Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!wuarchive!emory!hubcap!fpst
From: warren@eecs.cs.pdx.edu (Warren Harrison)
Newsgroups: comp.parallel
Subject: Re: Need STRAND 88 source ...
Keywords: STRAND 88
Message-ID: <1991May23.180217.9427@hubcap.clemson.edu>
Date: 23 May 91 16:10:24 GMT
References: <1991May20.025248.26252@csrd.uiuc.edu>
Sender: pdxgate!news@uunet.UU.NET
Reply-To: eecs!warren@uunet.UU.NET (Warren Harrison)
Distribution: comp
Organization: Portland State University, Portland, OR
Lines: 37
Approved: parallel@hubcap.clemson.edu


In article <1991May20.025248.26252@csrd.uiuc.edu> hblim@sp1.csrd.uiuc.edu (Hock-Beng Lim) writes:
>I would like to know if STRAND 88 is public-domain, and if so, where can I
>obtain it. Thanks in advance for any info !
>

Strand isn't public domain. It is available in the U.S. from their U.S.
distributor:

   18235 Monte Verdi Blvd.
   Aloha 97007
   503-642-0151

We've been using Strand extensively here at PSU, and I've found it to be
a great language for teaching parallel programming. They seem to support a
number of platforms: Sequent, Intel iPSC, Sun Workstations, etc. (but no
MS-DOS version yet :-) Strand is neat in that it simulates parallelism
even if you don't have multiple processors (or enough processors) by
creating "virtual cpus". We regularly develop Strand applications on a
2 CPU Sequent (because it's local) and then run the application on a
Sequent with (many) more CPUs at our research institute, without having
to make any changes to the source. This way my students can develop their
applications without annoying people who are trying to use the research
platform, but still can see and measure speedup on a final set of runs.

We've also found that the overhead added by Strand isn't all that bad,
so applications written in Strand don't run much slower than ones written
in FORTRAN. The downside is that Strand requires you to carry around a
run-time package, so you can't make stand alone executables to distribute
to people.

I have no financial connection with Strand, I'm just a satisfied user.


==========================================================================
Warren Harrison                                          warren@cs.pdx.edu
Center for Software Quality Research                          503/725-3108
Portland State University/CMPS   

-- 
=========================== MODERATOR ==============================
Steve Stevenson                            {steve,fpst}@hubcap.clemson.edu
Department of Computer Science,            comp.parallel
Clemson University, Clemson, SC 29634-1906 (803)656-5880.mabell