Hewlett-Packard Co says the extensions that will provide binary compatibility for running Precision Architecture RISC applications on Intel Corp’s Merced processor will be revealed at a developer conference next year. It is not saying whether any of the extensions are to be found in the 3DA architecture for next generation Unix it has defined with Santa Cruz Operation Inc. All it will say is that it has the right to build stuff around specific characteristics of some of the chips. It claims results from prototypes it has had back show that there is not a massive performance hit.
