Newsgroups: comp.parallel
From: pinnacle@onramp.net (Pat Kelly)
Subject: IBM Parallel Environment experiences?
Organization: Pinnacle Computer Solutions
Date: Mon, 27 Mar 1995 22:59:13 -0700

Does anyone have any experience (positive or negative) with IBM's Parallel
Environment for the RS/6000?  While it seems to focus on the SP2 parallel
system, it will reportedly work in an Ethernet/Token Ring/FDDI cluster
environment; can anyone confirm or deny this?  Does it utilize (the few
and evolving) standards for parallel and cluster processing, such as MPI
(Message Passing Interface)?  Is it easier to develop applications than
with the public-domain PVM (Parallel Virtual Machine) software?  Is there
any chance it will be ported to other systems?

The reason I ask is that someone I know is developing a very numeric
intensive application that may require 3 or 4 590s but believes that: 1)
the SP2 is too expensive, 2) clustering using PVM software is too
cumbersome, 3) symmetric multiprocessing (SMP) is the
best/easiest/cheapest way to go, 4) IBM's PowerPC 601-based SMP systems
are WAY too expensive and not powerful enough (but the 604 is a step in
the right direction), 5) a 3 or 4 processor SGI Challenger is probably the
best way to go.

Is it possible/likely that the IBM Parallel Environment with a poor-man's
cluster of 390/590 systems might do an equal/better job?  As an RS/6000
fan, I'd like to point them in the right direction if possible.  Thanks
for your input.

