From: sorrow@oak.circa.ufl.edu
Subject: TECH: Using TI340x0
Date: Sat, 04 Apr 1992 21:24:30 GMT
Organization: The CIRCA Underground


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.

The TI34082 FPU can execute one floating point instruction per cycle,
and the TI34020 has most primitives built in, and you can upload in
effect new opcodes and isntructions into its local SRAM buffer.  It
has a very high output.

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.

Just wondering,

Brian