game trailblazer

Chapter 144 Supercomputer Shrinkage Plan
"Dr. Chen, welcome to Hong Kong. I am Zhang Lexing."

Looking at the young man in front of him, a familiar feeling appeared in Chen Shiqing's heart: "Mr. Zhang, have we met before?"

"Dr. Chen, do you still remember what happened in [-]?"

Listening to the familiar voice in front of him, Chen Shiqing fell into memory.

"...

'But don't worry, I still have some spare money. According to your project requirements, the estimated research and development time is about five years, and the investment is no less than 1 million US dollars.$1 million over five years, no problem. '

'Ah, thank you so much! 'Chen Shiqing's eyes lit up all of a sudden.

'It's okay, everyone is Chinese working overseas, if possible, let's help each other out, and besides, your supercomputer developed, maybe our company can still use it.Well, I will arrange for the board of directors to discuss this project as soon as possible. Should you find a place to live for two days and wait for the results, or go back first, and I will tell you the results. '

......"

Suddenly Chen Shiqing thought of it, and he said in surprise: "You are the Mr. Zhang who invested in our supercomputer project. Thanks to your support back then, otherwise..."

Zhang Lexing smiled: "It's nothing to worry about such a trivial matter, it happened several years ago, why bother."

Chen Shiqing sighed: "Maybe you don't know it yet, but without your investment, our team might have disbanded in the end."

"Dr. Chen, this is not the place to talk. You probably haven't had dinner yet. Why don't we find a place to eat and talk slowly."

Chen Shiqing's stomach protested just right at this time, he coughed twice in embarrassment, and said: "The guest does as he pleases, Mr. Zhang will listen to you."

*opened the rear door of the Mercedes-Benz S600, after Zhang Lexing and Chen Shiqing gave in to each other, Chen Shiqing got into the car first, and then *opened the door on the other side to let Zhang Lexing get into the car, then she came to the co-pilot Sit down.With the start of the Mercedes-Benz, the whole convoy moved together and headed towards the Peninsula Hotel.

……

Arriving at the Peninsula Hotel, * led the people to put Dr. Chen's suitcase in the pre-booked room. On the other side, Zhang Lexing and Dr. Chen came to the Jialin Building on the first floor (actually the second floor) of the hotel.Jialin Building was opened in 1986. The decoration style is mainly Chinese style, which has the style of 80s. It is said that it will be redecorated when the hotel celebrates its 70th anniversary in a few years. However, Zhang Lexing has never seen it before, so it is not easy to take to compare.

As soon as we arrived at the gate of Jialin Building, the enthusiastic waiter greeted us and led the way.There were not many people eating in the restaurant, so Zhang Lexing and Dr. Chen chose a seat at random and sat down, and the waiter immediately handed over the menu.

Zhang Lexing took it over and looked at it, then handed it to Dr. Chen: "Dr. Chen, come and order."

"It's okay, just order whatever you want, I'm not picky when it comes to food." Chen Shiqing pushed the menu back with his hands.

Since this is the case, Zhang Lexing is not too polite, and while flipping through the menu, he said: "One serving of abalone and chicken with taro slices, one serving of dace balls with clams, grilled winter melon sticks with seafood, and steamed noodles with sister E, plus a basket of custard Bao, Dr. Chen, see if it is enough, and if you want to add two more."

"Enough, enough." Chen Shiqing nodded repeatedly.

"Well, let's order these first, and serve a pot of tea first..." Zhang Lexing looked at Dr. Chen, wanting to see his opinion, but the result was "casual", so he continued: "Pu'er. Oh, yes, let's have another A fried beef river."

After the waiter finished writing, he repeated the order, and then said respectfully: "Two gentlemen, please wait a moment, I will be here soon." After speaking, he turned and left, and came back with a plate after a while. On the plate are a teapot, four cups and a china jug.

Putting down the tray, the waiter first put a teacup in front of Zhang Lexing and Dr. Chen, then picked out some tea leaves from the porcelain pot and put them into the two teacups on the tray, then picked up the teapot and poured boiling water into it. indistinct rise.After waiting for a while, the waiter covered the teacup with a lid, picked it up again and poured the tea into the teacup in front of Zhang Lexing and Dr. Chen, and said, "Take it slowly, both of you."

Zhang Lexing took a sip from the teacup, and the taste was not bad. After putting down the teacup, he cleared his throat and said, "Dr. Chen, I'm sorry for making you come so far."

"It doesn't matter, this is just my personal curiosity." Chen Shiqing waved his hand, and then said: "By the way, Mr. Zhang, you were the one who suggested reducing the size of the computer?"

"That's right, I was talking casually too, so much so that you laughed at me." Zhang Lexing said politely.

"Where, I think what you said is very reasonable, especially the suggestion of reducing the computer to a board, which made me feel suddenly enlightened. I don't know if Mr. Zhang can explain it in detail. How to do this reduction."

"How can I do that? If I say this in front of an expert like you, I'm not going to play tricks, okay?"

"It doesn't matter. In fact, many important innovations come from some whimsical ideas. Mr. Zhang, just say it."

"In that case, I'm not polite." Zhang Lexing took another sip from his teacup, and then began to talk: "In the past, a 12-yuan chip was needed to realize the functions of a microprocessor. Later, through redesign and improvement of integration, It was realized with only one chip, and the microprocessor was born from then on. Now a computer is composed of many parts, and there are CPU (central processing unit), main board, display card, sound card, network card, memory stick in the chassis alone. , power supply, hard disk, optical drive, etc., a lot of space can be occupied by a lot of things. For ordinary home users, it doesn’t matter if they occupy it, but when a large number of computers are required to form intensive calculations, this problem is more serious. Obviously. So I thought why can't the computer be reduced a little more, if the CPU, motherboard, display card, sound card, network card, memory stick and so on can be reduced to one board, then the size of the computer will be greatly reduced. "

"Well, in this way, the integration of the motherboard must be improved..." Chen Shiqing touched his chin, thinking about this issue.

At this time, the waiter brought up the abalone, chicken, taro corner and custard bun on a tray, and Zhang Lexing hurriedly greeted him: "Dr. Chen, eat something first and then think about it."

Chen Shiqing woke up from his contemplation, nodded, picked up a custard bun with his chopsticks and started to eat. Zhang Lexing also stretched out his chopsticks, took some from the plate containing abalone, chicken and taro, and put it in his mouth. Bite down, the outer layer is crispy and delicious, and the filling inside is not only real but also full and solid, and the taste is quite good.I took another custard bun, bit it down, and a strong milky aroma wafted out immediately, and the sweet and soft feeling came from the mouth, which is worthy of its name.

After filling his stomach a bit, and drinking some tea, Chen Shiqing continued: "If you want to improve the integration of the motherboard, you must find a way to integrate the CPU, motherboard, graphics card, sound card, network card, and memory sticks as much as possible. , the CPU is definitely not working here, and the space occupied by the memory stick is not too much to consider for the time being. Then the target can only be placed on the expansion card such as the display card, sound card, and network card. How to solve it? Improve integration It seems that it is not easy to integrate it into the motherboard. Make the board horizontally?..."

Dr. Chen was muttering while thinking, completely immersed in the world of thinking, but the words he said "increase the integration level and integrate it on the main board" made Zhang Lexing seem to have a flash in his mind. lightning.

"Integrate into the motherboard, integrate the graphics card into the motherboard..." Zhang Lexing kept repeating this sentence, and the thoughts in his mind gradually became clear.Integrated motherboard, integrated display card, sound card and network card, etc. into the motherboard. Forgot something, Zhang Lexing patted his head in frustration, and secretly made up his mind to send someone to investigate the situation of integrated motherboards in the market after returning home.

The waiters brought up the remaining dishes one after another. Zhang Lexing was thinking about his own thoughts while eating, while Dr. Chen was so absorbed in thinking that he completely forgot to eat.

After a while, Dr. Chen put down his chopsticks and said to Zhang Lexing: "Mr. Zhang, this problem is not easy to solve. Even if the graphics card, sound card, network card and other expansion cards are integrated on the motherboard, the hard disk and CD-ROM are still there. It’s not easy to do things with power.”

Zhang Lexing swallowed what was in his mouth, and then said: "There is actually no solution. I remember that when the hard disk first came out, it was as big as 24 inches. Later, with the continuous development of technology, the size became smaller and smaller, from 14 inches. From 8 inches to the more popular 5.25-inch and 3.5-inch hard drives, as far as I know, some companies have developed smaller hard drives, so I believe hard drives can solve the problem.”

"But Mr. Zhang, the optical drive and power supply are not so easy to deal with."

"Dr. Chen, since the optical drive and power supply are not good enough to shrink, why not share it?"

"How to share?"

"Yes, sharing. Assuming that the CPU, motherboard, graphics card, sound card, network card, memory stick, and hard disk have been solved, a system slightly larger than a board is formed, and then in a box with an internal bus Insert a few such boards in the computer, add an optical drive and two power supplies, and those boards share the optical drive and power supply through the internal bus. In this way, the problem will not be solved.” What Zhang Lexing said is actually It is the model adopted by the blade server in the future, but he said it more simply.

Hearing what Zhang Lexing said, Chen Shiqing's eyes lit up, and suddenly there was a solution to the problem that had been bothering him. He patted the table lightly, and sighed: "Mr. Zhang, this trip is not in vain, really'listen One word from you is better than ten years of reading."

"Dr. Chen, don't praise me like that. I just said it casually, and I don't know if it will work."

"Mr. Zhang, you may have said it casually, but for me, it pointed out a new direction. Although I don't know if it will be successful, I believe it will be successful."

"Dr. Chen, are you willing to take on the research project?"

"I have no problem personally, but I still need to communicate with my team to know that those people are willing."

"Then I have an unfeeling request. I hope that Dr. Chen can set up the research group in Hong Kong. I wonder if Dr. Chen agrees?"

"Why? Isn't it more convenient to set up in the United States?"

"Yes, it is indeed more convenient, but once the technology is researched, considering the level involved, it is very likely to be blocked by technology. I don't want this to happen, so..."

Chen Shiqing nodded and said: "I understand this very well. It is relatively easy to transfer a technology in the initial stage, but once it matures and becomes the world's most advanced technology, it is difficult to transfer it. How about this, first carry out the initial stage in the United States. It may be more efficient to do research and wait for the preliminary results to come back.”

Zhang Lexing smiled: "Dr. Chen, it seems that you still don't have confidence in the research environment here. How about I show you around the research institute here tomorrow, and then make a decision?"

"Alright, let's talk about it tomorrow."

After speaking, Chen Shiqing finally noticed the few dishes in front of him. The emptiness in his stomach made him no longer care about modesty, so he picked up his chopsticks and launched a fierce attack.Sipping fragrant tea and tasting delicacies, the guests and hosts enjoyed the meal at last.After dinner, * just appeared with the room key and led Dr. Chen back to his room to rest. Zhang Lexing also returned to his room accompanied by bodyguards.

The scenery outside the window was still so bright and beautiful, but Zhang Lexing didn't have the heart to appreciate it anymore, but was writing and drawing with a notebook.

"Well, I remember that this integrated motherboard integrates a graphics card, a sound card, and a network card. But at the beginning, it is not necessary to integrate all of them. You can start with the graphics card. Speaking of graphics cards, it seems that next year there will be a 3D accelerator on the PC. Card appears, well, this needs to be investigated carefully. ATI (Yetian, a famous graphics card company) seems to also have research on 3D display technology. I don’t know how it is going. Nvidia, the famous graphics card giant in the future) forgot, this has to be checked by people from the Red River Fund, it’s a pity to let it go. Integrated graphics cards need both 2D and 3D performance to be good. It seems that this research project has to be obtained from ATI Find some graphics chip design experts. Sound card research can’t be left behind. Although innovation is making money from independent sound cards, integrated sound cards will be the most popular in the future. If you think about it, you just need to analyze it carefully. I believe they will also be interested. Let’s put the network card aside for the time being, and let’s talk about the previous ones first.

……

When it comes to blade servers, this small hard disk is indispensable. As far as I know, this kind of Wenshi hard disk technology will not be eliminated for a long time in the future. It seems that it is considering acquiring a hard disk technology research and development company, and adapting it to blades. After the development of small hard drives for servers, the production can be authorized to other factories.

……

This hard drive has been researched, and maybe it can be used on future game consoles. It doesn't matter how much capacity it has, at least it can be used to store trial games and various game progress.

The technology of integrating motherboards may also be applicable to game consoles, and it may reduce a lot of production costs. Well, I need to inform the group of game hardware developers about this.

......"

After writing and drawing for a long time, Zhang Lexing looked at the messy notebook and the arrows flying around, and couldn't help laughing. It seems that technology is really the most important thing.Behind a lot of charts and words, Zhang Lexing wrote down the words "cloud computing" and "networked games". This is his ultimate goal, but everything still needs to be worked hard.

……

On the second day, Zhang Lexing took Dr. Chen to Dongfang Microelectronics Research Institute as scheduled. Dr. Chen was a little moved by the many research projects and the good working atmosphere. This is not a problem.However, as Dr. Chen said before, he has no problem coming by himself, but whether his team can come or not will have to go back and negotiate. After all, it needs to cover thousands of kilometers.Next, he visited the production plant of Dongfang Microelectronics, which shocked Dr. Chen again. He did not expect such strong R&D and production capabilities here.

After the visit, Dr. Chen couldn't wait to take the fastest flight back.Before leaving, Zhang Lexing specifically explained: "Dr. Chen, it doesn't matter if you go back this time, it doesn't matter whether you succeed or not, as long as you are willing to come. But at least bring a few experts in heat dissipation. I know people like this Half of the success of the project depends on these people."

After hearing this, Chen Shiqing looked at Zhang Lexing with a different look: "Mr. Zhang, I didn't expect you to be quite an expert. It seems that we really need to talk more when we have time in the future."

……

Chen Shiqing's flight took off, and Zhang Lexing was full of anticipation as he watched the plane gradually disappearing in the afternoon sun and became smaller and smaller. Maybe in the near future, there will be a shrunken version of the computer that is no less than a supercomputer. , I have another solid pillar for my future goals, and the hope of revitalizing the domestic game industry will become greater and greater.

(End of this chapter)