Xgrid Clustering Software and Demo

no_demons writes "Along with a selection of other goodies, Apple also unveiled their Xgrid clustering technology from their advanced computation group today. Xgrid can turn a number of networked Macs into a supercomputer, detects nodes automagically via Rendezvous, and can run in or out of a screensaver mode. You can download a technology demo (including a BLAST test app) here."

Comments

Re:Sounds good, but...

[PhysicsExpert]

Selling computer cycles is a great idea that is already up and running in several countries in Eastern Europe. Universities there cannot afford to buy high performance supercomputers so they rent computer cycles from local businessmen in order to solve complex numerical problems. Unfortunately many of these businessmen are part of the local Mafia and there have been several unsavouray incidents where University projects have been devoted to calculating the optimum strategy for criminal activities such as money laundering and illegal gambling.

Now that wireless technologies such as Bluetooth and GPRS are becoming commonplace there is an even more promising attempt to harness ALL of the computing power available to the modern american.

Almost every electronic device you own has a complex microprocessor in it: your DVD player, your shaver, your stereo and even your car. Each one of these processors is fairly slow compared to a modern day Athlon, but you have perhaps 100 in your house and what is more they are almost always off. By integrating bluetooth into each of them it will be possible for the average American to sell perhaps 10 dollars of computer time per day to Universities in Eastern Europe, thus both helping the American economy and preventing Mafia gangs from exerting undue influence over polish academics.