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"Random Walkers" may speed P2P networks
sean23007 writes "New Scientist posts an article about an innovative new method of controlling P2P traffic to maximize speed over a very large network. The idea, thought up by researchers at Princeton, Berkeley, AT&T, and Cisco, involves sending random "walkers" around the network, looking for a particular file, which would theoretically yield much better search speed than such other networks as Gnutella. They claim this could result in a network very capable of facilitating a massive distributed supercomputer."
to know the path you must walk the path
four-oh-four
Q: Can we use it to predict the weather?
A: Yes.
Q: Well, that's not bad. Can it model the behavior of biological molecules?
A: You betcha.
Q: Still, that's rather pedestrian. Can it find large prime numbers?
A: Numbers so big we can't even say them.
Q: Hmm.. almost there. Can it evaluate complex object-relational predicates to get me EXACTLY the porn I want?
A: Er..... Yes.
Q: Excellent! Now we're talking. From the output, can we say conclusively that all of the porn which I want has been found?
A: Please go away.
Q: What about porn that I don't want - gay porn, scatalogical stuff. Can you guarantee I won't get that?
A: Fine, yes. It predicts what you want from your past behavior and is always right. Happy?
Q: Isn't that an invasion of my privacy?
A: Arghhh!
The good and new comes from no quarter where it is looked for, and is always something different from what is expected.
I can picture it now, playing Return to Castle Wolfenstein, with Gnutella running in the background...
Suddenly, my framerate grinds to a halt.
"F%#!!@ Gnutella findfast"