effective, but horrendously naive "green lobby", who for many years have pursued a dream of getting every building brought up to a very high level of thermal insulation regardless of the impacts this may have on the safety of the building (and fire is not the only aspect this lobby group have consistently ignored) Nothing of the sort. Try something along the lines of the games played out in the construction industry for maximum price for the most extreme shoddiness and maximum of corners cut, all for unskilled cheapest labour possible to tick the unchecked tick-boxes...? I've seen the total p**s-take taken for fit-outs. There really does need to be child-minder type total supervision and oversight to combat the "tarmac gang dump it and run" business models followed... And people die or live in ongoing shoddiness for our present building practices... For this particular example, the price difference was just £5000 for deathly combustible vs less combustible panels. And they were inappropriately used/fitted. Corruption pays? So much for the consequences of "deregulation"... And only in the UK??... Martin
6) Message boards : Number crunching : Windows 10 - Yea or Nay? (Message 1882658) Posted 10 days ago by ML1 Post: New examples of what your Windows 10 Creators Update sends back, depending on if you selected the Basic or Full telemetry: From https://privacy.microsoft.com/en-us/windows-10-feedback-diagnostics-and-privacy: [...] According to Microsoft 71% of the computers is set to send back full data. You're all crazy. Jord! Thanks for that... The "You're all crazy" sent a perfectly innocent coffee up my nose and elsewhere...!! Quite the understatement of the day? ;-) Happy crunchin', Martin
7) Message boards : Number crunching : Corruptedlibc.so.6??? (Message 1882614) Posted 10 days ago by ML1 Post: Not sure why, but the data directory appears to have moved from /var/lib to my home directory without any intervention on my behalf. Now to get it back from whence it came.... Take care if you have more than one installation...? (Or more than one way that Boinc gets started?...) Happy crunchin', Martin
8) Message boards : Number crunching : Corruptedlibc.so.6??? (Message 1882610) Posted 10 days ago by ML1 Post: Last night one of my Linux crunchers decided to stop crunching... Today, trying to start BOINC manually from the command prompt I get the following "rude" message: 07-Aug-2017 10:22:03 Initialization completed 07-Aug-2017 10:22:03 [---] Running CPU benchmarks 07-Aug-2017 10:22:03 [---] Suspending computation - CPU benchmarks in progress * buffer overflow detected : boinc terminated ======= Backtrace: ========= /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libc.so.6(+0x777e5)[0x7fe5187527e5] [...] /lib/x86_64-linux-gnu/libc.so.6(__sprintf_chk+0x7d)[0x7fe5187f0abd] Help!!!! Very unlikely to be a corrupt libc file!... More likely is that something got updated(?)* whilst Boinc was running. Or that you've found a bug in the Boinc app for trying to output results. Try restarting Boinc to see if that reoccurs? Are you using custom optimized apps?... Do they match the libc version that you are running? Hopefully happy crunchin', Martin [edit] This detail is likely not needed. Most likely just restarting after an update will have things fixed. But just-in-case of interest: From a commandline I get for one of my systems: $ file /lib64/libc.so.6 /lib64/libc.so.6: symbolic link to libc-2.23.so $ $ file /lib64/libc-2.23.so /lib64/libc-2.23.so: ELF 64-bit LSB shared object, x86-64, version 1 (GNU/Linux), dynamically linked, interpreter /lib64/ld-linux-x86-64.so.2, for GNU/Linux 2.6.32, stripped, with debug_info [/edit]
9) Message boards : Politics : We are being slimed... (Message 1882497) Posted 10 days ago by ML1 Post: All far too intensive? The numbers themselves are scary! And the result is: Belgium says it knew about contaminated eggs in June Belgium has admitted it knew in June that eggs from Dutch farms might be contaminated with an insecticide - a month before the issue became public. The information was not shared because of a fraud investigation... Tests found the chemical fipronil, which can harm people's kidneys, liver and thyroid glands... ... One German official said up to 10 million of the contaminated eggs may have been sold in Germany. The Netherlands is Europe's largest exporter of eggs and egg products, and one of the biggest in the world. It exports an estimated 65% of the 10 billion eggs it produces every year. About 180 poultry farms in the country have been temporarily shut while investigations are held. All in the name of good (greedy) business?... Martin
10) Message boards : Number crunching : AMD EPYC Benchmarks Smash the WinTel Hedgemony?... (Message 1881634) Posted 15 days ago by ML1 Post: The AMD Threadripper does tear upon the IT scene! Threadripper Lands August 10, AMD Unveils Pricing, Accessory Kit, New Model Threadripper lands on retail shelves on August 10 and pre-orders open tomorrow. AMD filled us in on additional details ... including an unannounced processor, a new accessory kit, and Threadripper's XFR frequencies and TDPs... ... AMD's halo Ryzen Threadripper 1950X model leads the charge with 16 cores and 32 threads, and the Zen architecture bristles with copious PCIe connectivity options for the entire lineup. More importantly, Threadripper sets the stage for a potentially lopsided fight between this $999 16-core flagship model and the similarly priced Intel 10-core i9-7900X. Lower prices and less segmentation are music to enthusiast ears... ... The Threadripper 1950X naturally competes with Intel's Core i9-7900X, but it brings more cores, cache, and PCIe lanes to the battle. The Threadripper 1920X straddles the pricing line between the Core i9-7900X and the i7-7820X, which shows that AMD is taking advantage of the big $400 price gap in the Intel lineup. Shrewd move; Intel doesn't have a clear contender at this price point... ... AMD also provided a slide that outlines Threadripper's resource advantages relative to Intel's lineup. Overall, AMD's core, cache, and PCIe advantages are impressive. Although these factors don't always equate to better performance, they surely set a strong foundation... ... AMD contends that its 16-core 1950X offers considerably more efficiency than Intel's 10-core -7900X, but it will also be interesting to pit it against one of Intel's higher core count models. Those have yet to come to market, lending AMD the advantage of the highest core counts at launch... ... Intel has already begun to lower its prices in the face of stiffer competition, and as we can see in the chart, Intel has significantly reduced its pricing for high-end desktop models. If AMD generates enough sales, it's possible we could see further changes to Intel's pricing model... An impressive launch! Happy fast efficient crunchin'! Martin
11) Message boards : Number crunching : NVIDIA GPU Fan Control using GUI in Linux (Message 1881318) Posted 17 days ago by ML1 Post: Hey! Nice work :-) (OK... So I'm far too lazy to write a GUI when there is the old magic of the command line... ;-) ) Happy cool crunchin', Martin
12) Message boards : Number crunching : AMD EPYC Benchmarks Smash the WinTel Hedgemony?... (Message 1880488) Posted 21 days ago by ML1 Post: My reading of the latest events is that Intel look to be fearful of some competitive competition from both a technically good and price competitive offering. Why else would Intel Marketing immediately descend into some very negative press (indoctrinations & befuddlement) presentations? See for yourself! AMD Unveils Threadripper Retail Packaging The enthusiast world eagerly awaits the debut of AMD's Threadripper processors. They'll be Intel's first real high-end desktop challenger in ages and could upset the pricing status quo... ... The 1950X weighs in with 16 cores and 32 threads for $999, and the Threadripper 1920X brings 12 cores and 24 threads for $799. We already know the CPU is massive -- it snaps into the 4,096-pin TR4 socket paired with the X399 chipset. All Threadripper models will also come with 64 PCIe lanes, which stands in contrast to Intel's strategy of disabling PCIe lanes on lower-end models... ... For now, Intel's Core i9-7900X serves as the company's flagship with ten cores and 20 threads. That opens a window of opportunity for AMD as it ships its 12- and 16-core models... Intel Plays Defense: Inside Its EPYC Slide Deck ... Intel presented a deck that outlined what it considers to be its advantages against AMD’s EPYC CPUs. The slides generated a lot of controversy over the last week... But first, some background... ... which allowed Intel to gobble up ~99.6% of the market. EPYC has the potential to change this by virtue of its strong performance, scalability, aggressive pricing, and less confusing segmentation than Intel's Xeon line-up... ... Aside from market share, AMD poses a larger threat to Intel’s margins, which can exceed 60%. By strategically snipping features from various models in the Xeon portfolio, Intel is able to maximize the profit it earns... Truth be told, it’s hard to negotiate with a company that essentially controls the world's data centers... EPYC changes the game... ... The war between Intel and AMD is certainly getting interesting. And in some ways, the most recent battle appears to be fought with interconnects. Intel's mesh architecture and AMD's Infinity Fabric will power both companies' respective platforms for years to come. AMD's advantage here may be that it sells CPUs and GPUs, playing to its heterogeneous compute strategy... ... AMD is focusing on the areas that play to its strengths and avoiding segments that aren't a good fit for the new architecture, which it admits frankly... ... Intel is usually nonplussed in the face of competition. But its reaction to EPYC speaks volumes. In the end, absolute performance isn't nearly as important as the price-to-performance ratio, and initial signs indicate that AMD is off to a good start... and if AMD's EPYC delivers, Intel's strengths might not be able to hold it off. Here's hoping that good honest tech and good honest marketing brings some fair competition to open up the present stagnant monopoly that we suffer in a certain area... What could possibly go wrong again?... IT is what we allow it to be! Martin
13) Message boards : Number crunching : Windows 10 - Yea or Nay? (Message 1880483) Posted 21 days ago by ML1 Post: ... Now M$ must of had a (slight) change of heart on MSPaint...: https://www.theverge.com/2017/7/25/16024356/microsoft-paint-windows-store-app Microsoft Paint isn't dead yet, will live in the Windows Store for free ... MSPaint will still be part of Windows 10, but Microsoft will be promoting and encouraging end users to opt for Paint 3D instead. ... As Paint hasn’t been marked as removed in Microsoft’s support articles, this means it will act like Internet Explorer in the upcoming Windows 10 Fall Creators Update. MSPaint will still be part of Windows 10, but Microsoft will be promoting and encouraging end users to opt for Paint 3D instead. Microsoft hasn’t provided a timeline for when Paint will be available in the Windows Store, but its appearance in the Store will likely trigger the removal part of Microsoft’s support for the app within Windows 10 in the future. Don’t worry just yet, you can continue making crappy artwork just like everyone has with Paint for the past 31 years. Or... All a game of some very clever coercive Marketing that has bagged some free headlines for the last few days to announce a trivial update and to 'encourage' users to 'enjoy' the 'experience' of creating an account and logging into the "Windows Store Experience" all just to be able to continue using their own systems?... You WILL be dragged (screaming or blinded or otherwise) into the 'Microsoft World'(tm) of the 'Microsoft Cloud'(tm) and the 'Microsoft Store'(tm)... Good luck?... Or... Is there any other way? IT is what we allow it to be... Martin
14) Message boards : Politics : Computers & Technology 3 (Message 1880480) Posted 21 days ago by ML1 Post: All a (continued) silly game of vandalism? And all at the (continued) expense of those paying for the results...? In Ironic Twist, Intel Accuses Qualcomm Of Anti-Competitive Tactics ... Intel accused Qualcomm of using a “no license, no chips” policy, through which it allegedly coerces device makers into paying Qualcomm “exorbitant royalty rates” for every device they sell, on top of the price they pay for the modems. If the OEMs refuse to pay the license or try to take Qualcomm to court, Qualcomm would then disrupt the supply... ... third anti-competitive practice includes Qualcomm offering a discount on its “exorbitant” royalty rates to companies such as Apple, but only if they agree to enter exclusivity... ... Intel Should Know What’s Anti-Competitive All of these written attacks coming from Intel’s statement are quite interesting, considering Intel itself has also been accused and fined over similar tactics in the past against AMD... NB: Fines were levied many years later after harmful financial and market damage had be done... And STILL Intel have not paid... IT and business are what we allow them to be... Martin
15) Message boards : Number crunching : Windows 10 - Yea or Nay? (Message 1879067) Posted 29 days ago by ML1 Post: And if there weren't enough reasons to love Win 10, here's yet another one: Microsoft cuts off Windows 10 support early for some PCs Also cut for those few on all but the latest even fewer Windows Phones: Got a Windows Phone 8 mobe? It's now officially obsolete. Here's why... Microsoft pulls the plug on support for dedicated smartphone OS... ... this is by no means the end of Microsoft's support for mobile phones. Microsoft continues to sell three different models of Lumia phones as branded devices, and Redmond has maintained that Windows 10 Mobile will be part of the planned "OneCore" platform strategy going forward. Note the "Windows 10 Mobile will be part of the planned "OneCore" platform strategy going forward"... Be ready for change?... A curious radical change and a non-change are: Ubuntu Linux now on Windows Store Microsoft finally confirmed that Hell has indeed frozen over – Ubuntu is at long last available from the Windows Store... Get out the flyswatter, MS, and just keep smashing those bugs... rolleyes Yep. We have Microsoft as usual... Would you trust your own eyes to such fell strangeness?... It's July 2017 – and your expensive HoloLens can be pwned over Wi-Fi Patch Tuesday Microsoft's HoloLens may only be in the hands of developers, but that hasn't stopped researchers from finding major security holes in the augmented reality headset. Critical fixes for HoloLens were among the 57 CVE-listed flaws Redmond had to address in this month's edition of Patch Tuesday. Of the 57 bugs blasted in various Microsoft products, 19 are listed as critical and 24 could potentially allow for remote code execution. Four vulnerabilities were disclosed publicly before today's patches landed, but none are being targeted in the wild at the moment... What a strange mix! IT is what we make it... Martin
16) Message boards : Politics : We are being slimed... (Message 1878143) Posted 14 Jul 2017 by ML1 Post: Here is quite a bitter un-sweet revelation: Sugar is poison. My heart attack has finally opened my eyes to the truth ... Back in September 2016, the Journal of the American Medical Association published papers, discovered deep in the Harvard University archives, that demonstrated how the sugar industry has been manipulating research into heart disease for years. These papers revealed that the purveyors of this white poison – in behaviour straight out of the tobacco industry playbook – had been paying Harvard scientists throughout the 1960s to emphasise the link between fat and heart disease and ignore the connection with sugar. Since then, Coca-Cola has funded research into the link between sugar and obesity. And the confectionery industry has paid for research which “demonstrated” that children who eat sweets are thinner than those who don’t... ... As Gary Taubes explained in his remarkable book The Case Against Sugar, published last year, it has “assimilated itself into all aspects of our eating experience”. Advertisements have normalised the omnipresence of sugar as a part of a balanced diet. And my son’s brain has become accustomed to the dopamine it releases. He has become an addict. Most of us are [sugar] addicts... Really... All just a 'game' of no morals and no consequences? All in our only one world, Martin
17) Message boards : Politics : We are being slimed... (Message 1878141) Posted 14 Jul 2017 by ML1 Post: You really hate the advertising world... Not really... Just the greedy malevolent Lies, Deceit, Dirty-tricks, Entrapment and Victimization parts of the world... :-( Positive advertising for a good product works wonders. Shame about all the other negative silliness... Can we evolve to something better? All in our only one world, Martin
18) Message boards : Politics : We are being slimed... (Message 1878127) Posted 13 Jul 2017 by ML1 Post: Good points. Re: ... they don't want "big brother" telling them what they can or cannot do. Yet the public never comment on doing as Marketing tell them or for following the Marketing 'persuasions' or 'coercions' for profitable Marketing... All due to the subversive power of Marketing-with-no-morals?... All in our only one world, Martin
19) Message boards : Number crunching : AMD EPYC Benchmarks Smash the WinTel Hedgemony?... (Message 1878117) Posted 13 Jul 2017 by ML1 Post: Here's a more real-world spread of benchmarks comparing a good mix of Ryzen and Intel CPUs. Take your pick! :-) AMD Ryzen 5 1400 Linux Benchmarks: 27-Way CPU Comparison On Ubuntu ... $160 USD will get you a quad-core processor plus Hyper Threading and clocks up to 3.4GHz. Here are some benchmarks of the AMD Ryzen 5 1400 on Ubuntu 17.04 compared to various other Intel and AMD CPUs over the years... Looks very good and very practical. Those chasing the very top Marketing numbers can subsidize Intel if they so wish ;-) IT is very much what we make it... Martin
20) Message boards : Number crunching : To checkpoint or not -- the wear and tear of SSD drives (Message 1878110) Posted 13 Jul 2017 by ML1 Post: ... one electron per cell ... Sorry, don't follow your description there. Sounds fuzzily[] like you're describing storage using quantum dots. Eg, see: ARSTechnica - "The perfect computer memory: quantum dots?" In the greatly larger dimensions of insulated-gate based 'flash' storage, varying amounts of charge (very many electrons) are tunneled through an insulator to a "floating" (transistor) gate. The amount of charge forced onto the floating gate determines the static charge seen and hence the detected voltage. In all cases, there is only one floating charged gate per storage cell. The clever part is to be able to control ever smaller differences in charge to be able to encode more bits of data for the detected voltage levels. One bit requires two discrete voltage levels (amounts of charge on the floating gate). Through to sixteen discrete voltage levels to go to four bits per cell. Degradation in the operation occurs when charge gets 'trapped' in the insulators around the gates, or if the insulators become leaky. When degraded, the charge that should be there doesn't give the expected voltage for that transistor... There are various 'tricks' to recover or mitigate but that's for a bit more of an article! All a good fun subject to explore! Keep searchin', Martin [edit] : That's a bit of a fun pun on fuzzy logic and Heisenberg uncertainty for singular electrons :-) [/edit]

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