GPUs a closer look

摘要

As the line between GPUs and CPUs begins to blur, it's important to understand what makes GPUs tick. A gamer wanders through a virtual world rendered in near-cinematic detail. Seconds later, the screen fills with a 3D explosion, the result of unseen enemies hiding in physically accurate shadows. Disappointed, the user exits the game and returns to a computer desktop that exhibits the stylish 3D look-and-feel of a modern window manager. Both of these visual experiences require hundreds of gigaflops of computing performance, a demand met by the GPU (graphics processing unit) present in every consumer PC.