Intel Press Release

Chairman Emeritus Of Intel Corporation Addresses Intel Developer Forum With The System Design Implications Of Moore's Law

Developers Get a Glimpse of the Future – Are There Limits?

INTEL DEVELOPER FORUM, SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 30, 1997-- Gordon E. Moore, chairman emeritus of Intel Corporation, kicks off the second day of the Intel Developer Forum with a keynote address, "An Update on Moore's Law." During the presentation, Moore will discuss the pertinent issues regarding silicon development and its impact on the rest of the industry. Moore will cover the challenges developers face looking forward in managing complexity, functional integration, power, cost and other design factors design. Moore's keynote will also explore the question, "Are there real limits?" and provide an update on how it all impacts the future of processor technology and the evolution of the computing platform.

The keynote is part of the three-day intensive forum, being held in San Francisco from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1, which provides computer developers and manufacturers and Independent Hardware Vendors (IHVs) with comprehensive technical training. The forum also provides in-depth information on Intel technologies and industry initiatives that will keep them on the leading edge of emerging technologies.

In his "Update on Moore's Law," Moore will make further predictions on semiconductor technology development: its pace, performance and functional integration, along with its impact on product life cycles. Gordon Moore's IDF keynote will be webcast live on www.intel.com/idf/webcast.htm [no longer available]. A full transcript will be available on www.intel.com/pressroom.

Pat Gelsinger, vice president and general manager of Intel's Desktop Products Group, kicked off the three-day event yesterday with a keynote address on "The Balanced PC Platform." Tomorrow, the final day, Dan Russell, director of Platform Marketing, will lead off the day with a keynote on "PC 98 Implementation Implications."

The Intel Developer Forum provides tools, training and tips for business and consumer desktop, mobile, workstation and server developers that will help them expedite their development and optimize for performance overall, delivering better platform solutions to end users. More information on the Intel Developer Forum can be found at www.Intel.com/idf/.

Several technical announcements were made during the first two days of the Intel Developers Forum. These include:

  • Intel-developed Application Launch Accelerator software technology will be licensed to Microsoft. The combination of Intel's Application Launch Accelerator technology and key advances in Windows* 98 will dramatically shorten the time it takes for software applications to load from the hard disk drive.
  • An upgrade to the original Audio Codec 97 specification, AC 97 v 2.0 boosts audio performance, enabling the PC to be compatible in quality with consumer electronics devices. The specification defines new cost-effective options to help PC OEMs integrate the components necessary to support next-generation audio-intensive PC applications such as DVD, 3-D multiplayer games and interactive music. The specification can be downloaded from the Intel Web site at developer.intel.com/pc-supp/platform/ac97.
  • Platform Solutions -- Hardware Developers Online Newsletter is a new web publication and companion e-mail newsletter. Platform Solutions provides timely information worldwide on Intel platform directions, industry initiatives and technologies relevant to hardware industry developers and management. It spans all PC platforms including business and consumer desktop, mobile, workstation and server systems. Those interested in more detail or subscribing can visit the Intel Developer Update Magazine Web site at www.intel.com/update/.
  • Intel is making available three new Intel Performance Evaluation and Analysis Kit (IPEAK) Tools, developed internally, which help PC OEMs and Independent Hardware Vendors (IHVs) dramatically improve analysis and diagnostic capabilities in platform integration and performance tuning. These tools are aimed to assist PC OEMs and IHVs in shortening the product time-to-market cycle when adopting new platform technologies and standards, such as Accelerated Graphics Port (AGP) and industry power management initiatives. The tools also make it easier for IHVs and OEMs to understand performance issues which can be addressed to optimize product performance.
  • Power Supply '98 is a dual-mode power supply specification, which when implemented on computer systems, allows the desktop PC similar sleep mode advantages to a notebook PC. Power Supply ‘98 reduces overall power consumption in both active and sleep states. Power Supply ‘98, when combined with an ACPI (Advanced Configuration and Power Interface) -compliant system using ACPI motherboards, peripherals and operating systems, exceeds current Environmental Protection Agency Energy Star Guidelines and complies with European energy standards. Power Supply ‘98 virtually eliminates the boot process, helps network administrators implement Wired for Management practices and takes the PC one step closer to being the ultimate consumer appliance. Developers can receive further information on Power Supply ‘98 or download the specification by visiting the Intel Web site.
  • Low Pin Count (LPC) Interface Specification is a new interface specification for legacy I/O, which will drive the industry transition toward future ISA-less systems. Intended for both notebook and desktop PC OEMs and IHVs, the newly defined LPC Interface allows the legacy I/O motherboard components, typically integrated in a Super I/O chip, to migrate from the ISA/X-bus to the LPC Interface while retaining full software compatibility. This will allow manufacturers to reduce overall design costs and facilitate the industry's move toward higher-performance next-generation I/O technologies, such as Universal Serial Bus (USB) and IEEE1394.

* Other names and brands may be claimed as the property of others.