After all, what counts in computing is how many instructions can be processed in a given time. Quad-core is better than dual-core, octa-core is a frequently used suggestion of high performance, and very high performance systems may even have more.īut the number of cores is not all that matters. And there, it’s much the same in computers: the number of computing cores, the cylinders of a CPU, often suggests its power. Four was/is the norm for average vehicles, six is better, and eight or even twelve means power and high performance. Still, you see no vehicles with just one or two cylinders except perhaps motorcycles. So how do we know if a system can handle a certain load? In combustion engines, the number of cylinder matters, even though thanks to turbocharging and computerized engine control that is no longer as relevant as it once was. And if a system’s task must be able to handle very complex tasks and very heavy loads, it must have enough peak performance to do that task as well as is possible.
If a system may be used for a variety of tasks, there must be enough performance to reasonably handle everything it may encounter, within reason. If a system is used for clearly defined tasks, all that is needed is enough performance to handle those, and everything above that is wasted. And just like in vehicles, very high peak performance may or may not matter. The kind of performance that matters most in computers is that which enables the system to respond quickly and effortlessly to the user’s commands.
And that’s pretty much the same for computers. On the racetrack it does matter, but what constitutes enough performance for tooling through town and everyday driving is a different matter altogether. That said, absolute peak performance may or may not matter. And it has enough performance to handle every situation. Step on the gas, and the vehicles instantly responds. In vehicles, performance clearly means how effortlessly the engine moves the car or truck. So how is performance measured in computers, and why is “performance” relevant in the first place? To answer that, we first need to look at why performance is needed and what it does in both vehicles and in cars. That’s why car magazines measure and report on various aspects and capabilities of a vehicle: acceleration, braking, roadholding, as well as subjective impressions such as how effortless and pleasant a vehicle drives and handles. And even if the vehicles weighed the same, performance might be different because of a number of other factors, such as transmission, aerodynamics, tires, and so on. The same engine that makes a light vehicle a rocket might struggle in a larger, heavier vehicle. True, horsepower (what an antiquated term that is) isn’t really all that relevant, because that number alone doesn’t tell the whole story. Unlike vehicles whose specifications include a horsepower rating, computers don’t have a single number that indicates how powerful they are. DecemThoughts about Computer Benchmark Testing
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