NEWS BRIEFS
Research Triangle Park, N.C. — Porivo Technologies, Inc., a pioneer in the development of distributed computing technologies, announced the beta launch of the Porivo PEER. The Porivo PEER is a secure, Java-based application that harnesses the spare computing capacity of PCs around the world – enabling users to contribute the excess capacity of their computer to large-scale computing projects.
Using advanced, peer-to-peer distributed computing technology, the Porivo PEER links together the unused capacity of thousands of PCs across the Internet. Using otherwise wasted capacity, users’ PCs can contribute to large-scale computing projects; for example, applications that enhance the performance of the Internet, advance scientific knowledge, or solve sophisticated engineering problems.
“The Porivo PEER is an exciting technology, one that will change the way people perceive their PCs,” said Will Holmes, CEO of Porivo. “Instead of looking at their computer as a ‘beige box’ that sits on top of their desk, people will view their PC as a pool of resources that can be shared among multiple tasks. The Porivo PEER allows users to make the most of their PCs by tapping into spare capacity that would otherwise be wasted.”
Users who download and install the Porivo PEER will initially contribute their spare computing capacity to test the performance of high-volume Web sites. Using otherwise wasted CPU and bandwidth resources, each Porivo PEER on the network will securely test the performance of Web-based application s, identifying bottlenecks and paving the way for better Internet performance. The performance data collected by the Porivo PEERs is routed back to Porivo’s servers, where it is aggregated to provide a clear and complete picture of site performance. “Unlike other distributed computing technology companies that only focus on spare CPU capacity, Porivo is developing applications that leverage all the spare resources of PCs – including CPU cycles, bandwidth, disk and unique profile characteristics,” said Holmes.
Future applications of the Porivo PEER could include projects that advance scientific knowledge, solve sophisticated engineering problems, or gain insights into the nature and performance of the Internet itself.
To spotlight the launch of Porivo PEER and compel users across the U.S. to download and install the application, Porivo is also announcing today its “Cycles for Cycles Sweepstakes,” an innovative promotion that allows PC users to turn their spare PC capacity into sweepstakes entries for great prizes. Because users will donate their excess resources (including CPU “cycles”) to projects, the sweepstakes is designed to give cycles back to users – in the form of mountain bikes. For every hour that users run the Porivo PEER in the background, they will receive sweepstakes entries for prizes. For more information and complete sweepstakes rules, please visit: http://www.porivo.com .
The Porivo PEER is a component of Porivo’s core technology for peer-to-peer, distributed computing – called peerPlane. peerPlane is a robust software “backplane” that aggregates the computing resources of tens or hundreds of thousands of individual PCs connected to corporate networks or across the Internet, empowering entirely new classes of applications. In addition to managing the complex distribution of work among a network of heterogeneous computing assets, peerPlane also offers advanced performance management, resource allocation and security management features that help organizations better utilize their existing computing assets (within corporate networks), or tap into the vast computing potential of the Internet.
Industry analyst and author Cheryl Currid, President of Currid & Company, said, “Peer-to-peer computing will dramatically change the way enterprise- computing platforms are built, what they cost, and how they tackle computing needs. Using existing resources, organizations will be able to leverage the latent power of linked PCs across the Internet to deliver supercomputing- like processing power to solve complex problems, or even challenge tasks that were previously impossible to undertake.” Currid & Company is an emerging technology research firm located in Houston, Texas.
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