Programming the Cell Processor

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The Cell processor is the brain of the Playstation 3 and is IBM's foremost device in the field of supercomputing. This book covers the Cell inside and out, from its internal architecture to its programming methods and development tools. Packed with code examples, step-by-step tutorials, and helpful diagrams, this treatment provides a hands-on introduction to programming the Cell in C, C++, and assembly language. The majority of the book describes the wide range of applications available for the Cell and the many free libraries that simplify the development process. Whether you're interested in games, graphics, signal processing, cryptography, statistics, or vector/matrix operations, this book has something to offer anyone interested in high-performance computing.



Chapter 1: Introducing the Cell Processor

Part I: The Software Development Tools

Chapter 2: The Cell Software Development Kit (SDK)

Chapter 3: Building Applications for the Cell Processor

Chapter 4: Debugging and Simulating Applications

Chapter 5: The Cell SDK Integrated Development Environment

Part II: The PowerPC Processor Element (PPE)

Chapter 6: Introducing the PowerPC Processor Unit (PPU)

Chapter 7: The SPE Runtime Management Library (libspe)

Chapter 8: SIMD Programming on the PPU, Part 1: Vector Libraries and Functions

Chapter 9: SIMD Programming on the PPU, Part 2: Methods and Algorithms

Part III: The Synergistic Processor Element (SPE)

Chapter 10: Introducing the Synergistic Processor Unit (SPU)

Chapter 11: SIMD Programming on the SPU

Chapter 12: SPU Communication, Part 1: Direct Memory Access

Chapter 13: SPU Communication, Part 2: Events, Mailboxes, and Signals

Chapter 14: Advanced SPU Topics: Overlays, Software Caching, and SPU Isolation

Chapter 15: SPU Assembly Language

Part IV: Mathematics and Computation

Chapter 16: Vectors and Matrices

Chapter 17: The Fast Fourier Transform (FFT)

Chapter 18: Multiprecision Operations and Monte-Carlo Methods

Part V: Graphics and Games

Chapter 19: Programming the Framebuffer

Chapter 20: OpenGL: Mesa and Gallium

Chapter 21: Building Games with Ogre3D

Chapter 22: Packaging Games with COLLADA

Epilogue

Part VI: Appendices

Appendix A: Understanding ELF Files

Appendix B: Configuring the Linux Kernel

Appendix C: The Accelerated Library Framework (ALF)

Appendix D: SPU Assembly Instruction Reference

Appendix E: Introduction to Tcl