Newsgroups: comp.parallel.pvm
From: jan@mbisgi.umd.edu (Dr. Jan Pedersen)
Subject: Keeping other Workstation users happy ! - How ?
Organization: University of Maryland, College Park
Date: 5 Aug 1994 00:43:39 GMT
Message-ID: <31s1vr$d0g@umd5.umd.edu>


I find  PVM and other message passing platforms a brave new world,
and have had good scientific experiences with programs paralellised
and run on large networks of heterogenous work-stations.

The only problem I have is to keep other users happy, UNIX is
unfortunately a terrible operating system for handeling many
processes, especially descriminating between interactive and
noninteractive users. Anybody which has tried to understand nice
renice or npri will understand what I am talking about.

What I need is a small program - that I would think others have
already concocted before me. This is a small process deamon which
is able to send a SIGSTOP and a SIGCONT to registred processes.
The daemon reisters keyboard and mouse input - if input has not
been received for some predefined time span the processes
registered with the daemon get a SIGCONT. This means that the
processes are completely halted while interactive users are
trying to get some interactive work done.

If anyone has heard about this problem or has a program which
performs the above task .... Please let me know..

			Yours PVMable

			Jan T Pedersen
			Center for Advanced Research in Biochemistry
			9600 Gudelsky Drive
			MD, 20850
			email : jan@indigo7.carb.nist.gov
			

