AMD gets the nod in court fight over MMX

Three cheers for the little guy. AMD is set to release its K6 processor,a Pentium Pro competitor that undercuts the price of Intel's top of the line chip while adding MMX-compatibility. And that, according to Intel, isthe problem. Intel sought a temporary restraining order against AMD to stop it from using the term "MMX" in ads for the K6. Tuesday, a Delawarejudge ruled against Intel.

Not coincidentally, AMD officially announced the CPU today and will heavilypush the fact that it is MMX-compatible (they had to reverse-engineer thisfeature, no small feat), faster than the Pentium Pro, and far less expensive. It is the first time since the days of the 386 and 486 CPUs thata company has created a compelling alternative to Intel chips.

According to Intel spokesman Chuck Malloy, "this is a major win for users."No kidding, Chuck