Virtual Machines

So, I was thinking about virtual machines, specifically about extending a 32 bit virtual machine to have access to more memory by segmenting the memory. Now, the 8086 supported 1 MB with a segment selector offset four bits, so each segment differed from the one preceding it by 16 bytes. I was thinking about having the segment selector offset 16 bits, supporting a 48 bit memory space and making adjacent segments differ by 64 KB, or I could offset it 24 bits and have a 56 bit memory space, with segments differing by 16 MB. Which is more useful, larger or smaller segment differences? Should I just make each segment distinct, allowing a 64 bit memory space?

>>13
Interesting how "disgusting hack" is the EXACT SAME PHRASEOLOGY used by MS' FUD-spreading shills... meanwhile they ignore the fact that PAE is required for DEP! All Windows OSs since NT4 supported PAE so they all had a hard physical RAM limit of 64GB, but the idiots at MS decided to limit it lower.

The majority of processes don't need anywhere near 4GB. The way 64-bit is implemented is completely backwards-incompatible. You can't use 64-bit registers or instructions in 32/16-bit mode like you can with 32-bit in 16-bit. Using 64-bit addresses on a system that has at most 34 or maybe 35 bits of physical address space is a HUGE waste.

Full-64-bit is for HPC grids and big data stuff like that. Not the average desktop.