User:Tripleblade/pcmark

System Test Suite
According to the makers of PCMark, Futuremark, "There are 11 system tests - each one is designed to represent a certain type of PC usage. By running these tests, PCMark05 stresses the components in a similar manner as they are stressed in normal home usage. More information on the selection of these tests can be found on the PCMark05 White Paper. The system test suite contains tests measuring different components of a PC and the results of the tests as well as the total score depend on all components. The system tests stress CPU, system bus, Memory and Graphics performance. " These Tests include:
 * HDD - XP startup
 * Physics and 3D
 * 2D - Transparent windows
 * 3D - Pixel Shader
 * Web page rendering
 * File Decryption
 * 2D - Graphics memory - 64 lines
 * HDD - General usage
 * Multithreaded Test 1: Video encoding & Audio Compression. This test runs the Video encoding and Audio Compression tests at the same time multithreaded.
 * Multithreaded Test 2: Text Edit & Image Decompression. This test runs the Text Edit and Image decompression tests at the same time multithreaded.
 * Multithreaded Test 3: File Encryption & HDD - Virus scan & Memory - Latency 16MB & File compression

CPU Test Suite
According to Futuremark, "PCMark05 also includes test suite for testing CPU performance. The tests selected in this suite are the most CPU intensive and lack activities in other components, such as memory." Tests for this suite are:
 * File compression
 * File decompression*
 * File Encryption
 * File Decryption
 * Image decompression
 * Audio encoding
 * Multithreaded test 1: File compression & File Encryption. This test runs the File Compression and File Encrypting tests at the same time multithreaded.
 * Multithreaded test 2: File decompression & File decryption & Audio decompression & Image decompression. This test runs the File compression, File decryption, Audio decoding and Image decoding tests at the same time multithreaded.

Memory Suite Tests

 * Memory Read tests: 16MB, 8MB, 192kB, 4kB block sizes
 * Memory Write tests: 16MB, 8MB, 192kB, 4kB block sizes
 * Memory Copy tests: 16MB, 8MB, 192kB, 4kB block sizes
 * Memory Latency tests: 16MB, 8MB, 192kB, 4kB block sizes

Graphics Suite Tests

 * 2D - Transparent Windows
 * 2D - Graphics memory 64 lines
 * 2D - Graphics memory 128 lines
 * 2D - Video playback
 * 3D - Fill rate
 * 3D - Polygon throughput
 * 3D - Pixel shader
 * 3D - Vertex shader

HDD Test Suite

 * XP Startup
 * Application loading
 * General usage
 * Virus scanning
 * File write

PCMark Vantage
This is the other version of PCMark currently supported by Futuremark. Unlike its predecessor, this version offers scores for digital memories (homemade photos and videos), TV and movies, Gaming, Music, Communication, Productivity, as well as most of the previous tests, giving scores for all the mentioned. This version, though, takes out its memory test suite.

CPUID controversies
In a 2008 arstechnica.com article, a VIA Nano gained significant performance after its CPUID changed to Intel