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- Path: sparky!uunet!spool.mu.edu!umn.edu!epx.cis.umn.edu!mmoore
- From: mmoore@epx.cis.umn.edu ("None of ya Bizness")
- Subject: ]* Low Norton CPU speed rating on 486SX's *
- Message-ID: <1992Sep6.080124.15591@news2.cis.umn.edu>
- Sender: news@news2.cis.umn.edu (Usenet News Administration)
- Nntp-Posting-Host: epx.cis.umn.edu
- Organization: University of Minnesota
- Date: Sun, 6 Sep 1992 08:01:24 GMT
- Lines: 40
-
- Well, I'm lookin around to buy a replace my old computer with a newer
- and more powerful machine. So I've been checking aorund all thr
- computer stores around here to try and price one for myself. Knowing
- I shouldn't be thinkin about buying one right now but like Pepsi I got
- ta have it.
-
- Anyway, since dealers around here automatically assume that any
- potential customer is a complete dumb shit (example: I saw one
- salesman trying to sell a couple a 286) and will lie to get any kind
- of deal through, I have been bringing my copy of Norton Utilities'
- SYSINFO program on disk wherever I shop.
-
- I've noticed one peculiar thing, though. Whenever I test it on a
- 486SX (or so it seems) The CPU Benchmark Speed Index rating is very
- low. Those who have Norton 6.0 know that the computer being tested is
- matched against a Compaq 386/33 (SI 34.5), some damn 286 monster, and a
- plain old 4.77MHz 8088 PC. Just tonight I tested it on a Packard Bell
- clone with 4MB RAM (don't remember if it had a cache or not) and a
- humongous HD (I think it was 210MB or so), and I got a continuous
- reading of 3.0-3.5! And this is supposed to be a 486SX/25! Another
- machine I tried, the CPU benchmark SI rating fluctuated madly between
- 10 and sometimes 250. I then tried it ona 486/50 and I got some
- fluctuations in the SI rating, but not as bad as they were in the
- 486SX/25.
-
- So what's the deal? Is it because Norton can't keep up? Is it
- because there is no cache in the CPU chip? Are these just isolated
- incidents? I'm going to use the SI rating to determine which box I
- get, I want to have a reasonably fast machine if I'm gonna be maxxing
- out my wife's credit card.
-
- Thanx in advance,
-
- Malcolm
-
- --
- Malcolm Diallo Moore, Honeywell/CIS-Univ. of Minn. mmoore@epx.cis.umn.edu
- Moore_Malcolm+@ssdc.honeywell.com
- "Arresk the Presidink!"
- -- Popeye the Intelligent Hoodlum
-