Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!ames!mailrus!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!ucbvax!SCROLLS.WHARTON.UPENN.EDU!zenios
From: zenios@SCROLLS.WHARTON.UPENN.EDU (Stavros Zenios)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apollo
Subject: Distributed computing on Apollos via NCS
Message-ID: <8903181448.AA00598@scrolls.wharton.upenn.edu>
Date: 18 Mar 89 14:48:41 GMT
Sender: daemon@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU
Organization: The Internet
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I am exporling the use of NCS for distributed 
computing for optimization problems 
(i.e. large Fortran/C programs)
on our Apollo network. Anybody who has 
prior experience or references on this matter
please forward them to me at 

zenios@wharton.upenn.edu

A more extensive message with specific questions follows:

I am working with a 
couple of graduate students to implement
some parallel optimization algorithms accross
our network. None of us has any experience with
NCS. Before I get them seriously involved in this
project I would like to get some feedback on the
following:

(1) Is NCS fully developed and supported (Not what the
    manuals say; what do you as an experienced user think?)

(2) Can it be used for implementation of a Fortran/C program in
    parallel?

(3) How efficient is communication accross the network? How
    severly would it interfere with the speedup of the
    parallel algorithm.

(4) You have any --- prefereably published --- references on the
    use of NCS for distributed computing (lienar algebra, simulation,
    optimization, etc)?

(5) Is there a good person at Apollo we could contact?

Thanks for any info you could give. You can also reach me
at (215) 898-6727

Stavros A. Zenios
Decision Sciences Department
The Wharton School
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA 19104.