Quote:
Originally Posted by grond
Actually a CPU servicing the request is better than DMA as a CPU is more versatile and could do some extra data processing while copying data around. A CPU is also more versatile than a blitter. It can do everything a blitter can do plus more. The reason why we all have a heart for blitters, DMA controllers and more is because they work in parallel to the CPU. But once we have more than one CPU, the CPU will always beat dedicated hardware. I know this is difficult to accept because it contradicts decades of single-core user experience.
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There is no extra data processing to be done for IDE and the like, it's just data copying, and you forget that the CPU can't use all available memory bandwidth, while DMA can use a lot more.