Vector and scalar processors also differ in their startup times. A vector processor often requires a prolonged startup of the computer because of the multiple tasks being performed. Scalar processors start a computer in a much shorter amount of time, since only single tasks are being executed.
The superscalar processor takes elements of each type and combines them for even fasterprocessing. Using instruction-level parallelism, superscalar processing can perform multiple operations at the same time. This allows for the CPU to perform much faster than a basic scalar processor, without the additional complexity and other limitations of the vectorprocessor. There can be problems with this type of processor, however, as it must determine which tasks can be performed in parallel and which are dependent on other tasks being completed first.
Vector and scalar processors are still used on a daily basis. Some video game consoles, for example, use a combination of both vector and scalar processors. Vector processing is seen to have promise when dealing with multimedia tasks in which one instruction can address the large amount of data required for video and audio.
Direction. A scalar has only magnitude, while a vector has both magnitude and direction.
Direction.
Differences between scalar and superscalar processors generally boil down to quantity and speed. A scalar processor, considered to be the simplest of all processors, works on one or two computer data items at a given time. The superscalar processor works on multiple instructions and several groups of multiple data items at a time. Scalar and superscalar processors both function the same way in terms of how they manipulate data, but their difference lies in how many manipulations and data items they can work on in a given time. Superscalar processors can handle multiple instructions and data items, while the scalarprocessor simply cannot, therefore making the former a more powerful processor than the latter. Scalar and superscalar processors both have some similarities with vector processors. Like ascalar processor, a vector processor also executes a single instruction at a time, but instead of just manipulating one data item, its single instruction can access multiple data items. Similar with the superscalar processor, a vector processor has several redundant functional units that let it manipulate multiple data items, but it can only work on a single instruction at a time. In essence, a superscalar processor is a combination of a scalar processor and a vector processor.
There is a big difference between Scalar and vector quantity. Vector quantity means something where direction is not important.eg- Displacement(the shortest distance between the displacement points of an object). whereas in scalar quantity Direction is important. eg. Speed
Vector quantity is a quantity characterized by magnitude and direction.Whereas,Scalar quantity is a quantity that does not depend on direction.
A scalar is just a number. A vector is a row or column of numbers. For example: 6 is a scalar while (1, 0, 23.5) is a vector.
Scalar pipelining offers an alternative to vector pipelining whereby the cycles are used in a linear fashion. Vector pipelining performs vector computations.
A vector quantity includes a direction; a scalar does not.A vector quantity includes a direction; a scalar does not.A vector quantity includes a direction; a scalar does not.A vector quantity includes a direction; a scalar does not.
Scalar and vector quantities are both used in physics to describe properties of objects. They both have magnitude, which represents the size or amount of the quantity. However, the key difference is that vector quantities also have direction associated with them, while scalar quantities do not.
A scalar times a vector is a vector.
vector
Zero is a number (a scalar quantity without unit) while zero vector (or null vector) is a vector quantity having zero magnitude and arbitrary direction.