Future AGP Support?

I want to upgrade my present Intel system to an AMD Athlon64 S939. I'm
tired of waiting for the nForce4 MB's to available in Canada. I could get
an nForce3 board as there is not much difference but the problem is it's not
clear whether the next generation chips from ATI/nVidia are going to have
AGP support or not. I have a feeling that PCI-E is the future and it's
going to at least provide me a guaranteed path to upgrade in let's say a
year and a half or two or I could be wrong. What do you think?

RobB wrote:

I want to upgrade my present Intel system to an AMD Athlon64 S939. I'm
tired of waiting for the nForce4 MB's to available in Canada. I could get
an nForce3 board as there is not much difference but the problem is it's
not clear whether the next generation chips from ATI/nVidia are going to
have
AGP support or not. I have a feeling that PCI-E is the future and it's
going to at least provide me a guaranteed path to upgrade in let's say a
year and a half or two or I could be wrong. What do you think?

I think that at this moment the AGP/PCI Express thing is turning into
another religious issue like Mac vs PC and you're not going to get a lot of
reasoned discourse going either way. Personally I'd consider the intended
use. If playing the latest games is important to you then I'd wait for PCI
Express boards to become available where I was and probably go with one
that was SLI capable as well--even if I never use the capability it has one
more PCI Express slot, which might or might not be useful in the future.
If playing the latest games doesn't matter then I wouldn't worry about it
because there's going to be little likelihood that the video board would
need to be upgraded during the life of the machine for any other purpose.

--
--John
Reply to jclarke at ae tee tee global dot net
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

I agree, wait for nForce 4.

"RobB" wrote in message
...
I want to upgrade my present Intel system to an AMD Athlon64 S939. I'm
tired of waiting for the nForce4 MB's to available in Canada. I could get
an nForce3 board as there is not much difference but the problem is it's
not
clear whether the next generation chips from ATI/nVidia are going to have
AGP support or not. I have a feeling that PCI-E is the future and it's
going to at least provide me a guaranteed path to upgrade in let's say a
year and a half or two or I could be wrong. What do you think?

Yeah wait so u dont have to worry about upgrading again for awhile.


"Richard Dower" wrote in message
...
I agree, wait for nForce 4.

"RobB" wrote in message
...
I want to upgrade my present Intel system to an AMD Athlon64 S939. I'm
tired of waiting for the nForce4 MB's to available in Canada. I could
get
an nForce3 board as there is not much difference but the problem is it's
not
clear whether the next generation chips from ATI/nVidia are going to have
AGP support or not. I have a feeling that PCI-E is the future and it's
going to at least provide me a guaranteed path to upgrade in let's say a
year and a half or two or I could be wrong. What do you think?

"RobB" wrote in message
...
I want to upgrade my present Intel system to an AMD Athlon64 S939. I'm
tired of waiting for the nForce4 MB's to available in Canada. I could get
an nForce3 board as there is not much difference but the problem is it's
not
clear whether the next generation chips from ATI/nVidia are going to have
AGP support or not. I have a feeling that PCI-E is the future and it's
going to at least provide me a guaranteed path to upgrade in let's say a
year and a half or two or I could be wrong. What do you think?


AGP is an obsolete interconnect and PCI-E is the likely successor, note well
most new chipsets use PCI-E and not AGP.

That is a very obvious observation and has a very natural, intuitive
conclusion which only needs a proof to support this assertion: Your next
Motherboard should have at least one PCI-E slot.

All other considerations are moot, considering how likely you are to get
your 2nd subsequent motherboard before you buy your 2nd subsequent PCI-E
Video Card (all the meanwhile no AGP card!).

Helps?

J. Clarke:

I think that at this moment the AGP/PCI Express thing is turning into
another religious issue like Mac vs PC

A religious issue like Mac vs PC is overly dramatic. AGP is on the way
out, PCI-E is on the way in, there is nothing more to it. If you're
uncertain as to what will happen, look back on previous changes in the
video slot standard: ISA = VLB = PCI = AGP (and now) = PCI-E.

AGP will not die overnight but it will die. We are not facing a future of
competing standards. Video card manufacturers don't like multiple
standards because it increases costs (despite what Tom's Hardware or
others may claim). PCI and ISA hung around for longer than necessary
because they had a huge install base and because the slot didn't die, it
remained fully in use. I suspect AGP will more closely follow the course
of VLB.
--
Mac Cool

Mac Cool wrote:

J. Clarke:

I think that at this moment the AGP/PCI Express thing is turning into
another religious issue like Mac vs PC

A religious issue like Mac vs PC is overly dramatic. AGP is on the way
out, PCI-E is on the way in, there is nothing more to it. If you're
uncertain as to what will happen, look back on previous changes in the
video slot standard: ISA = VLB = PCI = AGP (and now) = PCI-E.

AGP will not die overnight but it will die. We are not facing a future of
competing standards. Video card manufacturers don't like multiple
standards because it increases costs (despite what Tom's Hardware or
others may claim). PCI and ISA hung around for longer than necessary
because they had a huge install base and because the slot didn't die, it
remained fully in use. I suspect AGP will more closely follow the course
of VLB.

You see what you've done--you just had to jump in and defend PCI Express
even though it wasn't being attacked. That's why I say it's turning into a
religious issue.

--
--John
Reply to jclarke at ae tee tee global dot net
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

J. Clarke:

You see what you've done--you just had to jump in and defend PCI
Express even though it wasn't being attacked. That's why I say it's
turning into a religious issue.

Boy oh boy, some people just can't live without drama... tell you what,
quote your *attack* on PCI-E and my subsequent *defense* because I think
you are just trying to start an argument, but I'm not playing. My only
point was that you are being melodramatic about what is an inevitable
change to the video slot/bus standard; comparing it to a holy war (figure
of speech). Our opinions (which I have no preference) are irrelevant, the
decisions have been made and PCI-E will continue regardless of anything
posted here.

Oh, I don't want to alarm you any further, but eventually PCI-E will be
replaced by something else, many years hence.

No more drama for me, peace out.
--
Mac Cool

Mac Cool wrote:

J. Clarke:

You see what you've done--you just had to jump in and defend PCI
Express even though it wasn't being attacked. That's why I say it's
turning into a religious issue.

Boy oh boy, some people just can't live without drama... tell you what,
quote your *attack*

Quote my "attack"? What attack? I said wait for it if you need it, if you
don't need it then don't bother. That's hardly an "attack".

on PCI-E and my subsequent *defense*

Well, basically rather than provide any useful information you launch the
usual dissertation that amounts to "you will be assimilated".

because I think
you are just trying to start an argument, but I'm not playing.

Well, actually, you are.

My only
point was that you are being melodramatic about what is an inevitable
change to the video slot/bus standard;

No, I'm pointing out that there is more heat than light in discourse on this
topic.

comparing it to a holy war (figure
of speech). Our opinions (which I have no preference) are irrelevant, the
decisions have been made and PCI-E will continue regardless of anything
posted here.

Or not as the case may be. While I doubt it's going to happen it would
please me greatly if the computer buying public told Intel to take their
new standard and shove it up their butts sideways.

Oh, I don't want to alarm you any further, but eventually PCI-E will be
replaced by something else, many years hence.

Or not as the case may be.

No more drama for me, peace out.

If you didn't want drama you wouldn't have responded the first time.

--
--John
Reply to jclarke at ae tee tee global dot net
(was jclarke at eye bee em dot net)

"Mac Cool" wrote in message
...

[snip]
PCI and ISA hung around for longer than necessary
because they had a huge install base and because the slot didn't die, it
remained fully in use. I suspect AGP will more closely follow the course
of VLB.

What a strange conclusion you choose to draw. I agree completely with the
first sentence:

"PCI and ISA hung around for longer than necessary because they had a huge
install base and because the slot didn't die, it remained fully in use."

And then when you consider AGP, wouldn't you also say that it has "a huge
install base"? I would, given that 99% of all installed graphics cards and
motherboards are AGP today!!!

I think you will be able to buy new AGP graphics cards (and motherboards for
that matter) for quite some time yet.

Chip