To use the test program download this file (or generate it yourself from the blockchain): http://ul.to/hz5wlg
The program will try to find the correct nonce in each block and detect if the hash function does work correctly. It’ll also benchmark the algorithm.
From what I’ve heard the patch does not work on 32 bit systems. I don’t know why. I’ve developed it on an AMD64 machine and it works fine. If it’s slower on Intel, try to disable Hyperthreading. The big loop in the SSE2 code doesn’t contain any “normal” x86 except for one jump at the end.
Btw, there’s a git repo at http://github.com/tcatm/bitcoin-cruncher/