Intel Processor Operational Mode question

[zenism]

Does an Intel chip have to run in a x86 CISC (legacy compatibility) mode all of the time? Or is there a way for the chips to run in a faster RISC like "native" mode? I'm sorry if the question is a bit dumb, but I'm wondering how Apple may set their future Intel based rigs up. I've been reading whatever I can on the forthcoming "Conroe", "Merom", and "Woodcrest" chips, and look forward to having the technology in next Mac I buy.

Thanks...

 

[Keysplayr]

As far as I can tell, OS/X or whatever is out by mid 2006 will be ported to Intel processors. Whether or not it will be 64-bit or 32-bit is unknown to me at least. But The only Intel processor that comes even close to RISC or CISC like calculations is the Itanium. And I know you are not going to pay several thousand dollars for it.

 

[CheesePoofs]

OSX has been ported to the X86 architecture and thats how it will run on Intel CPU's. I believe it'll be 64bit.

 

[Keysplayr]

Actually, this might be a pretty good explaination.
Found it on Wikipedia.

The term, like its antonym RISC, has become less meaningful with the continued evolution of both CISC and RISC designs and implementations. Modern "CISC" CPUs, such as recent x86 designs like the Pentium 4, whilst they usually support every instruction that their predecessors did, are designed to work most efficiently with a subset of instructions more resembling a typical "RISC" instruction set. Indeed, many CISC CPUs (such as modern x86 processors from both Intel and AMD) "crack" many x86 instructions into a series of smaller internal "micro-operations" that are then executed internally by the processor.

 

[bersl2]

Here's the answer he's looking for: no, you do not have the ability to run micro-ops directly. Not to my knowledge, at least.