SHORT TAKES

STRATUS INTRODUCES MODELS IN CONTINUUM SYSTEM

Maynard, MA. — Stratus Computer announced four new models of its Continuum 600/1200 Series computers – the Continuum 651-2 and 1251-2 uni-processor systems and 652-2 and 1252-2 twin-processor systems. Based on the Hewlett-Packard PA-RISC 8600 processor, the new systems offer up to 33 percent higher performance than previous models. These systems continue Stratus’ leadership in providing the industry’s most robust fault-tolerant solutions for continuous availability, providing customers with 24/7 availability that is easy to use and maintain. All new models support Stratus’ highly regarded VOS operating system, among the most widely used operating systems in the world today for mission-critical computing. “Over the past year, our development efforts have demonstrated our commitment to ensuring a highly robust, healthy and viable mission-critical application environment for our worldwide VOS user base,” said David Flawn, vice president, Marketing at Stratus. “The new PA-8600 Continuum systems are just the latest of a number of improvements and advancements, which include support for Apache Web Server and Samba, and POSIX and C++ development environments.”

For most current customers, upgrading to new Continuum models is a simple, non-intrusive procedure accomplished by swapping CPU modules while leaving the rest of the system untouched. Continuum 8600-based systems support all I/O adapters and peripherals supported by the earlier PA-7100, PA-8000, and PA-8500-based Continuum systems. This provides application continuity and easy upgrading. To ensure continuous availability, even while upgrading to the new systems, PA-8600-based hardware with the VOS operating system also supports “jump switching,” a feature that allows for online CPU upgrades without system reboots. Stratus offers a range of servers within its Continuum family to address customers’ diverse system needs. Customers with a greater sensitivity to price can select Continuum 600 models, while customers concerned with capacity and performance can choose Continuum 1200 models. Regardless of which model a customer has, the power of the PA-8600 will simplify system migration decisions. Models 651-2 and 652-2 support up to 4GB of memory and 1.4TB of disk capacity. Models 1251-2 and 1252-2 support up to 4GB of memory and 3.2TB of disk. The new systems support both VOS 14.2.3 and the latest version, VOS 14.3.1. All models use 480MHz PA-8600 processors with 1.5MB cache, and all models are available now.

RED HAT LAUNCHES LINUX BETA VERSION

Research Triangle Park, N.C. — Red Hat, Inc., a leader in developing, deploying and managing open source internet infrastructure solutions, announced the immediate public availability of the beta version of RED HAT Linux for Itanium – based systems. This is the first publicly available beta from RED HAT FOR INTEL’S forthcoming release of an INTEL Itanium architecture and is available for public download at Red Hat’s FTP site . Targeting the high-end server and workstation markets, the enhanced capacities of the Itanium architecture coupled with 64-bit RED HAT Linux provides the scalability and performance required in mission-critical applications and technical computing environments such AS OLTP, data warehousing and finite element analysis. With over 700 core software packages enabled in this os including tools, databases and utilities, Red Hat provides the necessary level of support for the next generation of software development and deployment on Intel architectures.

Based on a pre-production release of the 2.4 linux kernel, the Itanium-based version of RED HAT linux enables the enhanced performance and scalability of the Intel Itanium architecture and includes support for significantly increased memory and increased process limits required for enterprise computing. Red Hat is working closely with Intel, OEMs, developers and ISVs to ensure that the release of Red Hat Linux for the Itanium processor coincides with the forthcoming release of the Itanium-based hardware and applications. More information on becoming a member of the Red Hat Linux for Itanium architecture community, including support, training and developer information can be obtained through Red Hat’s Jumpstart program at http://www.redhat.com/products/IA64/Jumpstart

WIND RIVER DELIVERS SOURCE CODE ANALYSIS TECHNOLOGY

Alameda, CALIF. — Wind River Systems, Inc., a leading provider of software and services for smart devices in the Internet age, announced general availability of the SNiFF+ 4.0 source code analysis environment for advanced source code visualization and navigation. SNiFF+ 4.0 allows users to analyze and manage multi-language C, C++, Java, Corba IDL and Fortran code in one environment. This release is part of Wind River’s embedded development tools strategy to deliver market-leading tools that can be used both independent of and with Wind River embedded real-time operating systems (see separate release, Wind River Rolls Out Embedded Development Tools Strategy, Dec. 18, 2000). Industry experts estimate that software developers spend nearly 50 percent of their time searching for basic information buried in code. SNiFF+ 4.0 greatly reduces this largely wasted time by integrating code browsing, searching, analysis, revision and updating tools into a single environment. The result is a scalable and hierarchically structured project management environment designed to deal with large code bases comprising hundreds of directories and thousands of files. SNiFF+ 4.0 includes a redesigned graphical user interface (GUI) for greater ease of use, improved C / C++ code analysis and enhanced project team support for the development of complex, large-scale embedded applications across the full spectrum of embedded markets.

“As embedded computing has proliferated throughout the Internet economy, software applications have become extremely complex – often running to millions of lines of code that originate from multiple teams, development environments, and programming languages,” said John Fogelin, vice-president and general manager of Wind River’s Platforms business unit. “SNiFF+ 4.0 alleviates this complexity by providing advanced project management capabilities and code analysis features not found in other tools. The end result is an increase in engineering productivity and complete assurance of code quality.” SNiFF+ 4.0 is tightly integrated with Wind River’s Tornado tools integrated development environment (IDE) and is also fully usable for developers not using the Tornado IDE or VxWorks real-time operating system. This flexibility allows users to leverage the power of both tool chains to create VxWorks-based applications as quickly as possible. Wind River, http://www.windriver.com , is a worldwide leader in embedded software. Wind River provides software development tools, real-time operating systems, and advanced connectivity for use in products throughout the Internet, telecommunications and data communications, digital imaging, digital consumer electronics, networking, medical, computer peripherals, automotive, industrial automation and control, and aerospace/defense markets. Wind River is how smart things think. Founded in 1983, Wind River is headquartered in Alameda, California, with operations in fifteen countries worldwide.

SKYSCL 5.5 COMMUNICATIONS LIBRARY NOW AVAILABLE

Chelmsford, MA. — SKY Computers, Inc., a subsidiary of Analogic Corporation, announced the release of SKYscl 5.5, the latest version of the Company’s powerful communications library. SKYscl 5.5 allows developers of large multiprocessor systems to build their application using a virtual configuration describing data synchronization and data movement across processor nodes, resulting in higher performance communication and faster development. According to SKY director of technical marketing, Steve Paavola, “One of the biggest challenges for engineers working on large-scale signal or image processing systems is determining how data will move between the input source and the compute processors across the interconnect. SKYscl 5.5 extends the capabilities of the original SKYscl by giving programmers the ability to develop, test, and optimize a virtual system that can then be moved to the physical system. SKYscl 5.5 gives users an edge in their development – they don’t have to re-generate code each time they want to experiment with different configurations to optimize performance – they just change configuration files and SKYscl does it for them.”

SKYscl 5.5 is a middleware library that includes a standard set of function calls which automatically selects the most efficient communication method based on the user defined physical configuration. The user defines the virtual system which models data flow, and the physical system which determines which processors are allocated to which executables within the code. Since these configuration files don’t effect the executables each time the user needs to expand or contract the system, only the configuration files need to be changed. The application software remains intact. The graphic below represents a system during design/test phase and the reconfiguration and expansion of the number of processors for final deployment. SKYscl makes the transition from development to deployment easier, by automating the re-configuration without modifying application code. SKY Computers, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Analogic Corporation, is a leading supplier of embedded high performance computer systems. SKY’s commercial-off-the-shelf products meet the embedded computing requirements for subsurface, surface, airborne, and space applications. Advanced technologies such as SKYchannel are combined with an open system architecture to provide solutions now and for decades to come. SKY is the only company in its market that provides a three-year hardware warranty on its products.

ELSA SHIPS WORKSTATION GRAPHICS ACCELERATOR

San Jose, CALIF. — ELSA, a world leader in workstation graphics, announced the shipping of the Synergy III professional graphics accelerator with application specific optimizations and dual monitor support at an affordable price. Based on NVIDIA’s Quadro2 MXR, the ELSA Synergy III offers unmatched value and dramatically improved productivity for everyone from performance conscious PC enthusiast to design and animation professionals. The ELSA Synergy III has the enhanced capability of supporting two monitors with a single board. ELSA continues to build upon its exclusive partnership with NVIDIA to provide the ELSA Synergy III, which includes 32MB of SDR memory and a 350MHx RAMDAC. Boasting 25 million triangles per second and 400 million pixels per second, the ELSA Synergy III will plow its way through complex architectural design and game development projects. And with dual monitor support, coupled with performance at an affordable price point, the ELSA Synergy III leads the pack within the entry-level workstation graphics market.

“ELSA continues to offer industry-leading graphics solutions without sacrificing quality or draining the user’s wallet,” said Chris Rhoades, product marketing manager of workstation graphics for ELSA, Inc. “Add that to the pure productivity of dual monitor capability and customized application drivers, all for under $500, and you’ve got the new category leader.” By having the option of dual monitor support, users can reduce design time by having a content editing window on one monitor and a time-line editor, color palette editor or web browser in another. Traditionally in the past, a dual monitor solution with this level of power was achieved by purchasing two separate graphics boards. With the ELSA Synergy III, users will cut costs and production time dramatically. Users have the option of VGA or DVI-I, VGA and DVI-I or dual VGA with the included DVI-I to VGA adapter. The ELSA Synergy III is designed for use with professional applications such as AutoCAD, Dreamweaver, Lightwave 3D, Microstation, Photoshop, Premier and 3D Studio MAX. ELSA bundles unique drivers and utilities for performance and productivity in the leading applications such as AutoCAD and 3DS MAX. PowerDRAFT for pure 2D drafting performance in AutoCAD. QuadroVIEW for real-time editing, lighting and animation in AutoCAD. MAXtreme for in-the-viewport pure performance and realistic rendering features. The Synergy line is bundled with a suite of custom software for complete monitor and application control, a leading software DVD player and a six-year warranty.

MSC.LINUX MAKES SUPERCOMPUTING ACCESSIBLE

Costa Mesa, CALIF. — MSC.Software Corp., an established information technology software and services provider helping companies worldwide develop better products faster, today announced the beta availability of MSC.Linux. MSC.Linux, a version of the Linux operating system from MSC.Software, combines PCs into clusters, enabling them to address engineering problems once only solved by expensive supercomputers. The operating system delivers many industrial-strength capabilities including substantial memory, large files, high-performance data transfer and cluster tools in an easy-to-use, Web-based distribution. With MSC.Linux underlying its design and simulation software products, MSC.Software will enable its customers to run analyses in a supercomputing environment. In addition, MSC.Software is the first company to make critical product-design applications available on the open-source Linux platform. It has chosen to offer its popular design software on its own version of Linux to address the critical design needs of companies that rely on this stable and reliable operating system.

“MSC.Software has taken the lead in offering Linux clusters to companies that require engineering and design to help them bring products to market better, faster and cheaper,” said Frank Perna, chairman and chief executive officer of MSC.Software. “MSC.Linux is another example of MSC.Software’s leadership in the product-design software market, and marks an important milestone for us in the multi-billion-dollar supercomputing market.” MSC.Software offers a wide range of Linux-based products that help companies focus on increasing revenues while decreasing costs. Companies can apply their proprietary knowledge to creating competitive products without the distractions of implementation and infrastructure details. MSC.Linux leverages the strengths of Linux in creating stable, high-performance computing environments optimized to solve the most demanding problems at a low cost. These custom solutions reduce time to market, increase innovation potential, and reduce long-term costs associated with warranties, risk management and technology investments. “MSC.Linux is the cornerstone of our Linux-based systems, designed to satisfy our customers’ toughest problems,” added Perna. “Our extensive application knowledge combined with these systems creates optimized application servers that deliver supercomputer performance at PC cost.” For additional information visit http://www.mscsoftware.com .

IBM ESERVER Z900 SHIPPED TO GLOBAL CUSTOMERS

Armonk, N.Y. — IBM announced that its new IBM eServer z900, the reinvented mainframe, began shipping to customers around the world on schedule. Many customers, including financial institutions and management consulting firms, initially plan to run benchmarking and application tests on the z900, including running Linux on some of the mainframe’s partitions. Thousands of Linux applications will run on the z900, making adding new e-business workloads to the platform easier and faster. The system’s advanced networking capabilities along with its ability to dynamically shift resources automatically to the applications that need them and enhanced data compression functions make the z900 attractive to businesses. The IBM eServer z900, announced in October 2000, is the first mainframe built from scratch with e-business as its primary function. The reinvented mainframe can be self-managing, offers customers the ability to add capacity in seconds and is designed for high speed connectivity to the network and storage systems. The system allows customers to push performance and connectivity to the outer limits without any concessions to reliability and security.

“It’s gratifying to see customers respond so strongly to the z900,” said Dan Colby, general manager, Enterprise Servers, IBM. “They are eager to get the new mainframes into their shops and incorporate the system’s e-business features into their environments. It’s also gratifying to be able to deliver the z900 on schedule as promised and with greater performance then anticipated.” The ability to run thousands of virtual servers within one physical box makes the z900 the ideal platform for e-business-intensive operations like application service providers, Internet service providers and technology hosting companies. These types of companies must be equipped to manage and keep separate and secure their own customers’ individual workloads and requirements. In the past, this has required a large number of servers and a huge investment in real estate. Now, however, these customers can save by using one z900 to do the same job, replacing a football field full of Sun or HP servers. Customers will be able to take full advantage of the z900 with IBM’s new 64-bit operating system, z/OS, and new software pricing model. Software fees can be based on need rather than total system capacity, providing customers the flexibility to pay for what they use in an e-business world that is characterized by highly volatile swings in demand. Customers making the transition from the IBM S/390 G5 or G6 may save up to thousands of dollars per month in software fees, depending on the configuration. The 64-bit z/OS operating system will be available March 31, 2001. About IBM Enterprise Servers

LACIE ANNOUNCES NEW FIREWIRE HARD DISK CAPACITIES

San Diego, CALIF. — LaCie announced bold shifts in its FireWire hard disk drive range to insure its leadership in the market. As well as adding two new capacities to the range, LaCie will offer the drives at lower prices. The new LaCie FireWire range, to be launched at Christmas, will include four capacities, 20GB, 40GB, 60GB, 75GB, one of the widest choices available on the market. Combining a range of capacities with the easy to use interface and high transfer rate, the LaCie FireWire HDD range is ideally suited for professional users working with multimedia, digital audio and video, graphic design or any other speed-demanding application. “Today an increasing number of Apple and PC computers are equipped with FireWire ports. Movie production and image editing have become increasingly widespread, not only confined to the video industry but also for other applications such as marketing and advertising.” Commented George Leptos, LaCie Branch Manager “These multimedia applications require huge amounts of storage and fast transfer rates, external disks are the easiest way to expand a computer’s storage capacity and with sustained transfer rates of up to 15MB/sec, FireWire is the ideal interface for the job. With the new price and capacity strategy, LaCie’s FireWire hard disk range is the ideal solution for most users.”

The speed of FireWire hard drives is especially potent when they are employed in RAID 0, which lets demanding video and multimedia users create simple arrays increasing throughput by up to 80%. Inexpensive software RAID 0 can easily be set up with the Silverlining Pro drivers that are bundled with all LaCie’s hard disks. Acting as a “data shuttle,” a LaCie FireWire hard drive also allows several professionals to work successively on the same project from their own machine. This capability provides users with the added security of being able to immediately plug the LaCie hard disk into another computer and continue working with the same files in the event of a computer crash. When properly formatted, the drive can even be used to share video and graphics files between Mac and Windows computers. Designed to match the performance of the PowerMac G3/G4, iMac DV, PowerBook, and other leading FireWire computers, the LaCie hard drives have been optimised to provide an access time of up to 9ms and a throughput of up to 15 Mbytes per second. The drives have an enclosed, integrated universal power supply so they can be used anywhere in the world, and two 6-pin FireWire connections for daisy chaining. There is no need for any external power supplies. With FireWire support, all hard drives are hot-pluggable and mount automatically as soon as they are connected. There is no need for terminators, device IDs or elaborate set-up. This allows the LaCie FireWire hard drive to be easily transferable.

CONCURRENT INTRODUCES HIGH-PERFORMANCE SERIES 3200

Atlanta, GA. — Concurrent Computer Corporation, announced the latest addition to its family of real-time computing systems – the Model 3200-2000 next generation computer system. The Model 3200-2000 features improved computational speed, microsecond interrupt handling, high system I/O throughput, and extensive system connectivity. The 3200-2000 provides the response needed in today’s time-critical, high-availability application environments. Concurrent shipped its first Model 3200-2000 system to Spain’s Corretaje e Informacion Monetaria y de Divisas, S.A. (CIMD) for use in a financial brokerage application, allowing the company to provide the latest information to its customers. In this context, the 3200-2000 system will enable CIMD customers, banks in this particular scenario, to hold stock market positions and leverage operations in a real-time environment.

CIMD will use the 3200-2000 CPU boards in pairs, effectively creating a zero point fault-tolerant system that will be housed in a single cabinet, with both boards having independent storage structures. In this application, all communication lines reside under a switchable chassis; one of the boards will act as a “live” board, whereas the second one will be the hot stand-by unit. Because the 3200-2000 processors control the system, if there is a failure or malfunction, the second board automatically continues to process all transactions, providing uninterrupted service to CIMD’s financial customers. In today’s highly competitive stock market, real-time, precise processing is imperative. Being 100 percent compatible with CIMD’s existing software was a critical factor in the decision to purchase the 3200-2000. “The new Model 3200-2000 all-in-one single-board computer offers an excellent continuity and compatibility solution that enables us to improve our previous high-standard performances, mainly in the host-controlled web and wireless application protocol (WAP) real-time financing trading systems. This provides a high-reliability solution for our customers in a time-critical environment, which is vital to their successes,” said Mr. Antonio Sebastian, CIMD’s director general adjunto para tecnologia e informacion (general manager for technology and information) “Furthermore, Concurrent has demonstrated world-class customer service by its efforts to ensure our satisfaction with this investment.” This next generation 3200 offers up to four times the application computational performance of a Series 3200 Model 3280 processor. In addition, all system memory, floating point and DMA bus interfaces are provided directly on the 3200-2000 processor module, reducing maintenance costs by offering key Series 3200 functionality on a single 17″ board. The single-board engine features an industry-standard Motorola PowerPC(TM) processor with Flash-stored software and includes a 233 MHz or 350 MHz PowerPC 750 processor; 64, or 128, MB of ECC memory; CDS/Console interface; one MUX bus interface; and up to three DMA bus interfaces. The single board processor will also feature, as options, 10/100 BaseT Ethernet connection and an Ultra2 SCSI interface. Visit http://www.ccur.com for more information.

ELSA SHIPS WORKSTATION GRAPHICS SOLUTION

San Jose, CALIF. — ELSA, the leader in workstation graphics acceleration, today announced shipment of the highly-anticipated GLoria lll professional graphics accelerator optimized for mechanical computer-aided design, professional game development and film animation and effects. ELSA continues to build upon its exclusive partnership with NVIDIA to provide the next-generation of its best-selling GLoria/Quadro line of high-end range workstation graphics solution. Based on NVIDIA’s new Quadro2 Pro, the ELSA Gloria III provides everything needed for design professionals to power through even the most complex design and animation projects. The ELSA GLoria lll provides 6.4GB/sec bandwidth enabling work in fully textured mode while achieving real-time frame rates. With 1 billion pixels per second rendering power and 31 million triangles per second geometry processing power, the ELSA GLoria lll is the professional’s ultimate choice for even the most demanding design project. “The new Quadro2 Pro architecture enables ELSA to continue driving the standard by providing the ultimate graphics performance at an extremely aggressive price point,” stated Chris Rhoades, product manager of professional graphics for ELSA, Inc. “The ELSA GLoria product line now defines pure performance at affordable prices for serious graphics professionals looking to drive productivity to new heights while cutting down drastically on production costs.”

With 64MB of DDR frame buffer memory, the fastest available, and a 350MHz RAMDAC, the Gloria III will support resolutions up to 2048×1536 at 85Hz in TrueColor. The ELSA GLoria lll also offers flawless Direct3D support for playing high intensity games with production and entertainment all on one system. The ELSA Gloria III represents the perfect symbiosis of application performance and hardware acceleration, offering unrivalled immediacy, rock solid stability and image quality. The ELSA GLoria III was designed for pure application performance through application specific optimizations. Whether you’re using 3D Studio MAX, AutoCAD, Maya, Pro/ENGINEER, Solidworks, Photoshop, SOFTIMAGE|3D, Microstation or Lightwave 3D, the ELSA GLoria III graphics accelerator delivers real-time application performance, without any compromises. ELSA bundles unique drivers and utilities for performance and productivity in the leading applications such as AutoCAD and 3DS MAX. PowerDRAFT for pure 2D drafting performance in AutoCAD. QuadroVIEW for real-time editing, lighting and animation in AutoCAD. MAXtreme for in-the-viewport pure performance and realistic rendering features. The GLoria line is bundled with a suite of custom software for complete monitor and application control, a leading software DVD player, DVI-D capability and a six-year warranty.

MAGFILE OFFERS 275% INCREASE IN CAPACITY

London, ENGLAND — M4 Data, a leading designer and manufacturer of tape drives and tape libraries, announced the addition of Super DLTtape technology to its tape library product range. This announcement follows on from Quantum’s recent announcement of availability of Super DLTtape drives. Super DLTtape more than doubles the DLTtape specifications to 110GB native capacity and a transfer rate of 11MB/s. This enables M4 to offer customers 2.64 TB of native/uncompressed capacity in only 4U (7 inches) of rack space using their 24 cartridge autoloader, MagBak and up to 79.2GB/h throughput using both drives in a single MagFile library. Super DLTtape also offers backward compatibility within existing DLT drives and media. The MagFile family was designed to be field upgradeable as new drive technology is released thus allowing the customer to achieve maximum investment protection from their original purchase. Super DLTtape uses Laser Guided Magnetic Recording (LGMR) technology, which combines optical and magnetic technologies to significantly increase the number of tracks on a tape. It delivers improved performance and reliability that customers are demanding as their data storage protection and archiving needs continue to expand.

“By adding the Super DLTtape drive to MagFile, customers now have an even wider choice of tape technologies ensuring that their library investment is fully protected,” said David Huntingdon, Sales and Marketing Director, M4 Data. “Customers will also be able to mix DLTtape and Super DLTtape within a MagStak, negating the need to replace their existing technology by allowing the two formats to work together in a library.” “We are delighted that M4 Data is offering Super DLTtape in its successful MagFile family,” says Philippe Ory, Quantum’s DLTtape Marketing Manager for Europe. “Our DLTtape platform is the defacto standard in backup and archival, with Super DLTtape setting the standard for the next-generation of tape storage products. Super DLTtape offers customers the most reliable, proven technology at unprecedented value and is an investment both for today and tomorrow.” The MagFile range also offers Fibre channel connectivity for connection to a SAN (Storage Area Networks). MagFile is the only tape library currently on the market providing true incremental scalability, which allows the library to expand by sliding in modules, whilst maintaining optimum performance, resilience and high availability.

GEOMAGIC QUALIFY ENABLES GRAPHICAL COMPARISONS

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C. — New software called Geomagic Qualify from Raindrop Geomagic allows automatic graphical comparisons between a CAD master model and the built part or object. Raindrop Geomagic also announces Geomagic Studio 3.1, the latest version of its software that enables 3D photography applications in manufacturing, engineering, design and new media. Shop-floor inspectors, technicians and design engineers can use Geomagic Qualify to quickly and easily overlay, evaluate and report deviations between designed and built parts. Inspections can be performed with one click of the mouse and shared with colleagues via automatically generated, web-ready HTML reports. Geomagic Qualify provides accurate comparisons that allow users to comply with even the strictest deviation standards.

Raindrop Geomagic’s latest version of Geomagic Studio provides easier control of color and automatic alignment of templates. Users can now adjust the brightness and contrast of color models within Geomagic Studio. Smaller-sized files can be created by automatically decimating the number of triangles within models without compromising color fidelity, surface integrity or detail. Patch templates within version 3.1 can be fitted automatically into new models. The new features in Geomagic Studio 3.1 further the software’s ability to automate the 3D photography process, which entails taking output from 3D scanners, capturing the color, texture and shape of real-world objects, and transforming them into usable models for diverse applications. “These two products allow professionals to quickly and easily perform highly detailed tasks that once required cumbersome, time-consuming, repetitive and often inaccurate processes,” says Ping Fu, the company’s president. “Geomagic Qualify delivers automation, simplicity and assurance in the field of computer-aided inspection. Geomagic Studio provides the tools for 3D photography applications that can transform the way companies do business.”

OTG SOFTWARE UNVEILS DISKXTENDER FOR UNIX STORAGE SOFTWARE

OTG software (nasdaq: otgs), a software developer of online storage, data access and email management solutions, announced the availability of diskxtender(tm) for unix, new storage software that extends otg’s expertise in windows nt/2000 storage systems to the unix platform. With this new product, OTG is addressing the storage and access needs of customers operating in multiple platform environments, and enabling true heterogeneous and centralized storage management. Diskxtender’s ability to scale to meet enterprise level storage requirements is also key for unix environments with vast amounts of enterprise data.

ADVANCES IN DISTRIBUTED AND PARALLEL DATA KNOWLEDGE DISCOVERY

Edited by Hillol Kargupta and Philip Chan, foreword by Vipin Kumar. Knowledge discovery and data mining (KDD) deals with the problem of extracting interesting associations, classifiers, clusters, and other patterns from data. The emergence of network-based distributed computing environments has introduced an important new dimension to this problem–distributed sources of data. Traditional centralized KDD typically requires central aggregation of distributed data, which may not always be feasible because of limited network bandwidth, security concerns, scalability problems, and other practical issues. Distributed knowledge discovery (DKD) works with the merger of communication and computation by analyzing data in a distributed fashion. This technology is particularly useful for large heterogeneous distributed environments such as the Internet, intranets, mobile computing environments, and sensor-networks.

When the data sets are large, scaling up the speed of the KDD process is crucial. Parallel knowledge discovery (PKD) techniques addresses this problem by using high-performance multiprocessor machines. This book presents introductions to DKD and PKD, extensive reviews of the field, and state-of-the-art techniques.

Hillol Kargupta is Assistant Professor and Director of the Distributed Adaptive Discovery and Computation Group, School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Washington State University. Philip Chan is Assistant Professor of Computer Science at the Florida Institute of Technology. For more information please visit http://mitpress.mit.edu/promotions/books/KARDPF00

AVANT! DELIVERS INDUCTANCE ANALYSIS SOLUTION FOR 25 MILLION GATE SOC DESIGNS

Avant! Corporation announced it has unveiled details of its high capacity, high throughput inductance analysis solution capable of handling 25 million gate SoC designs. Michael Jackson, deputy engineering head of Avant!’s ICDA subsidiary explains, “It is extremely difficult for a conventional RC extractor to model parasitic inductance effects in large SoC designs because the whole physical layout needs to be considered. Star-RCXT can do extremely fast processing of large designs while using only a small amount of memory.” Inductance extraction is available today as an option to Star-RCXT.

The main problem that designers of multi-million gate designs face during full chip analysis is the sheer amount of data. Star-RCXT does detailed modeling of every capacitive and inductive interaction in a design, which in an average one million-gate design results in more than a billion capacitors and inductors. To reduce this amount of data, some design flows take short cuts by ignoring smaller values, but the cumulative effect of this can result in timing errors of 10-20%. Star-SimXT and Star-RCXT use sophisticated third generation, network-reduction algorithms to obtain fast and accurate results that take into account all parasitic values.

For more info, see http://www.avanticorp.com

ADIC DELIVERS VERSION 5.0 OF AMASS FOR UNIX STORAGE MANAGEMENT SOFTWARE

Advanced Digital Information Corporation announced a major new release of its AMASS(R) for UNIX storage management software that enables IT departments and integrators to more effectively leverage the capacity of automated optical and tape libraries for a wide variety of large-scale storage tasks. The new 5.0 release of AMASS for UNIX provides faster user access to mission-critical data by providing a new advanced intelligent caching utility, it provides a broader range of long-term file protection by extending ADIC’s Infinite File Life(TM) to new platforms, and it adds support for LTO Ultrium technology.

For more info, see http://www.adic.com

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