New Intel Simplified Architecture

I don't think that will go over well with Windows users - other than websurf-only users of course. Many people who use their PC locally have little collections of programs that they use, with 32 bits mixed in. An example are audio plugins that were never updated to 64 bits but do some trick the user still wants. When Apple removed 32 bit support from Intel OSX that did not go over so well with many users that aren't websurf-only.

By extension Wine users on FreeBSD would be affects, for example those that run old games.
 
cracauer@ said:
I don't think that will go over well with Windows users - other than websurf-only users of course. Many people who use their PC locally have little collections of programs that they use, with 32 bits mixed in. An example are audio plugins that were never updated to 64 bits but do some trick the user still wants. When Apple removed 32 bit support from Intel OSX that did not go over so well with many users that aren't websurf-only.

By extension Wine users on FreeBSD would be affects, for example those that run old games.
Click to expand...
I don't think that the proposed architecture totally gets rid of the ability to run 32-bit protected mode. Posts elsewhere have suggested that there will still be a legacy mode, but just for 32 bits.

Last time I checked, Office was still a 32 bit application, which for MS seems kind of pathetic. Hopefully BSD/Linux/OSS can adapt more easily as long as there are developers around to maintain the code.
 
I think in some ways much of the 32-bit mash of programs in Windows could be solved by adding a usermode emulator, similar to qemu-static to their WoW64 (Windows on Windows) compat layer. Doesn't Microsoft already have access to similar tech for their Snapdragon experiments?
This translation is generally going to be fast enough for many programs (possibly even games) because it only deals with the logic, not with i.e graphics and things like that.

I am hoping this will actually improve Wine though. In many ways that 32-bit/64-bit FreeBSD userland stuff is a bit messy. If they can integrate a decent x86 translator in there (i.e box86) so that Wine becomes "not an emulator" but also "an emulator" at the same time, I think this will clean up the tech stack a little. It will become a little more like DOSBox (a strange hybrid emulator).
 
cracauer@ said:
I don't think that will go over well with Windows users - other than websurf-only users of course. Many people who use their PC locally have little collections of programs that they use, with 32 bits mixed in. An example are audio plugins that were never updated to 64 bits but do some trick the user still wants. When Apple removed 32 bit support from Intel OSX that did not go over so well with many users that aren't websurf-only.

By extension Wine users on FreeBSD would be affects, for example those that run old games.
Click to expand...
Haven't used wine in a while, and freebsd support for wine or versa visa has always been an added complication. But at what point do you run legacy wintel software on dosbox (ie full CPU emulation) instead of wine (ie legacy windows ABI)?
 
This doesn't bother source-built things like FreeBSD a bit... unless... you rely on some binary blob. Apps run in Wine count.

cracauer@ said:
When Apple removed 32 bit support from Intel OSX that did not go over so well with many users that aren't websurf-only.
Click to expand...

And they all had to suck it up. Windows 11 doesn't have a 32-bit version. Whatever weird 32-bit things that still exist are going to have to get re-compiled, re-implemented, or re-verse engineered.
 
msplsh said:
And they all had to suck it up. Windows 11 doesn't have a 32-bit version. Whatever weird 32-bit things that still exist are going to have to get re-compiled, re-implemented, or re-verse engineered.
Click to expand...

Windows 11 (64 bit OS) runs 32 bit Windows apps just fine.
 
Thunked through WOW64. I guess the difference there is that Apple could have done it but chose not to.
 
BSDUser97 said:
Last time I checked, Office was still a 32 bit application, which for MS seems kind of pathetic.
Click to expand...
That was when, in '00s? You can choose either x86 or x64 when installing for a lot of years now.
1686068239506.png
 
Up until 2022, wasn't Visual Studio a big mix of i686 and amd64? So much so that it installed in Program Files(x86). I am fairly sure that some of it still is.
 
One of my arguments for realmode, albeit being weird, was that at least you can still play DOS games there if you wanted. But as motherboard firmware is slowly starting to drop the CSM and have only UEFI firmware there's really no reason for CPU to start in RM with all its memory limitations. This will definitely simplify the startup.
Judging from the timeline Intel shared in that link many was already dropped.

Dropping 32b support would be significant (it drags down the VM86 with it too). But I agree with you kpedersen , if such support is needed most likely some sort of emulator would suffice. Probably not for games though.
On the other hand I still play some Atari games I used to play on emulator and I'm ok with it. I think it will be the same for 32B too.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top