AMD now dominating the movie business

[rander3127]

According to PC Magazine. Apple, Intel (long gone SGI who used to rule
it) are now almost
history. AMD powered servers do much of the work in movie FX and
animation.

 

[Boe]

ummm - soooo most of the systems in the movie industry are used for FX and
animation? I work for a video production location - I can say only about
our environment but we have about half mac, half intel. I like AMD and
would gladly by them but since I'm not a fanboy, I don't make
generalizations about all the industry or make inferences on such a
grandiose scale.

Most video production facilities have A display in house that is greater
than 50" - so can I infer that most production houses don't have any 20"
screens? Can I infer that 50+" screens DOMINATE the video production
facilities?

 

[Rich]

If you want to argue, speak to the magazine editors. According to
them, banks
of Opteron-powered servers (in one case, 3000 of them at one company)
are driving
the business.

 

[NoNoBadDog!]

If you want to argue, speak to the magazine editors. According to
them, banks
of Opteron-powered servers (in one case, 3000 of them at one company)
are driving
the business.

The majority of animation studios in Hollywood have converted to HP
workstations using AMD Opteron processors.
The reasons are quite simple; the new Opteron based workstations perform at
or above the level of the workstations they replaced (such as Silicon
Graphics), they are a fraction of the cost, and they are much more
upgradeable and scalable than the workstations they replaced.

Intel has fallen out of favor for several reasons. First, Intel does not
make a processor that can compete with the Opteron on a "bang for the buck"
basis. The cost of an Intel based workstation of less power is quite
significantly higher than say an HP 9300. The cost per hour to operate and
cool the Intel is also significantly higher.

What is driving the shift is that AMD makes a fast, efficient easily
upgradeable platform, while Intel continues to build their workstations the
way they always have, which means they are not easily upgradeable, and they
are much more costly than AMD.

Personally, I commend AMD for the strides they have made. While Intel huffs
and puffs and continues to churn out the same old stuff, AMD has quietly
implemented new technology that provides real world benefits.

Bobby

 

[john_doe]

The majority of animation studios in Hollywood have converted to HP
workstations using AMD Opteron processors.
The reasons are quite simple; the new Opteron based workstations perform at
or above the level of the workstations they replaced (such as Silicon
Graphics), they are a fraction of the cost, and they are much more
upgradeable and scalable than the workstations they replaced.

Intel has fallen out of favor for several reasons. First, Intel does not
make a processor that can compete with the Opteron on a "bang for the buck"
basis. The cost of an Intel based workstation of less power is quite
significantly higher than say an HP 9300. The cost per hour to operate and
cool the Intel is also significantly higher.

What is driving the shift is that AMD makes a fast, efficient easily
upgradeable platform, while Intel continues to build their workstations the
way they always have, which means they are not easily upgradeable, and they
are much more costly than AMD.

Personally, I commend AMD for the strides they have made. While Intel huffs
and puffs and continues to churn out the same old stuff, AMD has quietly
implemented new technology that provides real world benefits.

Bobby

Intel ended when Andy Grove stopped being the CEO.

They spend a lot of money on advertising, so they control
what the popular press says about them. Most people can
figure it out though.

 

[Rich]

If someone were to write a book about Intel, a chronology of their time
in the processor
business from the inception of the 8088 to now, it would be a comedy.
For those of us who
have watched their incompetence and disgusting illegal machinations in
the business since then, we understand why people (except for idiots,
paid-off whores like Dell (though even they are capitulating) and
starch-shirted corporate techies) are now looking to alternatives.

 

[know code]

If someone were to write a book about Intel, a chronology of their time
in the processor
business from the inception of the 8088 to now, it would be a comedy.
For those of us who
have watched their incompetence and disgusting illegal machinations in
the business since then, we understand why people (except for idiots,
paid-off whores like Dell (though even they are capitulating) and
starch-shirted corporate techies) are now looking to alternatives.

If you're interested in stuff like this, a really interesting read is
Accidental Empires by Robert X Cringely. It basically gives the history
of how most of the big companies in Silicon Valley came about and some
of the dubious practices they used!

 

[Rich]

I'll check it out. Intel is due in court over the Dell bribery stuff.

 

[john_doe]

I'll check it out. Intel is due in court over the Dell bribery stuff.

I'm sure Intel still qualifies for a "get out of jail free" card due
to their DRM hardware built right into their dual core CPU's.