Forums | MacLife

Sounds like Jobs' doing.

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/09 … bling.html

Hmm - I sort of like the concept. The problem I have is that one would need to radically alter a few of the data-paths within the computer.

Theoretically, with this system, one would expect to be able to hook their monitor's LP cable into any LP port on their computer. Current video cards provide their video hookups right on the backplane of the board, rather than feeding it back through the motherboard anywhere. If you wanted your monitor to plug into any LP port, you'd have to have the video available on any jack, the ones on your new video card, on the motherboard, the ones on the front of your case. Similarly I'd expect to be able to hook an external hard drive into the jack provided on the video card. Or a network cable into the case-front jack, rather than having a dedicated LP port labeled "network" on the back.


It would almost completely defeat the purpose if one could only hook up certain devices to certain LP port. Think the usb 1 v 2 and high power vs low power usb mess we already have, but 10 times worse.

If you make the plugs and sockets the same, one better damn well be able to plug any device into any socket and have it Just Work.

I like it.  Of course I don't think you would "have to" alter anything.  It would be common knowledge that the monitor plugs into the LP port that is on the graphics card... duh!  Or that graphics port could have special label icon just like now.

-mark

You might say they've.... seen the light?

If the monitor has to be plugged into a special port ... wouldn't be better if the port had a different connector. We (at my place of work) have lots of people that can't plug the keyboard and mouse (ps2) into the correct port (which are color coded). and users who can't plug the speakers into the right port, which are also normally color coded.

That would just create head aches if you had to plug something into a particular port when all the ports are exactly the same.

avkills wrote:

Although who knows how they will implement it.  Maybe the GFX card will just have a LP port on the card and be fed back to the motherboard.
I still feel that monitors should be fed by special dedicated LP ports though.

Do you plug your computer directly into your modem, or is there a router involved?

mrreet2001 wrote:

jerwin wrote:

avkills wrote:

Although who knows how they will implement it.  Maybe the GFX card will just have a LP port on the card and be fed back to the motherboard.
I still feel that monitors should be fed by special dedicated LP ports though.

Do you plug your computer directly into your modem, or is there a router involved?

I've got an iMac, and a DSL bridge/modem. Theoretically, i could connect the two directly, but instead, my imac connects to an Airport Extreme Router, which then connects to the bridge. LightPeak is the same way-- the video cards connect to the router, the router combines it with other packets, and everything is sent on its merry way along the fibre.

Well if the graphics can take up to 6Gbps of the 10Gbps bandwidth, I am pretty sure I'd want my LP driven monitors on their own dedicated LP pipes. 

-mark