How “Moore’s Law” Works

A short summary on the logic behind one of the most influential trends in technology.

Gordon Moore was a cofounder of the Intel Corporation back in the 1960’s. Around this time, he made some predictions about the computer/electronics industry that have led a shocking precedence.

Moore, being college educated with degrees in Chemistry and Physics, certainly had the background to understand the detailed intricacies of computer technology. Intel is one of the leaders in designing and developing microchips that control much of the electronics that exists today.

What is now known as “Moore’s Law” is a theory that was developed while writing a speech for an electronics magazine. Not only have the predictions come true, but the law is still widely used today and has been credited with many of the advancements that are currently transpiring.

Predictions & Advancements

Gordon Moore made a statement suggesting the speed of technological advancement could be predicted algorithmically. Today some might wonder why this is so important, but you must consider that this statement was made way back in the 1960’s when the world was on the verge of a highly advanced electronic age.

Remember: At this time, microprocessors were just becoming known because for the mere size of all the electronics that made them up.

What Moore suggested was that the number of transistors that could be placed on a chip would double every 24 months. This suggested that through advancements and the better understanding of manufacturing technology, electronics and transistors could be shrunk down to fit into more compact circuits such as those we see today.

Think back to years past, when computers were gigantic machines that would take up entire rooms. Think about how bulky the CPU’s were, and the monitors as well.

Today they are thin and exponentially more powerful, with all the necessary electronics packaged neatly in integrated circuits modules and boards.

As Size Decreases, Computations Increase

It seemed a bit counterintuitive at the time. However, Moore insisted that as the chips sizes decreased their computational capacity would also increase.

Take a look at the average laptop computer that has the same specifications as a larger desktop model. They can work just as effectively, but are only a fraction of the size. Again, this proves that Moore’s prediction was correct.

Electronics engineers are constantly finding new ways to put more power into each and every silicon chip. Instead of having just one or two functions, each chip now has many, many more. This allows size to be further reduced.

These advancements have not only allowed the size to decrease, but the abilities and functions of the electronics themselves have also become well-diversified.

Advance Or Fold

Now it’s certainly not Moore’s Law alone that has created the scurry for advancement in the electronics manufacturing industry. That is more the result of business and healthy marketplace competition. However, product manufacturers can safely know that if they are not doubling their advancements at a similar rate to the transistors and chips, they will likely not stay competitive for long.

Take, for example, the other components that make up those smaller, more powerful computers. If they cannot maintain enough momentum, their fast moving competitors will take the lead in the marketplace. The electronics industry is one of the most volatile and fastest-moving in the world. This is what makes it a “do or die” environment.

Moore was accurate in his predictions that technology would basically double itself every 2 years. This has stood the test of time for over 50 years, and will likely continue on for years to come.

About the Author:

Storagepipe Solutions is a pioneer in data protection, and has been providing business continuity solutions since 2001. Their product portfolio includes server backup and email archiving systems.

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2 Responses to “How “Moore’s Law” Works”

  1. acridplacidity Says...

    On December 23, 2009 at 7:44 am

    I think the laptop-desktop comparison actually gives rise to a logical fallacy: only when a laptop would work MORE efficiently than a desktop-PC because of it’s reduced size, it would prove Moore’s point. Bu as far as I know, this size reduction isn’t actually what’s guessed at by Moore: most of the sizereduction in a laptop is concerning air and the absence of need for free slots (for soundboards etc), which takes up the most room in most PC’s, together with the powersupply which isn’t enclosed in the laptopcasing. Also: usually harddrives in a laptop spin @ 5400 rpm, creating a bottleneck comparing to the more usual 7200 rpm 3,5″ drives are operating at, actually disproving Moore. But again, I don’t think that’s what Moore was thinking of.

    Perhaps a more lucid comparison would be between an MSX and the iPhone: greatly reduced size, and a HECK of a lot more computational power.


  2. 64gb usb flash drive Says...

    On January 2, 2010 at 9:15 am

    It is true that the more processing power and storage we have the more junk we find to use it all up. I have just bought a 64Gb usb flash drive, yes that’s 64Gb and it is already half full. Its wonderfuI to be able to carry something like that around with you and always have it accessible. I remember my first computer, a sinclair zx80 with 1k of Ram. We used to write BASIC programs and save them to a cassette tape……I suspect that this trend will never end and will keep the likes of intel and microsoft in business until the end of time.
    Roll on the matrix!


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