Beowulf in a Box (fwd)

[Robert G. Brown]

On Tue, 29 Sep 1998, Jukka E Isosaari wrote:

> Forgive my ignorance, and e-mailing both lists, but has anyone 
> talked to Intel people about Beowulf projects? It would seem to
> me that they should have an interest in sponsoring this kind of
> super-computer development, given that most of them would probably 
> use Intel processors.
> 
> They should have plenty of experience, and maybe could come up with
> a cheap NC-design that could be used as a Beowulf node as well?

Ummm, it isn't common knowledge, but I believe that Intel IS running a
beowulf project or two or four.  I wouldn't be surprised if an Intel
Human or two listens in on the beowulf list, but for obvious reasons
(if one thinks about it) they need to be mousey-quiet.

BTW, (to further support the notion that Intel is already heavily but
quietly involved with linux) the newspaper business section in the
Raleigh News and Observer today announced that Intel and Red Hat and
Netscape are issuing a major announcement in a few days of a real live
"corporate alliance" (businessspeak for "a deal").  Recall RH is in
Durham just down the road apiece from here; I don't know if the
pre-announcment made the national news:-). I believe that in this
alliance Linux is about to receive the formal stamp of approval from
Intel and be legitimized as a "real" alternative to Microsoft.  The
article goes on to list some of the major software vendors that are
about to release linux binaries and RH's funding of "improved GUI
desktop" stuff which I take to mean either KDE or Gnome or both.  It
also listed the current number of linux users worldwide as "2 to 10
million" (pretty wide range there, but the LOW end is impressive
enough) -- I'm curious about their source for that figure either way.

Don't everybody run out and party all at once (it's a workday:-) but
seriously, Intel formally joining a Linux alliance may be what we one
day look back on as the day that MS's longstanding stranglehold on the
market was actually broken.  Even if nothing else ever comes of it,
MS will actually have to compete with a strongly growing competitor
and will undoubtedly respond with better prices and higher quality.

It remains to be seen if "the linux/gnu way" of open systems and open
source ultimately wins the war, but it looks like at last the battle
may be formally joined.

   rgb

Robert G. Brown	                       http://www.phy.duke.edu/~rgb/
Duke University Dept. of Physics, Box 90305
Durham, N.C. 27708-0305
Phone: 1-919-660-2567  Fax: 919-660-2525     email:rgb@phy.duke.edu