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Reading Assignment and Discussion Topics
Computer Science 471

for class on Thursday Sept. 23, 1999

Please read:

• Sections 3.1 through 3.4 of the Patterson & Hennessy text;
• the attached case (``Byte Addressing: From Laboratory to Practice''); and
• the attached paper (``Hardware/Software Tradeoffs for Increased Performance''), particularly the passages marked with a wavey line in the left margin.

1. How would you summarize the points of view of the two Johns?

2. Hennessy's performance claim is based on the increased length of a certain logic path in the byte-addressed machine. What hardware is involved?

3. From your knowledge of C, what problems can you imagine in a port of C-based Unix to a word-addressed architecture?

4. What should Hennessy do?