Vector processing in ada

Abstract

To handle signal processing algorithms such as the Fast Fourrier Transform (FFT) or the Discrete Cosine Transform (DCT) system designers have traditionally resorted to specialized hardware with builtin vector-processing capabilities. With the advent of the Altivec vector extensions for the general-purpose PowerPC processor, developers have the ability to write efficient signal processing code in C and C++. Using Altivec-enabled PowerPCs as an example, this paper explains what can and should be done to write not only efficient, but also clean and reliable vector processing code in Ada.