If the truth be known, altivec was probably designed to optimize certain operations (blur?) in Adobe Photoshop as that was used to benchmark computer speed in advertising. Anyway, optimization is a big risk when done for multiple processors and operating systems as well as a large expenditure of time. We used to optimize Conway's Life on different computers with different languages as an intellectual exercise and only succeeded in proving that clock speed, language implementation,instruction set, and algorithm design all had varying degrees of influence on the outcome. For older people who remember the ads for multiple jewel watches or multi-tube radios and for middle age folk who recall the 16 bit 8088 (actually 8 bit) and the toddlers who want the 300 hp Gargantua V13 auto, I remind you that the horsepower is measured with the exhaust system removed (no back pressure), the fuel economy is measured on a flat course with no traffic lights, and the clock speed is the front side and does not include the backside memory acquisition. sam