Zettalinux: It's Not Too Late To Start
summary
Argues Linux must prepare now for 128-bit pointers and registers to avoid a repeat of the 32→64 mess, citing file-size and address-space limits around 2035–2040, noting billions of 32-bit devices still ship with >4GB RAM. Proposes C model changes (use Rust-style fixed-width types), a user-visible __ptrt (suggested 256-bit for safety), multiple compat ABIs and automated compat-layer tooling, and compiler support; this is a design and roadmap proposal, not yet implemented and requiring CPU and toolchain buy-in.
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chapters (13)
- 0:00Intro
- 1:00Why I left this slide in
- 1:19What problems am I trying to avoid
- 3:36General purpose registers
- 4:21File sizes
- 5:27User address spaces
- 13:55StandIn
- 24:19Data Structures
- 27:02Projects on the Go
- 30:58Conclusion
- 32:04Windows
- 35:54Is it viable
- 39:18Use cases
