Trainz Multicore, yes or no.

[WindWalkr]

..the math co-processor - which wasn't really a co-processor at all, it was actually a true DX chip which when plugged in disabled the SX chip and took over the whole system.

Not exactly. You may be thinking of the overdrive.

Given - TS2010 and later require a Pentium D as a minimum. All Pentium D chips and every generation after that was a minimum of two cores, the last CPU made with a single core was the Pentium IV? If that's true (and again I dunno, my brain is as obsolete as the 80286 SX) then TS2010 and later require at least a dual core, theoretically it won't run at all on a single core CPU at all.

There was actually a Core Solo but the distribution of this was fairly limited, mainly laptops. Nothing in the Trainz code prevents it from running on a single-core machine, but since such machines would be old (since dual-core and up have been the norm for a long while now) and thus slow in terms of single-core performance, even ignoring the lack of the extra cores, you're probably not going to have a good experience. That's why we consider them below minimum spec.

Other item, now we hear Trainz does not use the second core for processing AI traffic, contradicting what I was told last year

I can confirm that this is accurate, and that any other information or "research" that you have seen on this subject is incorrect.

kind regards,

chris

 

[WindWalkr]

A good example of a multiple threaded process is the ability to receive operation messages within the program to allow the AI to function smoother. In older versions, such as TRS2004, the program would stop when an AI message was sent and received. This "stop" was not perceived by us because it happened very quickly. but sometimes a stuck message, can cause a program to perform poorly or hang because the messaging is a queued up behind some other process that hasn't completed yet. By having other threads available, the program can use another track to keep some parts of the program out of the way to allow others to move quickly.

AI is a bad example here, as it runs on the main thread.

It's also important to note that while threads and cores are separate concepts, a well-threaded program will typically automatically take advantage of multiple cores. The main distinction is that 'threading' typically refers to the design of the software, whereas 'cores' typically refers to the design of the hardware (hyperthreading being an exception..)

chris

 

[RRSignal]

It's also important to point out that, separate threads, if not carefully-executed, aren't always helpful and can restrict things if the main process must wait. Regardless of execution system.

 

[clam1952]

If the Chris your making reference too is me.. No,

I wasn't, I was referring to Chris - Lead programmer as in WindWalkr back in 2008 or 9 can't remember which now.

 

[johnwhelan]

Which is exactly what I was looking for. It is my understanding that if a game is not written for multiple cores, then the advantage for running a multiple core processor is not very much. For instance, there are smart phones today that have quad core processors. Guess what, none of the apps are written for quad core processors, so it is basically just to dazzle the prospective purchaser of the phone into thinking he is getting something, that he is not. My feeling is that if Trainz in fact was programmed to utilize either a 2 core, or 4 core, or any other number of cores, it would be a definite advantage for Auran to state this is their specs for the game. The fact that they don't mention this at all, speaks volumes as far as I'm concerned. I'm betting we never get an "official response" on this thread.

By the way, I am not knocking Trainz because I think it is a great piece of software, but these discussions about the advantage of 4 core and 6 core machines, just don't make any sense to me.

Read up on threads again. That's the key here. Software can be written to run in threads it isn't written to run on a specific number of cores. The operating system assigns the threads to the resources it has available and that is an operating system responsibility. Its the operating system that decides how many cores can be used based on how many threads the software is requesting service for.

Strangely enough there are advantages to having more than one core when running single threaded applications,the operating system can sit on one, and you can run more than one application at once. Printing can be spooled, an app can download your mail at the same time as you are doing something else. Additionally specific programs can make use of multiple cores and over time the number available can be expected to grow.

Cheerio John

 

[WindWalkr]

I wasn't, I was referring to Chris - Lead programmer as in WindWalkr back in 2008 or 9 can't remember which now.

I've been around here since about 2001.. with a short break here or there.

chris

 

[xcrossi]

M-cores O what fun we have!

I don't know much about threads and cores just build me something that works!
M- cores and hi end sys let me do this.:hehe:
I like to place like objects on a blank board and save
It makes it Ezr to find what I want when making or changing a layout
screen rez 1280x1024 +1280x1024
sorry had to brag a little. Another example of to much power and not enough brains.
frame rate set a 25

 

[JCitron]

I don't know much about threads and cores just build me something that works!
M- cores and hi end sys let me do this.:hehe:
I like to place like objects on a blank board and save
It makes it Ezr to find what I want when making or changing a layout
screen rez 1280x1024 +1280x1024
sorry had to brag a little. Another example of to much power and not enough brains.
frame rate set a 25

There you have it, Gerry. Multiple-cores and threads doing their work. Without this your system could only run one application successfully. It could run multiple applications, but they couldn't perform background tasks very well.
As I said in my post, I think I said it, that the OS does a lot of this work now, and it's not up to the applications. In the old days the applications had to be specifically written to use a second processor.

John

ps. Chris (Windwalker). Thank you for clarifying the threading in Trainz. Sorry to have used a bad example.