From: dstamp@watserv1.waterloo.edu (Dave Stampe-Psy+Eng)
Subject: Re: TECH: Using TI340x0
Date: Sun, 5 Apr 1992 23:55:58 GMT
Message-ID: <1992Apr5.235558.23138@watserv1.waterloo.edu>
Organization: University of Waterloo


sorrow@oak.circa.ufl.edu writes:
>
>I was wondering if anyone has pursued using a Texas Instruments TI30x0
>video card for their virtual reality project?  While not quite a pixel
>planes/5, they are relatively inexpensive and VERY VERY FAST and VERY
>VERY GOOD.
>
>My question is, these boards are popular for CAD, but has anyone used
>them for VR?  If not, why not?  It seems that a TI34020 based system
>with a TI34082, along with a 486 and an i860, would make a fairly
>inexpensive and EXTREMELY fast VR system.  Cost would be around 15,000
>dollars for the hardware ( i.e. processors ).  The TI34020 board
>can be had for a bit over a 1000, and the FPU is something like 200 0dolalrs.
>the i860 would be the most expensive processor.
>

Why use the TI chip at all, if you're going to use an i860?  It does
the floating point far faster and supports Z-buffering and Gourand
shading in hardware.  While the TI chip only does trapezoid fills
w/o Z-buffering.

Speed is pretty good on the i860 too.  For "photorealistic" type
VR work (as opposed to flat, depth-sorted polys) I'd prefer the
i860 myself.  But of course the TI chip IS cheaper.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------
| My life is Hardware,                    |                              | 
| my destiny is Software,                 |         Dave Stampe          |
| my CPU is Wetware...                    |                              | 
| Anybody got a SDB I can borrow?         | dstamp@watserv1.uwaterloo.ca |
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