[Request][Jolla Tablet]Make the base system 64 bits-only [not relevant]

asked 2014-11-27 14:23:11 +0300

Cicer
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updated 2014-11-27 14:26:43 +0300

eric

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https://twitter.com/erkki...

Backwards compatibility is a pain. In the past Linux distributions didn´t take full advantage of the newest CPU´s features because they targeted older ISAs. x86 is the past and x64 is the future. Perhaps the benefits are not evident for this model but this is for future´s sake. So I suggest:

Make the base system (libraries, system applications, etc) 64 bits only.
Allow the user to install 32 bits support packages if needed.
Install 32 bits libraries by default only if can´t be avoided (like Android compatibility).
Only allow 64 bits in the store unless it´s justified.

If this can´t be done please at least make this chip´s features (AVX instructions, etc) the lowest common denominator. Don´t support old CPUs like the Pentium Pro.

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The question has been closed for the following reason "question is not relevant or outdated" by Spam Hunter
close date 2020-03-19 00:01:00.051031

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answered 2014-11-27 20:39:26 +0300

neo1973

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I think using the x32 ABI would be best for the Jolla tablet. It offers all advantages of x86_64 with a smaller memory footprint. And the 4GB memory limit per process does not hurt on a system with only 1GB RAM.

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answered 2014-11-27 18:20:04 +0300

meowmeow
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updated 2014-11-27 18:26:07 +0300

I don't think native AMD64 will really offer much over normal x86 32 bit stuff on a tablet. Probably much more important for the future is full ARMv8 support for future phones (or tablets). ARMv8 offers a lot of special sauce over and above ARMv7, as well as introducing 64 bit - even if ARMv7 is fully forwards compatible. I.E. I think it would be a waste of time doing this when they could be doing the latter (albeit irrelevant to the tablet), which is far more important.

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Why stick with x86, for no good reason? It's a dead end anyway. x64 is often faster. In the near future tablets will have >3GiB RAM, which is a no-brainer for x64, but limitations on x86.

Fuzzillogic ( 2014-11-27 20:24:45 +0300 )edit

Jolla's a small company with an even smaller number of coders, with a consequently small number of man-hours at their disposal. I wouldn't think 64bit x86 is really necessary at this stage, and may involve more work, and there may not even be 64bit Android drivers for the Atom chip they're using. If it is possible and doesn't involve more work, then by all means they should do it. However if it involves more work, then it will impact on the time available to do other more important things ... like working on ARMv8. However much money Intel throw at the mobile space, x86 is never going to be as popular or relevant as ARM.

midnightoil ( 2014-11-27 22:49:32 +0300 )edit

The drivers shouldn´t be a problem. Intel strongly supports 64 bits in Android. The Nexus Player has a 64 bits kernel.

Cicer ( 2014-11-28 05:39:25 +0300 )edit

At least the kernel should be 64bit, the Intel 32bit version is less and less used and hence less tested and maintained and has more bugs than the 64bit version.

flint ( 2014-11-29 02:17:49 +0300 )edit

[Request][Jolla Tablet]Make the base system 64 bits-only [not relevant]

The question has been closed for the following reason "question is not relevant or outdated" by Spam Hunter
close date 2020-03-19 00:01:00.051031

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[Request][Jolla Tablet]Make the base system 64 bits-only [not relevant]

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The question has been closed for the following reason "question is not relevant or outdated" by Spam Hunter
close date 2020-03-19 00:01:00.051031