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Written by Jeff Layton

Published: 05 February 2006

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Cluster Notes - 2/6/2006

I thought I would take some time and write a sentence or two with some links about notable news for clusters users. I don't want to get into the "newsfeed " thing since that's not what ClusterMonkey is about. However, I think it's important to note things that may have an influence on clusters. So I probably won't be posting anything about price drops or new motherboards or new BIOS versions.

I'll try to do this every week starting on Mondays. However, if it's a slow week I won't be posting anything. So, let's get on with this week - Feb. 6, 2006, where we take a look at some Cell Processor news.

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Written by Douglas Eadline

Published: 22 January 2006

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On this worst day of the year, I thought it might be interesting to check in on some of the 2006 processor news. First, check the obligatory Intel and AMD road maps. Yes, dual core. More on that later. You may also be interested in an interview about AMD plans for the next year as well. There was also the announcement from Intel about dropping x86 hardware emulation on the Itanium. Reports that software emulation worked just as good seem to make this a valid move, however, it then places the Itanium in position like the much loved Alpha (and death thereof) processor. Seems to me the best technologies are not always the big winners for a number of reasons. I believe Itanium still has some wind in its sails. The technical merits and the Itanium Solutions Alliance may bode well in the future. And from where I sit on this un-glorious Monday morning, it is cold and raining. A little (maybe a lot) of coffee and a review of the important email archives might help.

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Written by Douglas Eadline

Published: 11 January 2006

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A recent file system benchmark article in the Linux gazette by Justin Piszcz is a follow up to his first article where he tested EXT2, EXT3, JFS, ReiserFS3, and XFS using a 2.4.26 kernel. His latest review uses the same hardware, Kernel 2.6.14 and adds ReiserFS4. While, some have noted his hardware is dated and that some filesystems are designed for todays faster hardware, the comparison is valuable data point none the less. The short story, he likes XFS.

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Written by Douglas Eadline

Published: 30 August 2005

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A spate of processor news seems to have hit us in late summer. No doubt due to the Intel Developers Forum (IDF) where Intel introduced a revamped processor strategy of sorts. Front row coverage can be found here. Did I here someone say performance/watt! Not to be outdone, IBM, Sony, and Toshiba announced more details on the Cell Processor. You can find different forms of documentation at two sites: IBM (registration required for some information) and Sony. Funny, they released this information on the last day of IDF. Timing is everything they say. And AMD? Well seems they have the goods for now and are ready to prove it.