PC Magazine Labs Benchmarks Release 5.6 - README File ----------------------------------------------------- INTRODUCTION ------------ Welcome to Release 5.6 of the PC LABS BENCHMARK SERIES. In this release we have incorporated a new 80486 Instruction Mix Test and the ability to save a comma delimited results file. The Extended Memory Test has been renamed to the BIOS Extended Memory Test to more accurately describe its function. See the description of this test for more details. We have also included detection of a 1004 error code (Sector Not Found) in the DOS Disk Access Test and allowed the DOS Disk Access and BIOS Disk Seek tests to automatically recover and continue after a seek error. This file contains a brief description of each of the benchmark tests. The file BENEXEC.TXT describes how to execute the tests and may be viewed by selecting Execution from the BENCHINS menu or using DOS commands to COPY, TYPE, or PRINT it. The benchmark files are distributed in a compressed format and should be installed by selecting Installation from the BENCHINS menu. DESCRIPTIONS OF TESTS --------------------- SYSTEM INFORMATION PC Labs' MicroScope looks "under the hood" of your machine and displays important information about its configuration. Each section of the screen expands when selected to show even more detail. Memory, device drivers, disk drives, processor type and speed are some of the information MicroScope makes available. The current configuration can also be saved in a disk file for future review. PROCESSOR PERFORMANCE TESTS PLEASE NOTE: Since the execution speed of microcomputers is incredibly fast, the functions described in the Processor Performance Tests are performed many times in a loop to produce the published results. While the number of iterations varies from test to test, they are consistant within each test when testing different machines. INSTRUCTION MIX --------------- The Instruction Mix benchmark test times a series of tasks specific to the 8088, 80286, or 80386 chip. Since this test shows how the CPU operates in the context of the bus, processor, system memory, and motherboard architecture, a faster time means better overall computer performance. 80486 INSTRUCTION MIX <--- NEW << --------------------- This test, based upon the test above, contains additional instructions unique to the 80486 chip. 128K NOP LOOP ------------- The 128K NOP Loop benchmark test times the execution of a loop containing 128K of NOP instructions. DO-NOTHING LOOP --------------- The Do-nothing Loop benchmark test times the execution of a loop containing one NOP instruction. INTEGER ADD ----------- The Integer Add benchmark test times the execution of a loop containing an ADD instruction. INTEGER MULTIPLY ---------------- The Integer Multiply benchmark test times the execution of a loop containing a IMUL instruction. STRING SORT AND MOVE -------------------- The String Sort and Move benchmark test times the execution of a bubble sort performed on 200 random strings containing 16 characters each. PRIME NUMBER SIEVE ------------------ The Prime Number Sieve benchmark test times the execution of a routine to find the prime numbers between 0 and 8190. FLOATING POINT MIX ------------------ The Floating Point Mix (also known as the Floating Point Calculation Without Coprocessor) benchmark test sets up a floating point emulation program in RAM and then exercises the processor and tests RAM access speeds during floating point calculations. The floating point processes performed are identical to those used in the Coprocessor Test. COPROCESSOR PERFORMANCE TESTS COPROCESSOR SPEED TEST ---------------------- The Coprocessor Speed benchmark test exercises the coprocessor using the same floating point calculations used in the Floating Point Mix Test. In addition to testing the speed differences of coprocessors in different machines, the speed gained by using a coprocessor can be seen by comparing the two floating point tests on the same machine. DISK PERFORMANCE TESTS BIOS DISK SEEK -------------- The BIOS Disk Seek benchmark test measures mechanical track-to-track disk drive access times. Fast times are helpful with programs such as databases, which often store and must later find data in many separate places on a drive. Both sequential and random access is tested. DOS DISK ACCESS --------------- The DOS Disk Access benchmark test measures the time necessary to perform 1000 read requests at random locations on the disk via DOS calls. NOTE: If a seek error occurs in either of the above tests a message ---- will appear for a few seconds, a replacement sector will be chosen and the test will continue. This is NOT necessarily an indication of a bad disk drive. These tests access sectors which may have been legitimately locked out during the formatting of the drive. If you suspect a problem with your drive use a diagnostic program to test the drive. DOS FILE ACCESS --------------- The DOS File Access (Small and Large Records) benchmark test times disk throughput as a result of mechanical disk drive speed, hard disk controller function, and bus speed. The test may be used to show the effects of disk caching by running both with and without a cache. Fast times for a particular record length are advantageous when working with an application that uses a similar record length. DOS VARIABLE SIZE FILE ACCESS ----------------------------- The DOS Variable File Access (Small and Large Records) benchmark test is similar to the DOS File Access test and has been designed primarily for testing hardware and software disk caches. The small record size is 200 bytes and the large record size is 2048 bytes. File sizes range from 300 to 19,200 records for small records and 30 to 1,920 records for large records. VIDEO PERFORMANCE TESTS DIRECT SCREEN ACCESS -------------------- The Direct Screen Access benchmark test times the writing of data directly into screen memory. Fast times are advantageous for application programs that bypass slower BIOS and DOS calls and write directly to the screen. TELETYPE WITHOUT SCROLLING -------------------------- The Teletype Without Scrolling benchmark test times the writing of data to the screen using BIOS calls. Fast times are advantageous for programs that display large amounts of data in a non-scrolling fashion. TELETYPE WITH SCROLLING ----------------------- The Teletype With Scrolling benchmark test times the writing of data to the screen using BIOS calls but adds the time necessary to scroll the entire screen up one line at a time once the screen is initially filled. This test writes the same amount of data as the non-scrolling test. The difference between the two times indicates the overhead attributable to scrolling the screen. Fast times are advantageous for application programs that frequently cause the screen to scroll. MEMORY PERFORMANCE TESTS ------------------------ The Memory Performance benchmark tests indicate the time needed to read and write data to conventional, expanded, and extended memory areas. Due to advances in the 80386 and 80486 processor chips, the results obtained using the Extended Memory tests with this processor are not indicative of all programs using extended memory on 80386 and 80486 machines. The test uses the BIOS function for switching in and out of Protected Mode. The BIOS call is not commonly used to perform this function on a these machines. The test has been renamed the BIOS Extended Memory Test to indicate its specific use of the BIOS functions. PRINTER SPEED TEST ------------------ The Printer Speed benchmark test times the throughput of your printer by printing a typical two-page business letter. Because this is a throughput test, our results are almost always slower than the speeds claimed by manufacturers, who usually clock a one line "burst" speed. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Additional information may be found accompanying reviews in PC Magazine. If you have any specific questions or suggestions, please send them along with your registration form or in a separate letter addressed to: PC Labs Benchmark Registration, 1 Park Avenue, New York, NY, 10016. PC MagNet is also an excellent source of information as well as a place to post questions. Thank you for using the PC Labs Benchmark Series Release 5.6. Sincerely, C. James Galley III Director, PC Labs