[ Thanks to Douglas Eadline for this
link. ]
“A growing number of problems demand parallel computing
capabilities these days, and the processing power of high
performance technical computing servers have kept pace with this
demand. Yet a hurdle to unlocking the true potential of parallel
computing remains: affordable, easy-to-use parallel programming
tools. The ‘software gap’–the gap between hardware capabilities
and actual benefits we can extract through programming–is growing
wider. Many applications are available for parallel computers, yet
the custom development required by these tools is exceedingly
complex, takes months or years to develop, and runs in batch mode
over hours or days.“As engineers and scientists explore parallel programming
approaches, whether they be first timers or experienced users, an
increasing array of choices is available to them. What is better
for your next project–a parallel extension to high-level desktop
tools? Programming toolkits and APIs for C and Fortran developers?
An interactive parallel computing platform…?”