IEEE Spectrum: CPU, Heal Thyself

Description

In the old days, computer vendors would often pull a fast one. They would tell you their system had the latest microprocessor when it actually had a cheaper, slower version running faster than the chip’s rating permitted. So the shiny, new 500-megahertz system you thought you were buying might contain only an overclocked 300-MHz CPU. But the computer worked fine; indeed, it might have operated perfectly for years, with you none the wiser. And you perhaps replaced it only because a good buy on a 1-gigahertz machine eventually came along.

Original URL

http://spectrum.ieee.org/semiconductors/processors/cpu-heal-thyself

http://spectrum.ieee.org/semiconductors/processors/cpu-heal-thyself