[Beowulf] How Can Microsoft's HPC Server Succeed?

[Jim Lux]

Quoting Mark Hahn <hahn at mcmaster.ca>, on Thu 03 Apr 2008 02:04:20 PM PDT:

>> are a Windows shop, and thus the cost of hiring or training staff
>> would more than outweigh any savings on licenses.
>
> this is absurd!  buying a windows cluster just means that the new
> cluster admins you need to hire or train will now labor under the
> dark-age infrastructure of windows rather than *nix.  it's not as if
> any existing windows desktop or server admins will have mad mpi skilz...



OTOH, the suggestion was that this is basically a "turn-key" cluster  
with an application pre-installed.  No MPI skills needed.  Basically,  
it's just another faster computer.  (Which is what companies like  
Orion MultiSystems were/are targeting.. a faster box under the desk)