IIs The Games Industry Ready For HT?

HT allows multithreaded software code to run on a single Pentium 4 as if there were two Pentium 4s running simultaneously. Only when there are multiple threads running in parallel and competing for the processor's resources - as is often the case with games - can the added performance be felt. An overused car engine example illustrates how this works: a Porsche 911's turbo-charge only kicks in after the engine reaches a certain RPM level: the turbo kicks in when accelerating to 60 MPH in less than six seconds, but normally doesn't between traffic light stops in a 35 MPH speed limit zone.

If, for example, you play Quake III with its numerous multithreads on a system powered by the latest graphics card from ATI or Nvidia and an over-clocked Pentium 4, Intel claims HT can allow you to get an additional 20% FPS performance.