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From: malcolm@ee.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.unix
Subject: Re: info on array processors wanted
Message-ID: <67400001@ee.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 21-Jan-85 19:52:00 EST
Article-I.D.: ee.67400001
Posted: Mon Jan 21 19:52:00 1985
Date-Received: Wed, 23-Jan-85 05:06:57 EST
References: <278@packard.UUCP>
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Nf-ID: #R:packard:-27800:ee:67400001:000:1771
Nf-From: ee!malcolm    Jan 21 19:52:00 1985


If you are interested in buying an array processor for a Unix machine
by all means talk to Peter Behrens of APUnix.  He can be reached at
(619) 452-7819 or (619) 272-5155.  He has been very good to us and I 
highly recomend his services!

I don't know all the hardware he is supporting now but the distribution
of software that we have for the FPS AP120/B is ifdef'ed for both Bezerkely
and System 5.

The stories about programming the beasts are partially true.  Programming them
in microcode would take a real wiz.  APUnix has written a vector function
chainer that allows basic AP subroutines and some simple loop constructs to
be combined into one binary module that can run in the AP without host
intervention.  This is the only way to use the AP since the AP<->DEC interface
is real SLOW (both hardware and software).

Anyway, the vector function chainer has syntatic sugar that makes it look 
like either Fortran or C.  Most of the algorithms for my thesis were written
in C and called the AP subroutines (things like vector multiply).  When they
were debugged I ifdef'ed all the fancy features of the language so that all
I was left was just the bare numerical code and then compiled it to run on
the AP.  I've even written routines (in C for the VAX) that let me simulate 
most of the calls I need on the VAX.  This way I can use dbx to debug my
programs and be pretty sure they work before I ever touch the AP.  (Sure
beats doing program development on the AP or the campus CYBER.)

And yes our AP isn't a very nice neighbor.  We got ours to work by giving 
the AP its own UBA and not putting anything else on the bus.

Let me know if you need any more information.

							Malcolm Slaney
							Purdue EE Dept.
							pur-ee!malcolm
							malcolm@purdue.arpa