Alvin Scott, Jr. Mr.

Harper
Class NT1110 10/31/2013
Unit 5 Analysis 1: Pentium Flaw
1. Search the Internet for information about the Pentium microprocessor flaw, using
keywords such as Pentium microprocessor flaw.
2. Determine the nature of the Pentium flaw, how it was discovered, when it was
discovered, and Intels response to the flaw. In June 1994, Intel discovered the floating-
point unit flaw in the Pentium microprocessor. June 13
th
, 1994 shortly after adding a
Pentium system to his group of computers, but was unable to eliminate other possible
factors (such as programming errors, motherboard chipsets, etc.) until October 19, 1994.
On October 24
th
, 1994 he reported the flaw he encountered to Intel. According to
Professor Thomas Nicely, the person that he contacted at Intel later admitted to Intel
being aware of the flaw since May 1994. The flaw was discovered by Intel during testing
of the FPU for its new P6 core, which was first used in the Pentium Pro.
3. Write several paragraphs explaining what you think of Intels response to the Pentium
flaw.
Be sure to include answers to the following questions:
Did Intel handle the problem correctly? On November 7, 1994 the story first
broke in an article published in Electronic Engineering Times, "In the story, Intel
says it has corrected the glitch in subsequent runs of the chip, and Steve Smith
of Intel dismisses the importance of the flaw, saying, "This doesn't even qualify
as an errata (sic)." So I would say no they did not handle it right at first.
What did Intel do to satisfy customers concerned about the flaw? On December
20, 1994, in response to the public's mounting pressure, Intel announces plans
for a total recall, replacement and destruction of all the flawed Pentium
microprocessors. On January 17, 1995, Intel announces a pre-tax charge of 475
million dollars against their earnings, ostensibly the total cost associated with
replacement of flawed microprocessors.
What would happen if the same type of flaw were found in a new CPU today? If
the same Pentium floating-point unit flaw happened today in today's economy I
believe Intel would go under. The government may bail them out of the
bankruptcy and that would be only because the majority of the governments
computers have a chip made by Intel.