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Thursday, August 31, 2006

TORQUE Reaches Milestone - 50,000 Downloads in One Year

Cluster Resources, Inc. announced today that TORQUE* Resource Manager passed a new milestone in its continued success, reaching 50,000 downloads since August 2005.

Cluster Resources, Inc., a leading provider of cluster, grid, and utility computing software, announced today that TORQUE* Resource Manager passed a new milestone in its continued success, reaching 50,000 downloads since August 2005.

Terascale Open-Source Resource and QUEue Manager, more commonly known as TORQUE, is a resource manager derived from the original Open PBS project that provides control over batch jobs and distributed compute nodes. With more than 2,500 patches and enhancements since its release in 2004, TORQUE has incorporated significant advances in the areas of scalability, flexibility, and feature extensions.

"We are pleased to be part of the TORQUE community project that continues to provide a leading resource management solution for Top 500 systems and thousands of other clusters worldwide," said David Jackson, CTO of Cluster Resources. "Combining professional development, testing, support, and documentation with the extensive support and development contributions of the TORQUE community, has proven to be highly successful."

Over the past six months, TORQUE downloads have grown almost exponentially. Cluster Resources recorded approximately 33,000 total downloads from February through July, nearly double the previous six-month's total. TORQUE is also included for download in most of the major cluster building kits, including ROCKS, OSCAR, xCAT, and others. When including these kits, downloads over the past year are estimated at more than 100,000.

Cluster Resources - providers of the Moab family of workload management products - professionally maintains and develops TORQUE, incorporating hundreds of feature extension patches from NCSA, OSC, USC, U.S. Department of Energy, Sandia, PNNL, U of Buffalo, Teragrid and many other leading HPC institutions and individuals in the user community. Cluster Resources also supports and maintains the TORQUE documentation and user lists, and provides current versions and patches at http://www.clusterresources.com/torque

Through TORQUE's user lists and documentation WIKI, community members are able to submit or view patches, suggestions, or questions in the archive, and contribute new information to the user manual, providing an active forum for the development of new ideas.

Garrick Staples, a lead developer of TORQUE, attributes the continued development of TORQUE to the collaborative efforts of the user community and Cluster Resources.

"Since many TORQUE users are the administrators of their own clusters, their needs often drive the competitive edge of our development focus," Staples said. "TORQUE also has the strong backing of Cluster Resources, through whose leadership, the collective wisdom and requirements of thousands of sites worldwide are being plugged directly into TORQUE."

To facilitate community involvement in TORQUE development, Cluster Resources recently began the use of Subversion - an open-source version control system dedicated to source configuration management. By integrating anonymous checkout through Subversion, users can more easily access the TORQUE source code to test and implement their own improvements.

"We take suggestions for improvements seriously," said Josh Butikofer, a product manager for Cluster Resources. "Whenever users make suggestions and improvements, or request that TORQUE be able to perform an additional task, the community works together to try and find a way to make it happen."

Before making any changes to the original source code, Cluster Resources tests the relevant submission enhancements in order to ensure the continued reliability and functionality of TORQUE.

Cluster Resources focuses on enabling long-term core enhancements to TORQUE in the areas of scalability, security, reliability and usability. In recent versions of TORQUE, Cluster Resources has implemented a number of significant feature enhancements including tight PAM integration, improved SGI CPUSet support, initial job array support, and dynamic resource definitions. The newest version of TORQUE, 2.1.2, offers X11 forwarding and also supports client-commands on Windows using Cygwin.

TORQUE is currently in use at hundreds of leading government, academic, and commercial sites throughout the world and is used on many of the world's largest clusters and grids. TORQUE scales from single SMP machines and clusters to sites with tens of thousands of jobs and nearly 10,000 processors.

"We look forward to continuing the same level of development excellence that has led to TORQUE's success." David Jackson said. "We welcome cluster users everywhere to try out TORQUE, to get involved and to help cultivate the type of ideas that have produced one of the best community resource management solutions in the HPC industry."

What is TORQUE?

TORQUE is an open source resource manager providing control over batch jobs and distributed compute nodes. It is a community effort based on the original *PBS project and, with more than 1,200 patches, has incorporated significant advances in the areas of scalability, fault tolerance, and feature extensions contributed by NCSA, OSC, USC , the U.S. Dept of Energy, Sandia, PNNL, U of Buffalo, TeraGrid, and many other leading edge HPC organizations. This version may be freely modified and redistributed subject to the constraints of the included license.

TORQUE can integrate with Moab Workload Manager® to improve overall utilization, scheduling and administration on a cluster. Customers who purchase Moab Workload Manager also receive free support for TORQUE.

Feature Set
TORQUE provides enhancements over standard OpenPBS in the following areas:

Fault Tolerance
Additional failure conditions checked/handled
Node health check script support
Scheduling Interface
Extended query interface providing the scheduler with additional and more accurate information
Extended control interface allowing the scheduler increased control over job behavior and attributes
Allows the collection of statistics for completed jobs
Scalability
Significantly improved server to MOM communication model
Ability to handle larger clusters (over 15 TF/2,500 processors)
Ability to handle larger jobs (over 2000 processors)
Ability to support larger server messages
Usability
Extensive logging additions
More human readable logging (ie no more 'error 15038 on command 42')

Wednesday, August 30, 2006

Gentoo Linux 2006.1 Released

The Gentoo Release Engineering team proudly announces the release of Gentoo Linux 2006.1, the second release of the year. It builds on the strength of previous releases with several improvements. Featuring all of Gentoo's well-documented advantages in flexibility, performance and portability, this release is now available on all supported architectures. It is a compelling choice for people desiring a flexible, powerful community-based Linux distribution.

The 2006.1 release features many highlights that improve upon 2006.0. The AMD64, HPPA, x86, 32- and 64-bit PowerPC releases are built with and include GCC 4.1, a great improvement over version 3.4 used for 2006.0. Also included are the GNU C library version 2.4 and Gentoo's baselayout 1.12.1, with improved system startup scripts. Alpha, x86 and AMD64 also feature a new profile layout, with separate sub-profiles for desktop and server systems. This makes customization much easier as the profile defaults can be pre-tuned to the type of system being used.

The Gentoo Linux Installer for the x86 and AMD64 platforms now features a networkless install mode, with a more streamlined configuration interface making a typical installation quicker and easier than ever. It also includes new and improved partitioning code that can make better use of existing partition setups with unusual arrangements and improved error handling to minimize the chances of damaged partition tables.

For the Alpha platform, the InstallCD now features the option to use a serial console for installation with minimal effort, and the stages are once again unified into one set for LinuxThreads and NPTL systems. The compiler used has been upgraded to GCC version 3.4.6, and it includes an updated glibc, to allow the unified stages for LinuxThreads and NPTL.

The SPARC release includes several improvements over 2006.0, including InstallCD support for systems with more than 4GB of memory and an updated toolchain bringing fixes for various compilation problems. Also new is InstallCD and kernel support for the new UltraSPARC T1 processor used in the Sun T1000 and T2000 systems.

Gentoo Linux 2006.1 now brings official support for the dual-core G5 processor on the PPC platform, support for the serial console on Apple Xserve machines and improved support for installation from a FireWire disk. Official stages are built for 64- and 32-bit userlands on generic PPC64, POWER5 and PowerPC 970 (G5) platforms, and GRP packages are available for the latest KDE, Gnome and XFCE releases on all of the above configurations.

Gentoo is also offering experimental stages for SuperH, the embedded processor developed by Hitachi in the early 1990s and most notably found in the SEGA DreamCast and several models of HP PDA. The port presently supports, and was developed on, the LanTANK system, with support for more systems planned in the future.

About Gentoo LinuxGentoo is committed to producing a high-quality open source distribution, the latest release of which can always be found at http://www.gentoo.org/main/en/where.xml
More information regarding this release can be found on the Gentoo Release Engineering team's project pages.

You may obtain Gentoo Linux 2006.1 via their bouncer system; http://www.gentoo.org/main/en/where.xml, or if you prefer, contribute to the available bandwidth using their BitTorrent tracker http://torrents.gentoo.org.

Tuesday, August 29, 2006

X-Tend, the Belgian Linux and Open Source company, announces a partnership with XenSource Inc.

X-Tend has been an early Xen adopter and has been deploying the Xen based infrastructure for many customers for over a year. Today X-Tend announces an extension to the partnership with XenSource, by joining the XenSource Partner Program and becoming a XenSource Solution Provider (XSP). This partnership will allow X-Tend customers access to XenSource's XenEnterprise virtualization platform, the enterprise version of Xen.

The Xen hypervisor is the industry-standard open source infrastructure virtualization software created and maintained by the founders of XenSource and developed collaboratively by 20 of the world’s most innovative data center solution vendors. Xen allows multiple virtual server in stances to run concurrently on the same physical server, with near native performance and per-virtual server performance guarantees. The technology is being adopted world wide in enterprise data centers to increase server utilization, support server consolidation, and reduce total cost of ownership.

Via its partnership with XenSource, X-Tend will be able to provide customers with even better support. XenEnterprise will enable X-Tend to speed the deployment and ease the management of guest operating systems. X-Tend will be providing customers with support, coaching and formalized Xen training.

Kris Buytaert, CTO from X-Tend said:”Our customers are already experiencing the stability and flexibility of Xen. We've been working with both the Cambridge and the US XenSource team on a technical level and with this partnership we can now further extend our good experiences with the XenSource team to our customers.”

Roger Baskerville, Channel Director Europe, Middle East and Africa for XenSource commenting on the announcement said: “X-Tend were an important Systems Integrator for XenSource to recruit because of their Open Source expertise and complementary partnerships they already have in place in the Benelux. We are delighted to have them on board.”

About X-Tend: X-Tend stands for over 10 years of Linux experience. Our consultants have been using the Linux Kernel since its pre 1.0 version and have helped Linux to become the stable and secure platform it is today. X-Tend employs multiple certified engineers, and supports all the major Linux distributions. X-Tend combines long time technical experience with insightful architectural knowledge, all our consultants have a strong background in different fields and apply their technical Open Source knowledge to these fields. X-Tend employees contribute to open source and are frequently invited to speak at international conferences. X-Tend is Red Hat Business Partner, MySQL Partner and Novell Platinum Partner and has been so for years.

About XenSource: XenSource, Inc. develops the leading enterprise grade platform virtualization solution. XenEnterpriseTM, based on the industry's highest performance virtualization technology, the open source XenTM hypervisor. Founded and run by the Xen development team, XenSource products allow enterprises to realize the TCO savings that result from server consolidation,increased utilization, and reduced complexity in the data center. For more information, visit: http://www.xensource.com

MySQL Wins Prestigious International Database Contest

MySQL AB, developer of the world's most popular open source database, announced today that its internal benchmark team has won an international contest sponsored by the renowned IT industry magazine c´t for the fastest e-commerce database application. The magazine's editors held the contest to evaluate database performance in real-world business use by creating a standard online inventory system.

"The DVD shop created by MySQL is the hands-down winner of the performance crown," the magazine summarizes. "It clearly demonstrates the capabilities of a carefully configured MySQL/PHP application." The MySQL DVD online store was able to process 3,664 orders per minute (opm). If a second computer had been used, the figure would have gone up to 6,000 opm, showing that MySQL is highly suitable for business use.

c´t draws additional conclusions: "MySQL is obviously by far the most popular database among developers." More than half of the solutions submitted were created using MySQL. No database product by any other manufacturer was listed more than once among working solutions. Of the well-known brands, DB2 Express (1,537 opm) and Oracle Express (1,412 opm) placed seventh and eighth. Fellow open source database PostgreSQL ranked thirteenth, with 120 opm.

"We're very proud of the outstanding success our benchmark team has achieved -- showing how fast MySQL can be for everyday, transaction-intensive tasks," said Robin Schumacher, director of product management for MySQL AB. "The performance edge of the MySQL entry is a testament to their skills and the product itself. These results show the power of MySQL in an affordable scaled-out Web environment - whether developers choose to 'do-it-themselves', or take advantage of MySQL's own world-class in-house expertise and professional services."

c't is regarded as Germany's most comprehensive source of information for computer professionals and power users. The bi-weekly magazine publishes more than 380,000 copies per issue and has a very popular Web site, especially within the open source community.

The complete MySQL results from the c't database contest can be downloaded at http://www.mysql.de/ct-dbcontest (German language).

MySQL AB will be holding two European customer conferences in London and Munich in October 2006 -- featuring special presentations on MySQL performance tuning. For more information, please visit www.mysql.com/news-and-events/european-conferences/

Monday, August 28, 2006

Vista Pre-RC1 Build (5536) Works With Boot Camp 1.1

The new Vista Pre-RC1 build (5536) works now on Intel Macs. The installation procedure is the same as with Windows XP SP2

Read the rest here

The Top 100 Viewed Wikipedia Pages

This tool shows the articles from the English Wikipedia that are viewed most. Some results may surprise you...
Below is the top 10, click here to see the full 100 list
Views per day Percent   Title
932500 ± 18% 4.3863% 1. Main Page
28000 ± 108% 0.1317% 2. Wikipedia
23000 ± 119% 0.1082% 3. Pluto
19000 ± 131% 0.0894% 4. United States
17000 ± 139% 0.0800% 5. List of gay porn stars
15500 ± 145% 0.0729% 6. Sexual intercourse
15500 ± 145% 0.0729% 7. Wii
14000 ± 153% 0.0659% 8. Wiki
13500 ± 156% 0.0635% 9. List of sex positions
13000 ± 159% 0.0611% 10. Kama Sutra

Thursday, August 24, 2006

JavaScript: The Definitive Guide, Fifth Edition By David Flanagan


O'Reilly has released the latest edition of their bestselling JavaScript book: JavaScript: The Definitive Guide
This is the 5th edition and it's completely updated


Title: JavaScript: The Definitive Guide
Fifth Edition: August 2006
Author: David Flanagan
ISBN: 0-596-10199-6
Pages: 1018

This Fifth Edition is completely revised and expanded to cover JavaScript as it is used in today's Web 2.0 applications. This book is both an example-driven programmer's guide and a keep-on-your-desk reference, with new chapters that explain everything you need to know to get the most out of JavaScript, including:

Scripted HTTP and Ajax
XML processing
Client-side graphics using the tag
Namespaces in JavaScript--essential when writing complex programs
Classes, closures, persistence, Flash, and JavaScript embedded in Java applications
Part I explains the core JavaScript language in detail. If you are new to JavaScript, it will teach you the language. If you are already a JavaScript programmer, Part I will sharpen your skills and deepen your understanding of the language.

Part II explains the scripting environment provided by web browsers, with a focus on DOM scripting with unobtrusive JavaScript. The broad and deep coverage of client-side JavaScript is illustrated with many sophisticated examples that demonstrate how to:

Generate a table of contents for an HTML document
Display DHTML animations
Automate form validation
Draw dynamic pie charts
Make HTML elements draggable
Define keyboard shortcuts for web applications
Create Ajax-enabled tool tips
Use XPath and XSLT on XML documents loaded with Ajax
And much more
Part III is a complete reference for core JavaScript. It documents every class, object, constructor, method, function, property, and constant defined by JavaScript 1.5 and ECMAScript version 3.

Part IV is a reference for client-side JavaScript, covering legacy web browser APIs, the standard Level 2 DOM API, and emerging standards such as the XMLHttpRequest object and the tag.

Sample Chapter 21: JavaScript and XML

Amazon Link:



Table Of Contents



1. Introduction to JavaScript
1.1 What Is JavaScript?
1.2 Versions of JavaScript
1.3 Client-Side JavaScript
1.4 JavaScript in Other Contexts
1.5 Exploring JavaScript
Part I. Core JavaScript
2. Lexical Structure
2.1 Character Set
2.2 Case Sensitivity
2.3 Whitespace and Line Breaks
2.4 Optional Semicolons
2.5 Comments
2.6 Literals
2.7 Identifiers
2.8 Reserved Words
3. Datatypes and Values
3.1 Numbers
3.2 Strings
3.3 Boolean Values
3.4 Functions
3.5 Objects
3.6 Arrays
3.7 null
3.8 undefined
3.9 The Date Object
3.10 Regular Expressions
3.11 Error Objects
3.12 Type Conversion Summary
3.13 Primitive Datatype Wrapper Objects
3.14 Object-to-Primitive Conversion
3.15 By Value Versus by Reference
4. Variables
4.1 Variable Typing
4.2 Variable Declaration
4.3 Variable Scope
4.4 Primitive Types and Reference Types
4.5 Garbage Collection
4.6 Variables as Properties
4.7 Variable Scope Revisited
5. Expressions and Operators
5.1 Expressions
5.2 Operator Overview
5.3 Arithmetic Operators
5.4 Equality Operators
5.5 Relational Operators
5.6 String Operators
5.7 Logical Operators
5.8 Bitwise Operators
5.9 Assignment Operators
5.10 Miscellaneous Operators
6. Statements
6.1 Expression Statements
6.2 Compound Statements
6.3 if
6.4 else if
6.5 switch
6.6 while
6.7 do/while
6.8 for
6.9 for/in
6.10 Labels
6.11 break
6.12 continue
6.13 var
6.14 function
6.15 return
6.16 throw
6.17 try/catch/finally
6.18 with
6.19 The Empty Statement
6.20 Summary of JavaScript Statements
7. Objects and Arrays
7.1 Creating Objects
7.2 Object Properties
7.3 Objects as Associative Arrays
7.4 Universal Object Properties and Methods
7.5 Arrays
7.6 Reading and Writing Array Elements
7.7 Array Methods
7.8 Array-Like Objects
8. Functions
8.1 Defining and Invoking Functions
8.2 Function Arguments
8.3 Functions as Data
8.4 Functions as Methods
8.5 Constructor Functions
8.6 Function Properties and Methods
8.7 Utility Function Examples
8.8 Function Scope and Closures
8.9 The Function( ) Constructor
9. Classes, Constructors, and Prototypes
9.1 Constructors
9.2 Prototypes and Inheritance
9.3 Simulating Classes in JavaScript
9.4 Common Object Methods
9.5 Superclasses and Subclasses
9.6 Extending Without Inheriting
9.7 Determining Object Type
9.8 Example: A defineClass( ) Utility Method
10. Modules and Namespaces
10.1 Creating Modules and Namespaces
10.2 Importing Symbols from Namespaces
10.3 Module Utilities
11. Pattern Matching with Regular Expressions
11.1 Defining Regular Expressions
11.2 String Methods for Pattern Matching
11.3 The RegExp Object
12. Scripting Java
12.1 Embedding JavaScript
12.2 Scripting Java
Part II. Client-Side JavaScript
13. JavaScript in Web Browsers
13.1 The Web Browser Environment
13.2 Embedding Scripts in HTML
13.3 Event Handlers in HTML
13.4 JavaScript in URLs
13.5 Execution of JavaScript Programs
13.6 Client-Side Compatibility
13.7 Accessibility
13.8 JavaScript Security
13.9 Other Web-Related JavaScript Embeddings
14. Scripting Browser Windows
14.1 Timers
14.2 Browser Location and History
14.3 Obtaining Window, Screen, and Browser Information
14.4 Opening and Manipulating Windows
14.5 Simple Dialog Boxes
14.6 Scripting the Status Line
14.7 Error Handling
14.8 Multiple Windows and Frames
14.9 Example: A Navigation Bar in a Frame
15. Scripting Documents
15.1 Dynamic Document Content
15.2 Document Properties
15.3 Legacy DOM: Document Object Collections
15.4 Overview of the W3C DOM
15.5 Traversing a Document
15.6 Finding Elements in a Document
15.7 Modifying a Document
15.8 Adding Content to a Document
15.9 Example: A Dynamically Created Table of Contents
15.10 Querying Selected Text
15.11 The IE 4 DOM
16. Cascading Style Sheets and Dynamic HTML
16.1 Overview of CSS
16.2 CSS for DHTML
16.3 Scripting Inline Styles
16.4 Scripting Computed Styles
16.5 Scripting CSS Classes
16.6 Scripting Stylesheets
17. Events and Event Handling
17.1 Basic Event Handling
17.2 Advanced Event Handling with DOM Level 2
17.3 The Internet Explorer Event Model
17.4 Mouse Events
17.5 Key Events
17.6 The onload Event
17.7 Synthetic Events
18. Forms and Form Elements
18.1 The Form Object
18.2 Defining Form Elements
18.3 Scripting Form Elements
18.4 Form Verification Example
19. Cookies and Client-Side Persistence
19.1 An Overview of Cookies
19.2 Storing Cookies
19.3 Reading Cookies
19.4 Cookie Example
19.5 Cookie Alternatives
19.6 Persistent Data and Security
20. Scripting HTTP
20.1 Using XMLHttpRequest
20.2 XMLHttpRequest Examples and Utilities
20.3 Ajax and Dynamic Scripting
20.4 Scripting HTTP with script Tags
21. JavaScript and XML
21.1 Obtaining XML Documents
21.2 Manipulating XML with the DOM API
21.3 Transforming XML with XSLT
21.4 Querying XML with XPath
21.5 Serializing XML
21.6 Expanding HTML Templates with XML Data
21.7 XML and Web Services
21.8 E4X: ECMAScript for XML
22. Scripted Client-Side Graphics
22.1 Scripting Images
22.2 Graphics with CSS
22.3 SVG: Scalable Vector Graphics
22.4 VML: Vector Markup Language
22.5 Graphics in a
22.6 Graphics with Flash
22.7 Graphics with Java
23. Scripting Java Applets and Flash Movies
23.1 Scripting Applets
23.2 Scripting the Java Plug-in
23.3 Scripting with Java
23.4 Scripting Flash
23.5 Scripting Flash 8
Part III. Core JavaScript Reference
Core JavaScript Reference
Part IV. Client-Side JavaScript Reference
Client-Side JavaScript Reference
Index

Win4Lin Announces Full Support for Win4Lin Pro Desktop and Win4Lin Virtual Desktop Server on Ubuntu Linux


Win4Lin, the leading purveyor of desktop and enterprise Windows-on-Linux solutions for business, announced today full support for Ubuntu 6.06 for Win4Lin Pro Desktop and Win4Lin Virtual Desktop Server.

Win4Lin Pro Desktop allows Linux users to run Windows applications from the security of the Linux desktop. Win4Lin Virtual Desktop Server is the enterprise/SMB product for delivering Windows applications on thin clients via a Linux server. Both products have been fully tested on Ubuntu 6.06.

"With this announcement of support by Win4Lin, Ubuntu is once more able to deliver class leading solutions, to our customers," said Malcolm Yates, ISV and Partner manager at Canonical. "Our users can reduce their management effort by maintaining existing applications and moving to Ubuntu for the future."

"Win4Lin support of Ubuntu 6.06 for both Win4Lin Pro as well as Virtual Desktop Server provides users with the best overall coexistence with Windows in the market", said Jim Curtin, president and CEO of Win4Lin. "This tight cooperation is a boon for users worldwide who have embraced the market-leading features and benefits of the Ubuntu Linux distribution."

Win4Lin Virtual Desktop Server can be used in one of two ways. First, VDS serves as a means to wean a Linux-committed organization from the last few Windows applications by consolidating them onto a Linux server for as-needed concurrent use. Windows can then be gracefully de-commissioned from a convenient central location once suitable replacements are in production. Secondly, organizations with reluctant user populations can use VDS to server Windows desktops in "full screen" mode on top of an end-to-end Linux infrastructure. This allows the organization to reap the many benefits of Linux infrastructure without their users needing to be re-trained in the first phases of the conversion.

Win4Lin Pro Desktop was recently picked as the winner in a LinuxWorld Magazine face-off review against VMware WorkstationTM and was the winner of the prestigious LinuxWorld Expo Award for Best Enterprise Integration Product.

About Win4Lin

Win4Lin is a leader in technology for creating Windows-on-Linux virtualization solutions targeted at developing competitive advantage for business. Win4Lin supplies Fortune 500 enterprises, educational institutions, SMB and desktop users with solutions that allow them to run the Windows desktop and Windows applications on Linux in true Windows sessions.

For more information about Win4Lin and its products please visit http://www.win4lin.com/

Parallels Supports AMD Technology

Parallels announced it is beginning public beta testing for Parallels Workstation 2.2 for Windows and Linux, which delivers faster performance, better OS stability and stronger virtual machine isolation than previous versions. This comes just two weeks after launching beta testing for a new, improved version of Parallels Desktop for Mac.

Parallels Workstation enables users to simultaneously run any version of Windows, any Linux distribution, Solaris, FreeBSD, NetBSD, OS/2, eComStation or DOS, in a stable, secure virtual machine on any computer running Windows 2000, XP or 2003, or any version of Linux. No re-booting or partitioning is required, and users never need to shut down or leave their home desktop to access a virtual machine.

Parallels Workstation 2.2 beta offers a number of key improvements:

* A new, more user-friendly look and feel.
* Support for AMD Secure Virtual Machine Technology (SVM) for better virtual machine performance and stability.
* Better USB support, including support for USB devices that run Windows Mobile 2005.
* Better networking, including automatic bridging to the available network via the default adapter, WiFi support in Linux, and the ability to change network and bridge type "on the fly."
* An easy-to-set-up, easy-to-use shared folders utility that lets users quickly share files and folders between operating systems and programs.
* Broader guest OS support, including stronger support for Sun Solaris and full support for NetBSD.
* Improved full-screen mode in which guest OSes are automatically re-sized to the native screen resolution for a perfect full-screen fit.
* Better video support, including support for dynamic primary OS video modes, custom video modes, and 32 bpp video modes.
* Full Unicode support lets users name files in any language.
* Better sound playback and recording in virtual machines.
* An improved Parallels Tools package makes using Parallels Workstation even more comfortable and convenient, and a more powerful Parallels Image tool helps users quickly create .iso images and re-size virtual hard drives.

A complete list of new features and upgrades is available at http://www.parallels.com/en/products/workstation/update_beta/

InsynQ, Inc. (INSN) Open Source CRM Application Integrates with Intuit QuickBooks

InsynQ, Inc. (INSN), a premier provider of application hosting services, online accounting solutions and services, and owners of Appgen Business Software, announced the completion of a QuickBooks integration for its CRM application, Always-ON CRM.

The Q Connector, developed by RPS Technologies, allows Always-ON CRM to scan QuickBooks and seamlessly import new customer and product data. The Q Connector automatically updates Always-ON CRM using an interactive synchronization. It brings the customer relationship management experience full-circle by tying sales and accounting together, improving process automation for each department.


According to Joanie Mann, Executive Vice President of InsynQ, "The Q Connector provides a safe and secure means to keep accounting and operational personnel connected and working on the same information. Users who once needed desktop applications and access to accounting data now need only run the Web-based CRM system to get to the information they need to get their jobs done. By coupling the Web-based CRM application with hosted QuickBooks, we can now offer the entire enterprise a complete Always-ON delivery for their accounting, sales and service personnel."


Stacey Robinson, President of RPS Technologies, says, "Many of our clients needed a way to connect their accounting and CRM systems, but also wanted to have a completely 'on-demand' solution for it all. With the Q Connector, Always-ON CRM, and hosted QuickBooks, InsynQ can now offer the market a complete, turnkey solution."


There should only ever be one point of entry for important customer data, and the sales team should not have to work in the accounting system to obtain it. With the Q Connector, customer data entry in Always-ON CRM is automated and available in real-time. But this tool goes further than just synchronizing customer data; it also integrates inventory and pricing data. Inventory items that are stored in QuickBooks import into Always-ON CRM as products. Like customer data, it is automatically updated when any changes are made in QuickBooks.


The Q Connector has other useful features including a tool that maps sales reps to their CRM prospects and accounts, so sales reports can help measure productivity and success for each rep. Another feature sends closed and accepted sales quotes from Always-ON CRM to QuickBooks as sales invoices, once again automating the sales process.


For first-time users, a one-click import synchronizes Always-ON CRM with QuickBooks. There is no other software required, making implementation simple and fast. Q Connector is available to connect InsynQ hosted QuickBooks applications and data securely to the InsynQ Always-On CRM system, but can also be implemented for QuickBooks running on the local PC.


InsynQ demonstrates their ability to continually add value to their service model by introducing new, innovative and feature-rich applications and services through Always-ON services (www.InsynQ.com) and through their e-Accounting business (www.CPAasp.com).


About InsynQ


InsynQ has been delivering outsourced software application hosting and managed IT services since 1997. InsynQ allows business customers to "turn on" their software applications and workstations instantly through any web enabled computer, regardless of operating system. What's more, InsynQ subscribers can freely access their software and data from any computer, anywhere in the world. The company also offers IT and network integration consulting, multimedia development, a broad range of business application services, and infrastructure management services. For more information, visit us at www.insynq.com or call us at (253) 284-2000.


About RPS Technologies


RPS Technology is a technology-consulting firm headquartered in Cary, NC that specializes in custom software development, systems integration and network engineering. For more information, contact RPS Technology at 1 (866) 592-9100 or visit the website at www.rpstechnology.com

Wednesday, August 23, 2006

LinuxSecurity.com Launches New Web Site

LinuxSecurity.com, the definitive source for Linux and open source security news, launched its new website.
Founded by Guardian Digital CEO Dave Wreski in 1996, LinuxSecurity.com has become the pre-eminent information resource for IT professionals and open source community members alike. The site, which is supported and maintained by Guardian Digital staff members, employs a global network of expert and volunteer contributors to develop feature articles, commentaries and reviews as well as compile extensive collections of the latest security updates to help readers keep up with the latest advancements in Linux and open source security.

The new site includes:


Comprehensive resource archives of whitepapers, HOWTOs, open source documentation and more
Latest industry news stories and in-depth feature articles, organized by topic
Interactive comments to all resources and news posts
Extensive databases of local user groups and Linux-related event listings
Regularly updated polls and surveys
Live chat using "Shoutbox" technology
Linuxsecurity.com now offers all users the ability to browse and comment on news posts, polls and HOWTOS. The has been extensively redesigned to enhance the experience of our registered users, an elite group of security-minded engineers, programmers, Web designers, system administrators and open source enthusiasts.

The redesign has greatly improved the look and feel of the site, focusing on its navigation and menu structures. New areas of interest have been added, including an SELinux news section and a Tips section. Under the hood, the site's code has been optimized and URLs have been shortened and made user-readable.

About LinuxSecurity.com

Headquartered in Guardian Digital's offices in Allendale, New Jersey, LinuxSecurity.com's global network of editors and web development staff creates feature articles, commentaries and surveys designed to keep readers informed of the latest Linux advancements and to promote the general growth of Linux around the world.

Microsoft Offers More Ways to Play Games for Windows and Xbox 360 at German Games Convention

Once again proving that its game platforms offer more ways for gamers to have fun, Microsoft Corp. today announced great new games and accessories for Xbox 360™ and Windows® gamers. Delivering on the worldwide demand for Xbox 360, Xbox Live® and Games for Windows, Microsoft revealed key additions to its Windows Vista™ showcase library and Xbox 360 titles today at the 2007 Games Convention in Leipzig. In addition to announcing new European-centric board games for the hugely successful Xbox Live Arcade on Xbox Live, the premier online gaming service, Microsoft announced that the next generation of soccer will be available exclusively on the Xbox 360 console this year. With “FIFA 07” from Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) and “Pro Evolution Soccer 6” from Konami Digital Entertainment Inc., Xbox 360 will be the only place where gamers can enjoy next generation soccer this year.

Nearly doubling its physical presence at the Games Convention over last year, Microsoft is giving gamers the opportunity to see and play the newest titles for Windows, Xbox 360 and Xbox Live. More than 130 game stations and more than 40 titles are available for gamers to test at the Microsoft booth on the convention show floor.

Xbox 360 and Xbox Live Arcade

Hot on the heels of an exciting 2006 FIFA World Cup™, EA announced that “FIFA 07,” featuring a revolutionary new game engine and online play, will be available on Xbox 360. Konami will also bring “Pro Evolution Soccer 6” to the console, making Xbox 360 the exclusive home to next-generation soccer this holiday season.

In addition, with more and more gamers enjoying the growing number of games on Xbox Live Arcade every day, Microsoft is giving gamers a splash of global influence with the forthcoming release of three board-game-inspired titles from Europe. “Settlers of Catan™,” “Carcassonne™” and “Alhambra™” are set to bring the classic board games to the high-definition screen on Xbox Live Arcade via Xbox Live Marketplace.

Games for Windows

Expanding one of the largest game libraries available for any gaming system, Microsoft and industry partners announced two additional family-friendly showcase titles for the new Windows operating system, Windows Vista. “LEGO® Star Wars II™: The Original Trilogy” from LucasArts and “Zoo Tycoon® 2: Marine Mania®” from Microsoft Game Studios will join the growing list of Windows Vista titles that will offer breakthrough features to push the boundaries of gamers’ expectations and set the bar for cutting-edge, next-generation gaming on the Windows Vista platform. Due to release in early 2007, Windows Vista will provide improved experiences for gamers — from the most casual gamers to the hard-core enthusiasts — through new features such as the Games Explorer, Microsoft® DirectX® 10 and Parental Controls.

“We promised gamers they would experience a renaissance of gaming goodness on the most popular Microsoft game platform,” said Rich Wickham, director of Games for Windows business at Microsoft. “Windows has always provided a fantastic experience for gamers, but Windows Vista and these new games really take advantage of the enhancements in Windows Vista and are just the start of our renewed commitment to Windows gamers.”

During its convention keynote address, Microsoft also showed a playable demonstration of the Windows Vista showcase title “Flight Simulator X” using the Xbox 360 Wireless Controller and the new Xbox 360 Wireless Gaming Receiver for Windows. Convention attendees got a glimpse of the exciting new gaming experiences available in the latest iteration of Microsoft’s longest-running franchise for Windows operating systems and the next step in cross-platform game controls.

Xbox 360 Accessories

Just in time for the holiday season and adding to the widely acclaimed Xbox 360 Controller, consumers can enhance their already vibrant Xbox 360 and Windows game experiences with several new accessories, including these:

• Xbox Live Vision camera for the Xbox 360 system. Consumers can chat via video, send photo messages, put their own face in a game, and customize their gamertag on the Xbox Live network. The camera will be available in the U.S. on Sept. 19 and in Europe on Oct. 6 in two packages:

• Xbox Live Vision. This package includes Xbox Live Vision camera, one-month Xbox Live Gold Membership, Xbox 360 Headset, and free* downloads of two full-version Xbox Live Arcade games: the popular “UNO®” card game and “TotemBall,” the new 3-D platform game from Freeverse and Strange Flavour Ltd. that is a mixture of platform skills and puzzles (estimated retail price (ERP) $39.99 U.S./ €49.99**).

• Xbox Live Video Chat Gold Kit. This package includes the Xbox Live Vision camera, a 12-month Xbox Live Gold Membership, an Xbox 360 Headset, free* downloads of three full-version Xbox Live Arcade games — the “UNO” card game, “TotemBall,” and the classic “Robotron™” action shooter — and 200 Microsoft Points (ERP $79.99 U.S./€89.99**).


• Xbox 360 Wireless Racing Wheel. For true racing enthusiasts who demand unparalleled driving realism at home, this innovatively designed wheel combines form and function with the latest technology in wireless and force feedback. Consumers who purchase the wheel will also get a limited-edition force feedback version of “Project Gotham Racing® 3” while supplies last (ERP $149.99 U.S.**, available in November).

• Xbox 360 Wireless Headset. Providing the ultimate wireless experience, this headset integrates seamlessly with the Xbox 360 console to provide wireless voice chat capabilities, stylish design and superior voice quality over the Xbox Live network (ERP $59.99 U.S.**, available in November).

• Xbox 360 Wireless Gaming Receiver for Windows. By plugging the compact receiver into a Universal Serial Bus (USB) 2.0 port on a PC, gamers can use Xbox 360 wireless accessories on their Windows-based computer (ERP $19.99 U.S.**, available in late December).

• Xbox 360 Faceplates. Consumers can customize their consoles with one of three new special-edition faceplates featuring images from their favorite games, including the “Halo®” franchise, “Viva Piñata™” and “Forza Motorsport™ 2” (ERP $19.99 U.S.**, available in early November).


Emerging Markets

Continuing its commitment to gamers around the world, Microsoft announced availability for the Xbox 360 in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. Xbox 360 will be launched in Eastern Europe on Nov. 3, following the recently announced launch in South Africa on Sept. 29.

“We’re incredibly excited to bring Xbox 360 consoles and game experiences into these countries,” said Peter Moore, corporate vice president of the Interactive Entertainment Business in the Entertainment and Devices Division at Microsoft. “Gamers around the world have spoken: They want Xbox 360 and the unique experiences only Xbox 360 affords them. We are doing all we can to deliver.”

About Xbox and Xbox 360

Microsoft revolutionized the gaming industry with the November 2001 launch of Xbox® (http://www.xbox.com), its first-generation video game and entertainment system, now sold in 26 countries. Microsoft introduced its next-generation system, Xbox 360, in the 2005 holiday season in Europe, Japan and North America, and launched the system in Australia, Colombia, Hong Kong, Korea, Mexico, New Zealand, Singapore and Taiwan in 2006. Xbox 360 (http://www.xbox.com/xbox360) is the most powerful video game and entertainment system, delivering the best games, the next generation of the premier Xbox Live online gaming network, and unique digital entertainment experiences that revolve around gamers.

About Xbox Live

Xbox Live is the first and only unified online entertainment network seamlessly integrated throughout the entire console experience, making it easy for people to find the friends, games and entertainment they want from the moment they power on their Xbox 360 system. Xbox Live connects millions of members across 24 countries to enjoy hundreds of multiplayer games, downloadable games via Xbox Live Arcade, free and premium playable game demos, music videos, and movie trailers, as well as new game levels, characters and vehicles for all their favorite retail games. More information can be found online at http://www.xbox.com/en-us/live


About Games for Windows

Microsoft Windows is the most popular operating system in the world for games, delivering the widest range of titles, the most gaming hardware choices, and advanced gaming technology for players of all types. With Windows as the cornerstone, the Games for Windows platform offers publishers and gamers the most enjoyable and innovative gaming experiences available on a PC. More information can be found online at http://www.gamesforwindows.com

Tuesday, August 22, 2006

SCI FI Channel Will Not Renew Stargate SG-1 For Another Season

SCI FI Channel has confirmed that it will not renew its record-breaking original series Stargate SG-1 for another season, but instead SCI FI Channel will pick up its spinoff series Stargate Atlantis for a fourth year. Stargate SG-1 aired its 200th episode on Aug. 18, and the SF series is the longest-running SF show on American television.

SCI FI Channel has issued the following statement on Aug. 21: "SCI FI Channel is proud to be the network that brought Stargate SG-1 to its record-breaking 10th season. Ten seasons and 215 episodes is an astounding, Guinness World Record-setting accomplishment. Stargate is a worldwide phenomenon. Having achieved so much over the course of the past 10 years, SCI FI believes that the time is right to make this season their last on the channel. SCI FI is honored to have been part of the Stargate legacy for five years, and we look forward to continuing to explore the Stargate universe with our partners at MGM through a new season of Stargate Atlantis."

Monday, August 21, 2006

SanDisk Introduces World's Largest Capacity Flash Memory MP3 Player - The 8GB Sansa e280 For $249.99 MSRP

SanDisk® Corporation (NASDAQ:SNDK) today unveiled the world’s largest capacity flash-based MP3 player, the 8-gigabyte (GB) 1 Sansa e280 that boasts award-winning audio, photo viewing and video clip playback capabilities. Priced at $249.99 (MSRP), the e280 is the latest evolution of SanDisk’s flagship e200 series. The 8GB device sports a microSD expansion slot allowing expansion to 10GB of music—or 2,500 songs—with an optional SanDisk 2GB microSD card, making it the largest capacity flash-based MP3 player on the market.

In conjunction with the rollout of the e280 and in preparation for the holiday season, SanDisk has lowered its prices on the entire Sansa e200 line of products, including the existing 2, 4 and 6GB models.

Current pricing on the Sansa e200 product line includes a 2GB flash-based player for under $140 MSRP.

The dimensions of the Sansa e200 are 1.7 in. wide x 3.5 in. long x 0.5 in. high (4.4 cm wide x 8.9 cm long x 1.3 cm high). Screen size is 1.8-inch (4.572 cm) TFT color screen (QCIF+).

“SanDisk is once again making it incredibly affordable for consumers to purchase the most feature-rich, high-capacity players on the market at the best possible price,” said Eric Bone, director of audio/video product marketing at SanDisk. “The most costly ingredient in a flash-based MP3 player is the flash memory. Since we make the flash memory, we essentially remove the middleman and pass that savings directly to the consumer.”

In addition to holding thousands of songs, the Sansa e200 includes a plethora of features to enhance the listening and viewing experience. These include:

An open (non-proprietary) digital rights management system that allows users to purchase songs or access subscription download services from numerous sources
A microSD™ expansion slot for additional memory capacity and support for SanDisk TrustedFlash™ content cards that can be played not only on Sansa players but also on mobile phones equipped with microSD card slots. SanDisk microSD cards today come with capacities of up to 2GB, with higher capacities planned in the future
Photo and video capability facilitated through the Sansa Media Converter, which enables a superior customer viewing experience
Digital FM tuner, on-the-fly FM recording 3
Voice recording with a built-in microphone
Sleek, thin design with large 1.8” TFT color screen for easy viewing and advanced navigational features within an easy to use interface
User replaceable and rechargeable Lithium Ion battery for up to 20 hours of battery life 4
Scratch resistant alloy metal back casing provides excellent durability
Multi-pin universal connector for future accessory upgrades, battery charging and USB 2.0 connectivity
Simple to use, backlit controls for fast device interface navigation
For instant access to millions of digital songs, the Sansa e200 series players support Microsoft® PlaysForSure™ so consumers can download and pay for songs individually or download an unlimited amount of music for a flat monthly subscription fee from music stores such as Rhapsody To Go® and others.

The player is designed to work seamlessly with a wide range of popular music formats such as MP3 and Windows Media Audio (WMA) in both unprotected and protected files (such as those WMA files purchased from music stores).

SanDisk is the original inventor of flash storage cards and is the world’s largest supplier of flash data storage card products, using its patented, high-density flash memory and controller technology. SanDisk is headquartered in Milpitas, CA and has operations worldwide, with more than half its sales outside the U.S.

Friday, August 18, 2006

You Want To Try Ubuntu, Fedora, Gentoo And More But Don’t Want To Install All Of Them

Let’s say you want to run a flavor of Linux bit you did not decide yet which one. What do you do? Do you install Fedora then reformat then install Ubuntu then reformat and so on until you find a distribution that you like?

No, there is an easier way!
Go to VMWare download their free VMware Player. Then choose one of the Linux distributions that are already pre-configured, point your VMware player to the config file and you are done

How easy is it?
1 Download and Install VMware Player (reboot needed)
2 Download and unpack one of the Linux Appliances
3 Start VMware Player, browse to your virtual machine configuration file (it’s in the folder where you unzipped/unrarred the Linux distro) and that’s it

Below is a list of some of the Linux versions available

XUbuntu
Ubuntu using Xfce4 instead of gnome
294mb MB

gentoo 2006.0 advanced
the gentoo 2006.0 build with X, kde, seamonkey
959MB

OpenSUSE 10.1 - KDE
OpenSUSE 10.1 with KDE
884 MB

Ubuntu 6.06 - Standard
Ubuntu 6.06 Standard Install
808 MB

rPath SugarCRM Appliance
SugarCRM Open Source Appliance. This appliance contains the SugarCRM open source customer relationship management (CRM) package,
114 MB

rPath LAMP Appliance
LAMP Web/DB Appliance. A server appliance that features Apache, MySQL, PostgeSQL, PHP, Python, and Perl.
178 MB

rPath Apache Appliance
The Apache Appliance is built with rPath rBuilder and contains the Apache HTTP Server
73 MB

Fedora Core 6 Test 1
Fedora Core 6 Test 1, standard install
822 MB

FreeBSD 6.1, user install
Unix-like free software operating system
172 MB

Rails Appliance
Rails development environment with lighttpd,fcgi,mysql,svn,ruby,rails, and Capistrano
387 MB

Python Web Developer Appliance
includes a complete set of tools for developing and deploying web applications using Python
448MB

RoboDeb
A complete robotics simulation environment for teaching concurrency and parallelism.
314 MB

PC-BSD
Operating system built on FreeBSD + KDE from pcbsd.org
578 MB

Comodo partners with iQBio Inc. to provide new level of security to managing portable data

Comodo, a global Certification Authority and leading provider of Identity and Trust Assurance Management solutions, announced today that it is partnering with iQBio Inc. to deliver to market a holistic and secured approach to managing portable data. This offering is comprised of the BioCert® ClipBioTM Pro 1GB biometric flash drive in combination with a Comodo desktop security solutions to protect the host PC.

Conservatively, Gartner® Dataquest estimates unit volumes of USB Flash drives at 84 million in 2005. The BioCert® ClipBioTM Pro 1GB biometric flash drive provides consumers with the latest in biometric technology to secure data, while allowing the user to securely control access to their private data with a touch of their fingerprint. Using advanced encryption methods and a secure biometric algorithm to authorize user's access, this flash drive optimizes functionality, security and price. To secure the host PC, Comodo is delivering a FREE suite of applications with each BioCert® ClipBioTM Pro.

This suite of free desktop security solutions (with no subscription or renewal fees) includes:



  • Firewall - rated an Editor's Choice by PC Magazine

  • VerificationEngine - the anti-phishing solution that authenticates web content

  • Anti SPAM - uses challenge/ response technology to clear inbox of SPAM

  • E-Mail Certificates - allows you to digitally sign and encrypt emails

  • Back-Up - utility that allows users to quickly and easily create backup copies of critical files.



"Functional, stylish and secure, The BioCert® ClipBioTM Pro is one of the most innovative and advanced Personal Secure Portable StorageTM devices on the market," said Mr. James Childers, CEO of iQBio Inc. "This plug-and-play Secure Portable Storage device may become the next standard for secured portable data."

This advanced flash drive in combination with Comodo's desktop security suite assures customers that their portable data won't be compromised through non secured PC's. Further this integrated approach is delivered to market at a substantial value of $99.95 with comparable solutions priced at $300 or more. Finally, in support of our armed forces, this solution is available to military personnel and families at 35% discount, (www.everysoldieronline.com)

Wednesday, August 16, 2006

Four Things You Have To Do Immediately After You Buy A Windows Machine

Here are 4 things that you have to do immediately after you receive you new windows PC
All of these tools are free so it won't cost you a thing


1 Modify the hosts file
In Windows systems, the Hosts file — simply called "hosts" with no file extension — can generally be found in the directory:
c:\Windows\system32\drivers\etc
Note that in this directory path, "c:\Windows" is the system's Windows installation directory, which is usually on the "C" drive and located in "\Windows" or "\WINNT" . . . but the directory could be named something else.

Here is a small example of my hosts file

127.0.0.1 asy.a8ww.net
127.0.0.1 ad588.net #[Win32/PSW.Legendmir]
127.0.0.1 adserver.adbunker.com
127.0.0.1 phpadsnew.abac.com
127.0.0.1 a.abnad.net
127.0.0.1 www.adcipta.net #[Norman.W32/Malware]
127.0.0.1 adserv.adbonus.com #[IE-SpyAd]
127.0.0.1 www.adbonus.com
127.0.0.1 james.adbutler.de #[Tenebril.TrackingCookie]

The domains and machine names in the file are places I don't want my web browser or other software inside my machine venturing for any reason. Many of these names may look familiar, and you would probably find web browser third-party tracking cookies bearing these domain names if you were to look into most PCs.
So after you modify your hosts file the browser will serve 127.0.0.1 instead of one of these malicious sites
This is a great way to protect your machine and it doesn’t cost a thing

A txt version of the hosts file can be found here (http://www.mvps.org/winhelp2002/hosts.txt) This file is updated frequently; check once a week and then update your hosts file

2 Get Spybot search and destroy
A must have. What is Spybot - Search & Destroy ?
Spybot - Search & Destroy detects and removes spyware, a relatively new kind of threat not yet covered by common anti-virus applications. Spyware silently tracks your surfing behaviour to create a marketing profile for you that is transmitted without your knowledge to the compilers and sold to advertising companies. If you see new toolbars in your Internet Explorer that you haven't intentionally installed, if your browser crashes inexplicably, or if your home page has been "hijacked" (or changed without your knowledge), your computer is most probably infected with spyware. Even if you don't see the symptoms, your computer may be infected, because more and more spyware is emerging. Spybot-S&D is free, so there's no harm giving it a try to see if something has invaded your computer.

Download it here: ( http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html )


3 Disable JavaScript
Imagine visiting a blog on a social site or checking your email on a portal like Yahoo’s Webmail. While you are reading the Web page JavaScript code is downloaded and executed by your Web browser. It scans your entire home network, detects and determines your Linksys router model number, and then sends commands to the router to turn on wireless networking and turn off all encryption. Now imagine that this happens to 1 million people across the United States in less than 24 hours.
This scenario is no longer one of fiction.
Read the whole article here (http://www.spidynamics.com/assets/documents/JSportscan.pdf)

So disable JavaScript and only allow it for sites that you do trust!



4 Use ZonedOut to add bad sites to your restricted zone automatically
Don’t waste your time adding sites to your restricted zone manually, ZonedOut will do it automatically; a whole bunch of known bad sites will be added to your restricted zone
Download it here (http://www.funkytoad.com/zonedout.htm)

So that's it, I hope it helps you to become more secure. And of course you are already running an anti-virus program right?

IBM Unveils Development Roadmap And Business Strategy For Open Source Beyond Linux

Building upon the company's commitment to help clients transform businesses, IBM (NYSE: IBM) rolled out its next generation blueprint and roadmap to advance key Linux development priorities and support for open source business models.


With the announcement, IBM unveiled eight key open source initiatives beyond Linux, aimed at accelerating the adoption of open standards and extending existing product lines to reach new customers. IBM also announced new work with the open source community to improve the development of general Linux kernel functionality, expanding its Linux focus around virtualization, Cell processor technologies, and security.

"IBM is going to be as bold and aggressive with open source as we are with Linux, more broadly and permanently transforming our company with the open movement," said Scott Handy, Vice President Linux and Open Source, IBM. "IBM is expanding our commitment to the open community by extending our development focus in key emerging areas as well as defining our open source business priorities."

Company Targets Key Open Source Business Opportunities Beyond Linux

Building upon the strong success of its Linux business, IBM plans to now seize upon the market opportunity for customers benefiting from open source and open standards technologies and business models beyond Linux. Targeting eight open source business opportunity areas beyond Linux, IBM's software, hardware and services organizations are using open source business models and a new collaborative development blueprint, modeled on its extensive experience with Linux, Eclipse and Apache. This business strategy is aimed at accelerating the adoption of open computing, creating additional revenue from both open source and private source offerings, and extending IBM's value and reach to new customers.

The eight new disciplines focusing on open source business opportunities include:

o Client-side Middleware - Supporting the Eclipse Rich Client Platform project for hosting cross-platform applications.
o Development Tools - Built on Eclipse, a universal open integration platform of frameworks and exemplary tools.
o Web Application Servers - Based on Apache open source projects like Geronimo.
o Data Servers - Building on the open source Apache Derby and no-license fee IBM DB2 Express-C.
o Systems Management - Including open source Aperi storage project.
o Open Hardware Architectures - Community-driven collaborative innovation with Power.org and Blade.org.
o Grid Computing - Expanded support for Open Grid Services Architecture and the Globus Alliance.
o IBM Research/Business Consulting and Technology Services - Enabling customers to innovate with open source-based solutions and development models.

IBM Linux Technology Center Targets Key Kernel Initiatives:

The market opportunity for Linux approached nearly seven billion dollars in overall revenue, growing some 35% in 2005. Linux grew five times faster than Windows and eight times faster than the overall server market. [1] Moreover, in 2007, Linux is expected to surpass Windows as an operating system for which developers write applications according to a recent survey of developers working with open source software conducted by Evans Data Corporation. [2]

IBM is the largest contributor to open source community projects including work at IBM's Linux Technology Center, which has some 600 engineers in 40 locations worldwide, of whom more than 300 work full-time on Linux as part of the open source community.

"The latest innovations being integrated into the Linux kernel represent some of the most significant development initiatives underway at IBM's Linux Technology Center since like-minded opponents of vendor lock-in made source code freely available to anyone to use fifteen years ago," Handy said.

With today's announcement the company is focusing on a blueprint that includes these and other key development innovations:

o Integrate Cell BE processor Into Linux Kernel - - IBM developers are integrating support for Cell BE processor technologies in the Linux kernel and creating Cell software development tools available for download. Additionally, IBM is working with select customers to refine and validate design choices and develop new Cell BE processor-specific tools and plug-ins for application developers. Support for Cell hardware will be provided through standard Linux distributions. IBM will develop Linux on POWER for Cell systems to help customers refine and validate design choices and offer new Cell BE processor-specific tools and plug-ins for application developers. The company's Quasar Design Center will provide product support for the cell hardware roadmap and support through standard Linux distributions.

o Further Next-Generation Security - - Addressing customer demand for easy-to-use application, user, and data protection, IBM developers are working with the community to extend Security-Enhanced Linux. This security underpinning of the Linux kernel compartmentalizes applications and services into distinct security domains, providing a highly secure platform for applications or data. Key initial adopters include government and financial services. The company is working with Red Hat on Red Hat Enterprise Linux 5 compliance with Common Criteria Evaluated Assurance Level (EAL) 4+, Labeled Security Protection Profile (LSPP), Role Based Access Control Protection Profile (RBAC), and Controlled Access Protection Profile (CAPP). Developers are also collaborating with Novell on AppArmor application confinement, and driving the development of an enterprise class native encrypted file system.

o Extend Open Source Virtualization - - IBM technology experts are working on key components of open source virtualization software with focus in the areas of systems management, security, and POWER architecture enablement. The move builds upon IBM's 40-plus years of virtualization experience on the mainframe. IBM recently contributed code from its IBM Director systems management product to the community for the management of virtual systems. IBM's work is designed to help accelerate a common management module that spans across both the physical and virtual infrastructures.

IBM will also continue to work with partners in the community on a vast array of additional Linux initiatives such as improving kernel performance through a SystemTap toolkit, expanding support for Linux on the desktop, Samba, kernel scalability, customer testing, and countless other projects.

Company Surpasses 15,000 Linux Customer Engagements Worldwide

With today's news, IBM announced Brazilian-based online gaming pioneer Hoplon Infotainment, Nationwide Insurance, CommX, and RealPlus, are among those pushing the company's estimated number of Linux-related customer engagements to more than 15,000 worldwide.

Customers using supercomputers, to gaming technologies and desktops and mobile phones are benefiting from the low cost of ownership, security, and reliability of Linux and open source software running on standards-based IBM hardware and server platforms. The company is particularly committed to expanding growth in IBM's Linux-related customer engagements in emerging markets including Brazil, Russia, India and China.

Hoplon Infotainment, for instance, is beta testing its new massive multi-player TaikoDom game hosted on an IBM mainframe computer at the IBM Service Delivery Center in Hortolandia, Brazil managing purchasing transactions with WebSphere and DB2 database software running on Linux. Millions of players worldwide can challenge each other in online games like TaikoDom and interact with other users in real time requiring a highly scalable IT infrastructure. The IBM DB2 Universal Database solution running on Linux delivered a significant percent performance increase over an Oracle solution that previously served as the technology middleware.

Tuesday, August 15, 2006

Linux: rPath Launches rBuilder 2.0

rPath, provider of the first platform for creating and maintaining Linux software appliances, announced today the general availability of rBuilder 2.0. This latest release of rPath's flagship product allows software developers to transform their applications into software appliances. A software appliance combines an application with a tailored version of the Linux operating system and runs on industry standard hardware or in a virtualized environment. The announcement was made at Linux World in San Francisco. Demos of rBuilder 2.0 can be seen at the show in booth #1344 from August 15-17th.

"The rapid adoption of virtualization is changing the way computer resources are allocated and consumed, and how applications and their underlying operating systems can be provisioned and managed through their lifecycle," said Al Gillen, research vice president, system software, at IDC. "IDC believes that software appliances can and will leverage this virtualized infrastructure and empower customers to simplify their IT environments by using application-specific software appliances for some workloads."

"With rBuilder 2.0, software developers can easily create and maintain software appliances for their customers," said Erik Troan, founder and CTO, rPath. "As a result, end-users receive software that is simple to install, administer, and use."

rBuilder 2.0 allows application developers to:
· Streamline appliance administration. The rPath Appliance Agent provides baseline functionality such as first-time configuration, activity scheduling, event notification and logging. It also has an extensible framework so that ISVs can customize the administrative interfaces.
· Simplify the ability to build updates. The integration with rMake, a facility to reliably build software updates using a known environment, allows the software appliance vendor to create updates that can readily be applied to software appliances deployed at customer locations.
· Accelerate the delivery of maintenance and enhancements. Integration with rPath Mirror and rPath Entitlement Appliance enables updates to software appliances deployed at customer locations. These access-controlled updates are efficiently delivered via the Internet.
· Easily create demos and trials. The ability to produce CD/DVD images suitable for demonstration purposes allows customers to boot and run the software appliance without installation on the underlying hardware, giving customers an easy way to try before they buy.

According to Dave Dargo, CTO of Ingres, "rBuilder has allowed us to develop an industry first solution that combines the Ingres database with the Linux operating system to create a database software appliance called Project Icebreaker. The combination of the two solutions will provide our customers with integrated maintenance and a single point of contact for support, a capability unique to Ingres. This would not have been possible in such a short time frame without rPath's technology and the collaborative nature of open-source." In addition to the launch of rBuilder 2.0, Ingres also introduced Project Icebreaker at LinuxWorld today as a result of the collaboration between the two open source companies.

About rPath
rPath provides rBuilder and rPath Linux, the first platform for transforming applications into appliances. Appliances reduce development and support costs by giving application developers control over the deployment and update of the complete software stack, from the OS to the application. This simplifies installation, configuration, and maintenance for customers, expanding the market for your software. The company is headquartered in Raleigh, North Carolina. For more information, visit: http://www.rpath.com.

Gentoo provides social workspaces to close the gap between users and developers


The Gentoo Overlays project, together with other groups including Gentoo Infrastructure and User Relations, is pleased to announce the availability of a new service to provide a single source for development overlays. Stuart Herbert, the founder of the project, envisions this service, overlays.gentoo.org, as a way to create social workspaces where developers can collaborate with each other and with users to improve the Gentoo experience for everyone.

'Overlays' are collections of additional packages for Gentoo. They are maintained and distributed separately from Gentoo's main package tree, and they allow anyone to deliver extra packages for the award-winning Gentoo Linux distribution.

The social workspaces, hosted on overlays.gentoo.org, provide a testing ground and development sandbox for teams within Gentoo to collaborate directly with Gentoo users. Together, developers and users will work on new packages for Gentoo and on improving existing packages already included with Gentoo.

Users interested in joining the volunteer-driven Gentoo project can gain experience with Gentoo package development in a real-world setting, backed by mentoring from experienced Gentoo developers. This will greatly improve the recruitment process for Gentoo developers and users alike. There are also many users who have extremely valuable contributions to make, but for one reason or another don't want to become a full Gentoo developer. With the workspaces provided by the Overlays project, they can still contribute directly to projects within Gentoo.

One Gentoo project that has pioneered the use of overlays in this way is the Gentoo PHP project. Luca Longinotti, lead developer of the PHP project, was originally recruited through his contributions to the project's overlay. "I really appreciate the overlays idea," he says. "At the beginning, when I started to work on PHP on Gentoo, Stuart and I were constantly mailing patches and ideas to each other. We had to work that way because I was not a Gentoo developer, and that was the only way. Then he set up the PHP Overlay, and it helped us immensely to collaborate, try out new, and exciting ideas. We use it now successfully to test new packages and releases of PHP-related software. I think it's because of the PHP Overlay that in the end I got involved enough to become a full Gentoo developer."

Workspaces hosted on overlays.gentoo.org are created at the request of Gentoo projects and individual Gentoo developers. Gentoo users who wish to contribute to a workspace should contact the workspace's owners. They can do this by visiting http://overlays.gentoo.org/, where they will find information on each social workspace.

For more information, see the home of Social Workspaces, and the Overlays Project page.

About Gentoo Linux
Gentoo Linux is one of the foremost community-based Linux distributions, well known for its flexibility, performance, and portability. Supporting more hardware architectures and configurations than any other mainstream distribution, Gentoo is the platform of choice for those wanting to create systems to their own needs. The latest release can always be found at http://www.gentoo.org/

Blogger Updated By Google


Google has announced the first major upgrade to Blogger since taking over the creaking old platform. Still in beta, the new service offers a tie-in to your Google Account, dynamic pages, separate comment feeds, new layouts, an apparent merger with Google's Page Creator for WYSIWYG editing, integration of feeds, public/private access control and — of interest to bloghackers — tag-based labels for categories.
Check it out by taking the tour."

Monday, August 14, 2006

IBM Brings Instant Collaboration to Millions of Linux Users With Lotus Sametime


IBM® (NYSE: IBM) today announced that IBM Lotus® Sametime® will provide server and desktop support for Linux®. Lotus Sametime support for Linux gives customers the opportunity to fully integrate the industry's leading enterprise real-time collaboration software with the cost savings and openness of the Linux platform.

IBM is the first major enterprise real-time collaboration provider to support the Linux server and desktop, effectively bridging the gap between the desire for flexibility in IT decisions and the need for advanced, business-grade collaboration. With Lotus Sametime support for Linux, businesses will be able to take advantage of the security-rich and easy-to-integrate instant messaging and Web conferencing capabilities of Lotus Sametime, while preserving the ability to choose the desktop and server environment that best meets their needs.

Because Linux is built on open technology, businesses can avoid the server licenses typical of proprietary platforms. In addition, Linux customers can save time and money by reducing downtime expenses and administration costs associated with tasks such as security patch upgrades.

"Today's announcement is a natural step forward in IBM's support for Linux in the enterprise," said Ken Bisconti vice president, Lotus software products, IBM. "With IBM Lotus Notes® for Linux and now, Lotus Sametime support for Linux, all of an organization's key collaborative business applications can run in a 100 percent Linux environment."

The value of open technology and the Linux platform is also appealing to millions of small and medium sized businesses (SMBs). Lotus Sametime support for Linux can help SMBs stretch their often limited budgets and resources, and conduct business in real-time using the market-leading, integrated instant messaging and Web conferencing solution. In addition, Lotus Sametime's flexible pricing options enable SMBs to pay only for what they need today, yet have the ability to easily add additional users as their business grows.

Lotus Sametime support for Linux will be rolled out in two phases. Phase one, the Linux desktop client for Lotus Sametime, is expected later this month in Lotus Sametime 7.5. Support for the Linux server is expected in the first half of 2007.

For more information on Lotus Sametime: www.ibm.com/lotus/sametime

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad Starts Own Blog

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has started his own blog, this is perhaps slightly ironic, given that the Iranian Government actively censors blogs on the Internet.

The launch of www.ahmadinejad.ir was reported on state TV, which urged users to send in messages to the president.

Mr Ahmadinejad's first posting, entitled autobiography, tells of his childhood, Iran's Islamic revolution, and the country's war with Iraq.

The blog includes a poll asking if users think the US and Israel are trying to trigger a new world war.

There is a postform for users to send in questions for the president, and a picture gallery containing a series of images of the blogger himself.

The move by Mr Ahmadinejad comes amid continuing internet censorship by the Iranian government.

Microsoft Invites the World to Create Its Own Xbox 360 Console Games for the First Time By Using XNA Game Studio Express

Microsoft Invites the World to Create Its Own Xbox 360 Console Games for the First Time
More than 10 esteemed universities to add XNA Game Studio Express and Xbox 360 game development into their curricula starting this fall.


In the 30 years of video game development, the art of making console games has been reserved for those with big projects, big budgets and the backing of big game labels. Now Microsoft Corp. is bringing this art to the masses with a revolutionary new set of tools, called XNA Game Studio Express, based on the XNA™ platform. XNA Game Studio Express will democratize game development by delivering the necessary tools to hobbyists, students, indie developers and studios alike to help them bring their creative game ideas to life while nurturing game development talent, collaboration and sharing that will benefit the entire industry.

During his keynote presentation today at Gamefest 2006, a Microsoft® game developer event hosted by Microsoft in Seattle, Chris Satchell, general manager of the Game Developer Group at Microsoft, announced details of the new technology, which will be broadly available this holiday season. XNA Game Studio Express will be available for free to anyone with a Windows® XP-based PC and will provide them with Microsoft’s next-generation platform for game development. By joining a “creators club” for an annual subscription fee of $99 (U.S.), users will be able to build, test and share their games on Xbox 360™ and access a wealth of materials to help speed the game development progress. This represents the first significant opportunity for novice developers to make a console game without a significant investment in resources.

During his keynote, Satchell talked about academic institutions that are lining up to include XNA Game Studio Express in their course offerings. Also showcased was the work of key XNA supporters Autodesk Inc. and GarageGames. Through the Microsoft XNA relationship with Autodesk, the leading provider of 3-D authoring software, game developers and enthusiasts can now more easily incorporate content into XNA Game Studio Express via Autodesk’s FBX file exchange format. Joining Satchell on stage was Mark Frohnmayer, president of GarageGames, who showcased ports of its next-generation Torque tools and technology over to the XNA Game Studio Express platform.

XNA Game Studio Express Opens Up Game Creation to the World

By providing an integrated, seamless development environment based on Visual Studio® Express and .NET that simplifies the integration and use of game content, XNA Game Studio Express makes game development easier to accomplish for smaller projects, strongly increasing the chance for great game ideas to make it out of the concept stage and into the hands of gamers everywhere.

The XNA Game Studio Express beta will be available Aug. 30, 2006, as a free download on Windows XP, for development on the Windows XP platform. XNA Game Studio Express will give anyone with a Windows XP-based PC access to a unified development tool that liberates the creation of great Xbox 360 and Windows XP-compatible games, providing a new alternative to the existing multithousand-dollar development kits that many console games require. The final version of XNA Game Studio Express will be available this holiday season.

“XNA Game Studio Express will ignite innovation and accelerate prototyping, forever changing the way games are developed,” Satchell said. “By unlocking retail Xbox 360 consoles for community-created games, we are ushering in a new era of cross-platform games based on the XNA platform. We are looking forward to the day when all the resulting talent-sharing and creativity transforms into a thriving community of user-created games on Xbox 360.”

Not only will XNA Game Studio Express turn the community into creators, but a second XNA toolset geared toward game development professionals is scheduled to be available in spring 2007, fundamentally changing the way commercial games are developed.

The Beginning of the Game Developer Revolution

From students at colleges, universities and high schools of the future to the proverbial “guys in the garage,” Microsoft XNA Game Studio Express will liberate anyone with a great game idea to create titles for Xbox 360 and Windows XP simultaneously. More than 10 universities and their game development schools — including University of Southern California, Georgia Tech College of Computing and Southern Methodist University Guildhall — have already pledged to integrate console game development and XNA Game Studio Express into their curricula for the first time, and Xbox 360 will be the only console at the center of all coursework.

“Great game ideas are incubating in the minds of students everywhere,” said Michael Zyda, director for Gamepipe Labs at the University of Southern California. “With XNA Game Studio Express, Microsoft is investing in these next-generation innovators, creating the canvas for dreamers to express their powerful game ideas. In incorporating XNA Game Studio Express and Xbox 360 consoles into our Gamepipe program, USC will be able to better provide game studios and publishers around the world with a newfound wellspring of talent and opportunity. It’s ingenious.”

In addition, GarageGames, technology provider and developer of one of the most successful Xbox Live® Arcade titles, “Marble Blast Ultra,” has migrated both its Torque Shader Engine and new Torque Game Builder 2-D visual game designer over to the XNA Game Studio Express platform.

“The GarageGames mission has always been to provide top-tier technology, tools and community to independent and aspiring game developers,” said Josh Williams, CEO of GarageGames. “We are excited that Microsoft is demonstrating leadership by taking the revolutionary step of opening up game development for Xbox 360 to hobbyists and students. In aligning our tools and technology with XNA Game Studio Express, we’re helping even more individuals with the creativity and drive to make video games bring them to life on both Windows XP and Xbox 360.”

Gamefest 2006
Microsoft leads the industry in helping game developers make amazing games for Xbox® and Windows. Today and tomorrow, Gamefest 2006 will feature nearly 100 sessions for game developers, producers and publishers to grow their skills, introduce them to new development techniques and deliver powerful tools to build the best games possible.

GOOG: Google Fires Off Warning Letters Over Use Of Name As A Verb

Search engine giant Google, known for its mantra "don't be evil", has fired off a series of legal letters to media organisations, warning them against using its name as a verb.

In June, Google won a place in the Oxford English Dictionary, while "to google", with a lower case "g", was included last month in Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary, America's leading reference book.

But the California-based company is becoming concerned about trademark violation. A spokesman confirmed that it had sent the letters. "We think it's important to make the distinction between using the word Google to describe using Google to search the internet, and using the word Google to describe searching the internet. It has some serious trademark issues."

Read the rest here

Friday, August 11, 2006

Cray Wins $52 Million Supercomputer Contract With National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center

Cray Inc. (NASDAQ: CRAY) and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science announced that Cray has won the contract to install a next-generation supercomputer at the DOE's National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC). The systems and multi-year services contract, valued at over $52 million, includes delivery of a Cray massively parallel processor supercomputer, code-named "Hood."

The contract also provides options for future upgrades that would quadruple the size of the system and eventually boost performance to one petaflops (1,000 trillion floating point operations per second) and beyond.

A successor to the massively parallel Cray XT3(TM) supercomputer, the Hood system installed at NERSC will be among the world's fastest general-purpose systems. It will deliver sustained performance of at least 16 trillion calculations per second -- with a theoretical peak speed of 100 trillion calculations per second -- when running a suite of diverse scientific applications at scale. The system uses thousands of AMD Opteron(TM) processors running tuned, light-weight operating system kernels and interfaced to Cray's unique SeaStar(TM) network.

Cray will begin shipping the new supercomputer to the NERSC facility at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory later this year, with completion of the installation anticipated in the first half of 2007 and acceptance in mid-2007.

As part of a competitive procurement process, NERSC evaluated systems from a number of vendors using the NERSC Sustained System Performance (SSP) metric. The SSP metric, developed by NERSC, measures sustained performance on a set of codes designed to accurately represent the challenging computing environment at the Center.

"While the theoretical peak speed of supercomputers may be good for bragging rights, it's not an accurate indicator of how the machine will perform when running actual research codes," said Horst Simon, director of the NERSC Division at Berkeley Lab. "To better gauge how well a system will meet the needs of our 2,500 users, we developed SSP. According to this test, the new system will deliver over 16 teraflops on a sustained basis."

"The Cray proposal was selected because its price/performance was substantially better than other proposals we received, as determined by NERSC's comprehensive evaluation criteria of more than 40 measures," said Bill Kramer, general manager of the NERSC Center.

"We are excited that NERSC will again be home to a large Cray supercomputer," said Cray President and CEO Peter Ungaro. "We are proud to have been selected by NERSC in a challenging and competitive evaluation process using a measurement that emulates real-world conditions, rather than a simplistic peak-performance measurement. NERSC joins a growing number of major high-performance computing centers that have selected Cray systems which exemplify our vision of Adaptive Supercomputing by handling scientific applications of ever-increasing complexity and scaling to the highest performance levels."

The Hood supercomputer at NERSC will consist of over 19,000 AMD Opteron 2.6-gigahertz processor cores, with two cores per socket making up one node. Each node has 4 gigabytes (4 billion bytes) of memory and a dedicated SeaStar connection to the internal network. The full system will consist of over 100 cabinets with 39 terabytes (39 trillion bytes) of aggregate memory capacity.

"AMD and Cray continue to collaborate on innovative ways to leverage Direct Connect Architecture and HyperTransport(TM) technology," said Marty Seyer, senior vice president, Commercial Segment, AMD. "This innovation, along with Cray's supercomputing expertise and focus on scalable system architectures, has yet again resulted in a significant win. This is confirmation that customers believe that the design and performance of the AMD Opteron processor combined with Cray's superior system architecture provides a winning combination."

In keeping with NERSC's tradition of naming supercomputers after world-class scientists, the new system will be called "Franklin" in honor of Benjamin Franklin, America's first scientist. This year is the 300th anniversary of Franklin's birth.

"Ben Franklin's scientific achievements included fundamental advances in electricity, thermodynamics, energy efficiency, material science, geophysics, climate, ocean currents, weather, materials science, population growth, medicine and health, and many other areas," said NERSC's Bill Kramer. "In the tradition of Franklin, we expect this system to make contributions to science of the same high order."

About NERSC

The National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center is the flagship scientific computing facility for DOE's Office of Science. Located at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in Berkeley, CA, NERSC is one of the largest facilities in the world devoted to providing computational resources and expertise for basic, unclassified research. The Center enables interdisciplinary teams of scientists to address fundamental problems in science and engineering that require massive calculations and have broad scientific and economic impacts. Go to www.nersc.gov for more information.

About Hood

Cray's next-generation supercomputer, code-named "Hood" after Mount Hood in the Cascade range of the Pacific Northwest, builds upon the scalable architecture of the highly successful Cray XT3 supercomputer and is intended for the most demanding scientific and engineering problems. Like Cray's XT3 system, Hood is designed around a scalable processing element using x86 64-bit AMD Opteron dual-core processors, upgradeable to quad-core when made available, and uses a future generation of SeaStar technology to increase bandwidth between the Opteron and the system network.

About Cray Inc.

As the global leader in supercomputing, Cray provides highly advanced supercomputing systems and world-class services and support to government, industry and academia. Cray technology enables scientists and engineers to achieve remarkable breakthroughs by accelerating performance, improving efficiency and extending the capabilities of their most demanding applications. Cray's Adaptive Supercomputing vision will result in innovative next-generation products that integrate diverse processing technologies into a unified architecture, allowing customers to surpass today's limitations and meeting the market's continued demand for realized performance. For more information, go to www.cray.com.