The trick to using Windows for a long time without having to reinstall it is to install very few applications and keep it that way. I very carefully kept my installed set of applications to a minimum and Windows has run well for over a year on a single install (and I'm still using Win 95!). Another trick is to keep games and trial software off--they just pollute the registry and the DLLs. Yet another trick is to use real hardware (i.e., you pretty much have to build your own computer and not accept the junk in a pre-built system)
The least reliable Windows computers generally belong to people who install all sorts of crap software that clashes due to the gross permissiveness and disorganization of the system. These systems become so unpredictable and unmaintainable that format and reinstall is the only repair option.
The large cache in the UltraSPARC III dramatically improves the processor efficiency, especially if the system is being worked hard. This way the processor can do real work instead of sitting idle while data becomes available. When really hard work needs to be done is when the P4 will clearly fall behind the UltraSPARC (or any other server-grade processor).
The P4 is fine for lightweight server use and video games, if that is all that is needed.
Unlikely. If you can configure a P4-based PC with 8MB cache per processor, a fiber-channel disk subsystem, and the UltraSPARC's memory bandwidth, it *might* approach an UltraSPARC III system.
Per MHz, the P4 is at best two-thirds as fast as the UltraSPARC III for FP calculations, and P4 systems are generally configured with mediocre components that don't help them at all. When PCs are actually given good components, the apparent price penalty of the UltraSPARC hardware begins to disappear, lessening price/performance arguments.
Also, how many processors can you fit into that P4 system?
Remember, if you know what you are doing, you really do get what you pay for.
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The trick to using Windows for a long time without having to reinstall it is to install very few applications and keep it that way. I very carefully kept my installed set of applications to a minimum and Windows has run well for over a year on a single install (and I'm still using Win 95!). Another trick is to keep games and trial software off--they just pollute the registry and the DLLs. Yet another trick is to use real hardware (i.e., you pretty much have to build your own computer and not accept the junk in a pre-built system) The least reliable Windows computers generally belong to people who install all sorts of crap software that clashes due to the gross permissiveness and disorganization of the system. These systems become so unpredictable and unmaintainable that format and reinstall is the only repair option.
The large cache in the UltraSPARC III dramatically improves the processor efficiency, especially if the system is being worked hard. This way the processor can do real work instead of sitting idle while data becomes available. When really hard work needs to be done is when the P4 will clearly fall behind the UltraSPARC (or any other server-grade processor). The P4 is fine for lightweight server use and video games, if that is all that is needed.
Unlikely. If you can configure a P4-based PC with 8MB cache per processor, a fiber-channel disk subsystem, and the UltraSPARC's memory bandwidth, it *might* approach an UltraSPARC III system. Per MHz, the P4 is at best two-thirds as fast as the UltraSPARC III for FP calculations, and P4 systems are generally configured with mediocre components that don't help them at all. When PCs are actually given good components, the apparent price penalty of the UltraSPARC hardware begins to disappear, lessening price/performance arguments. Also, how many processors can you fit into that P4 system? Remember, if you know what you are doing, you really do get what you pay for.