Intel Corp released details to software developers of 57 new MMX MultiMedia eXtensins instructions it intends adding to future versions of its Pentium processor line at the Intermedia World show in San Francisco this week. The MMX Technology additions are claimed to be the most significant enhancements to the Intel architecture since the 80386, aimed specifically at speeding up multimedia and communications applications, and enabling multiple data elements to be processed in parallel through SIMD Single Instruction Multiple Data techniques. The instructions were arrived at by analyzing existing interactive video, virtual reality and three-dimensional graphical applications, which all tend to do a lot of computation, lots of things in parallel, and mostly use small integer data types. The first MMX-enabled chip will be the P55C, which Intel hopes to have in initial production by the fourth quarter of this year, but there will also reportedly be an OverDrive processor with the set for machines with processors running at at least 75MHz at the same time. MMX instructions will also be integrated into succeeding generations of Intel processors. Preliminary simulations and tests on development systems have apparently shown performance boosts of between 50% and 400%, depending on the application. Programmers should be able to get away with modifying only small portions of their code, by including their own enhanced sub-routines or calling MMX technology-enabled drivers and library routines through existing application programming interfaces. Intel claims the instructions will not significantly add to chip complexity, and will not alter the implementation of existing instructions or require changes to operating system software – MMX is operating system-independent, but Intel expects that most applications supporting it will be developed for Windows95. Microsoft Corp promised to provide MMX support in its recently introduced Direct3D application programming interface – picked up with its acquisition of RenderMorphics last year and through its ActiveMovie video technology. Adobe Systems Inc, IBM Corp, Macromedia Inc, NuMega Inc and Powersoft Corp also agreed to support the extensions, among a list of over 40 tools and applications vendors, independent hardware vendors and OEM customers. The first software compilers and packages supporting MMX should be out by the end of the year, Intel said. Those gaining the most benefit are likely to be games using 24-bit colour and high frame rates, applications using multiple channels of audio, video or animation and Internet communication simultaneously, and those using data compression. Intel also expects MMX-optimized Internet plug-ins to become very common over time. For developers who can’t wait for the P55C, Intel has a code emulator that could be used on current personal computers, but it has not decided whether to release it yet.
