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View Full Version : Light Peak/Thunderbolt Technology Discussion



isaacahloe
February 25th, 2011, 01:11 AM
http://www.intel.com/technology/io/thunderbolt/index.htm

new port technology

bidirectional, daisy chainable, 10gb per second, audio/video/data



What do you think?

Will Ubuntu and Linux embrace this technology (well duh, but how much and how fast)?

What does this mean for computer tech?

Will people be able to add a pci card or will it require a totally new MBR for people? i mean is everyone out of luck until they buy a new computer or upgrade the board?

Since it's proprietary, whats the licensing like and is that a problem for hardware manufacturers or ethical consumers?

(questions/topics just to get the ball rolling)


it's really great for animators like me. it really helps with the problem of audio and video, as well as enabling better options for high res stop motion capture

i'm hoping as many computer and peripheral manufacturers embrace it as a standard and most importantly to me, that the linux kernel supports the hardware.

thomasw_lrd
February 25th, 2011, 01:53 AM
Interesting topic. I figure if Intel can do it, then AMD will not be far behind, and it'll be much cheaper. I guess it really comes down to how manufacturers of devices embrace it. I could see very nice performance gains for external hard drives, which would be a boon for many.

LowSky
February 25th, 2011, 01:58 AM
Hard drive, SDHD and SSD technology cant write fast enough so the speed will be negligible. Storage is the biggest detriment to computer speed.

You wont see much difference over current technology like USB3 and Gigabit LAN speeds.

Lucradia
February 25th, 2011, 02:19 AM
A CNET User started throwing rocks at a person who thinks this should be an open standard like USB. :|

This could get ugly, depending. Though since we're all open here... we're all friends, right? :P

juancarlospaco
February 25th, 2011, 02:48 AM
10gb per second is slow.

forrestcupp
February 25th, 2011, 03:08 AM
Why did they have to name it the same thing as the HTC Android phone that's supposed to be coming out any time now?

steveneddy
February 25th, 2011, 03:19 AM
Can't wait for my new MacBookPro now!

nowin4me
February 25th, 2011, 03:34 AM
Can't wait for my new MacBookPro now!

Yea, great to have technology you can't use for mouths, if you are lucky!

I reckon this could overtake USB, because you can use it for audio,video and data, and it is faster than USB3. Wise choice Apple but some USB3 ports as-well as Turnerbolt would of been great!

Lucradia
February 25th, 2011, 05:12 AM
10gb per second is slow.

Yeap, 1.25 GB per second is slow |3

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gigabit

1 Gigabit = 125 MB

However, USB 3.0 aims to be 600 MB/sec, which means it'll be half the speed as Thunderbolt.

http://www.usb.org/developers/ssusb

+

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Universal_Serial_Bus#USB_2.0

60 MB/sec = USB 2.0

USB 3.0 = 10 x USB 2.0

Antarctica32
April 19th, 2011, 04:07 AM
Look, I highly doubt this thing is going to catch on.

Reason number 1:
USB is everywhere these days: you can find them in cars, every slightly modern computer, phones, hell I've even seen people use them instead of house outlets. This will never replace USB.

Reason number 2:
USB keeps getting faster. The speed of modern USBs is much faster than the originals of the early 2000s. What is going to happen is the actual shape of the USB will never change but the speed and technology will. I predict that in 10 years a 2004 USB cable will still work with whatever the standard is, weather it be called FireWire, USB, Lighpeak, or Thunderbolt.

Reason number 3:
Experience. Have we not seen this in the past? does the word FireWire ring a bell? We were promised new super fast technology with the firewire and look how popular it is today. Hell, open office doesn't even have it as a word. The only time I have ever used Firewire was when my dad and I set up the raid drives on his computer several years ago. And that was only because the drive only did Firewire. Years latter we still use USBs, and they are faster than firewire now!

Reason 4:
The speed of the Lightpeak doesn't matter at all. It really isn't that much faster than anything else. You probably wouldn't even notice it. My main desktop has 2000 MB/s internet speed (the standard is 100 mb/s for those who didn't know) and I still get lag because my mobo, cpu, and RAM suck. When you sink your ipod or copy something to a usb drive the main reason you get that slightly annoying 30 sec. wait is not because you don't have super fast USB but because it takes time to even start and complete the process. There are sooo many other factors that involve speed not just your connection.

The only thing this has on USB is the duel transfer capabilities. The ability to transfer data both directions on one cable can be rather useful. If USB can get this capability (something I really don't have that hard time believing) they will be set. I wonder why Intel wastes their time and money inventing things like the Lightpeak when they could be refining the USB. Don't they realize just how popular USB has become?

KiwiNZ
April 19th, 2011, 04:26 AM
This is one of the most attractive reasons for it...


"Intel's Thunderbolt controllers interconnect a PC and other devices, transmitting and receiving packetized traffic for both PCIe and DisplayPort protocols. Thunderbolt technology works on data streams in both directions, at the same time, so users get the benefit of full bandwidth in both directions, over a single cable. With the two independent channels, a full 10 Gbps of bandwidth can be provided for the first device, as well as additional downstream devices.
And all Thunderbolt devices share a common connector, allowing users to daisy chain devices one after another with interoperable cables"

mips
April 19th, 2011, 10:48 AM
My main desktop has 2000 MB/s internet speed (the standard is 100 mb/s for those who didn't know).

How do you get a 15.6Gb/s internet connection?

Antarctica32
April 20th, 2011, 04:27 AM
Wouldn't 2000mb/s be 2gigs a second? or does this have something to do with the whole bit/byte thing? Well anyway I got this pci card for around $15 that said 2000mb/s on the box. So I go home and plug it in and I then have 2000mb/s network speed. :guitar:

EDIT:

here is a pic of a similar pci card although not the same one by far.http://www.pacificgeek.com/productimages/xl/CNET-2000S.jpg


and here is a pic of the one in my desktop, sorry I don't have a better one. This is the only picture of it I could find that I have on my laptop. I should really sync all my photos to my ubuntu one account, the only problem is I only have 2Gbs because I'm a free loader who doesn't want to pay for anything also because I have no money being as I am a 12 year old.

mips
April 20th, 2011, 04:18 PM
My main desktop has 2000 MB/s internet speed


Wouldn't 2000mb/s be 2gigs a second? or does this have something to do with the whole bit/byte thing? Well anyway I got this pci card for around $15 that said 2000mb/s on the box. So I go home and plug it in and I then have 2000mb/s network speed. :guitar:


In your first post you said 2000 MB/s. MB=Mega Bytes and there are 8 bits in a Byte, thus 15.6Gb/s

In your second post you said 2000mb/s which reads as mili bits which does not exist. Correct notation should be 2000Mb/s which is 2Gb/s.

M=Mega
B=Byte
b=bit

Just because your ethernet port runs at 2Gb/s (1Gb/s full duplex) does not mean your internet speed is 2Gb/s.

Antarctica32
April 21st, 2011, 05:40 AM
I was a little confused but I think I get it now. The whole bit/byte thing has always confused me. Thanks, hopefully I won't have to use google next time a bit/byte problem comes up.

3rdalbum
April 21st, 2011, 09:24 AM
I don't think Thunderbolt will take off.

Firstly, there's been no public expressions of interest for Light Peak or Thunderbolt by any computer manufacturer other than Apple, as far as I've heard.

Secondly, who would specifically buy Thunderbolt stuff in the knowledge that Light Peak is coming? Even if Light Peak and Thunderbolt peripherals/computers can be connected? And if Thunderbolt is a failure, will Light Peak ever make it to market?

KiwiNZ
April 21st, 2011, 10:13 AM
I don't think Thunderbolt will take off.

Firstly, there's been no public expressions of interest for Light Peak or Thunderbolt by any computer manufacturer other than Apple, as far as I've heard.

Secondly, who would specifically buy Thunderbolt stuff in the knowledge that Light Peak is coming? Even if Light Peak and Thunderbolt peripherals/computers can be connected? And if Thunderbolt is a failure, will Light Peak ever make it to market?

Thunderbolt is lightpeak they are the same thing, Lightpeak was the pre-production name. There is already peripherals coming on the market.

handy
April 21st, 2011, 01:12 PM
So "display port" means that it could be plugged into a Thunderbolt equipped large screen TV, or any other Thunderbolt equipped monitor?

[edit:] I just read the link & it answers my question. Yes, already compatible, no need to buy new monitors or TV screens.

TechWiz2100
May 14th, 2011, 10:07 AM
I think people are approaching this the wrong way. I don't think Lightpeak/Thunderbolt will take off in most consumer grade applications simply because consumer grade applications are far too shallow for what this tech provides. 10Gb/s is what this thing does over copper and Intel was planning optical, wait for developments in terms of speed.

Besides thats fast enough for an external card like a PCI audio or network card or maybe even a low end PCI-E card. I'm looking forward to the day Intel makes this faster because then we can get things really going with stuff like thin clients or external graphics for laptops.

Oxwivi
May 14th, 2011, 10:44 AM
Will Ubuntu and Linux embrace this technology (well duh, but how much and how fast)?
If Intel develops open-source drivers as always, I don't see any obstacle in it's support on Linux.

dentifrice
June 26th, 2011, 09:49 AM
If Intel develops open-source drivers as always, I don't see any obstacle in it's support on Linux.

Any update on that? It's been out for a while now, and no news kernel side AFAIK. If anyone has a LKML pointer to share or something along these lines, please shoot!

Antarctica32
June 26th, 2011, 07:54 PM
Any update on that? It's been out for a while now, and no news kernel side AFAIK. If anyone has a LKML pointer to share or something along these lines, please shoot!

sweet necro

craig100
August 12th, 2011, 08:40 PM
Well guys, I've just bought a Sony Vaio VPCZ21V9E/B and have had an unpleasant surprise. I doesn't have an integral optical drive, it has a "docking station" which is an optical drive and fancy video board connected to the Vaio by a Light Peak cable. I don't use *******. I ran a Z series Vaio for 3 years with Ubuntu on it till it was stolen 6 weeks ago. I'm desperate to know if I can take this thing out of it's box and get Ubuntu working on it. If I can't, it's going back to Sony for a BIG refund. Incidentally the spec didn't make it obvious it's optical drive was external, just in case you were wondering, lol.

So any info on getting this is likely to work or not would be appreciated.

TechWiz2100
August 13th, 2011, 12:04 AM
This thread is quite old...

There is talk about a group working on Thunderbolt support for Ubuntu but as of right now... you're computer will probably install Ubuntu just fine (I assume its running EFI like most new computers are now) but you will probably be unable to use the peripherals included with the dock like the graphics chip and CD drive. Sony will probably take it back even after you open the box so try throwing Ubuntu on it and see what happens. I wouldn't trust LiveCD with this for testing purposes since the drive is attached with Thunderbolt and the kernel might have trouble finding the root device. Maybe LiveUSB will work tho.