What Is Distributed Computing?

[psychiccyberfreak 0]

Distributed computing is computing distributed among computers to solve a huge task. Usually you have to download a client, and your computer's idle time is when you make this happen. This is neat because you can walk the streets saying "I helped with MIT reserching effects on protein!" . It's a cheap alternitive to geting a supercomputer or something, especially if the budget is tight. I found the link on google, but I lost it. Look it up. Check this out!

[tuddy 0]

In other words, you want to allow someone use your internet upload data and use your computer to help with there 'debatable pointless' research at cost to you, and your doing it for free to them??I see no point in that.... I do see the point if you have a major task to do, and you want to spread some of the burden.

[Andrew Northall 0]

EDITED OUT

Edited August 3, 2008 by Andrew Northall (see edit history)

[xJedix 0]

I have the distributed.net client working on my computer. I figure I can allow it to use my cpu time when the computer is idle. The RC5 project is where it basically brute forces a password. It is trying to find the password for a 72-bit RSA Labs secret-key. It has nice rewards if your computer is the one to crack it.

$10,000 which is split up into different sections. Check this project out at http://www.distributed.net/Main_Page

I also use a client called boinc which I have the project called Seti@home running also. This project uses your cpu to look for alien signals from radio waves. This project is really cool and there are many people doing it. Along with boinc client, there are like 5 other projects you can do.

Check it out Here: http://boinc.berkeley.edu/

xJedix

[T100 0]

Distributed computing is quite useful in calculating results involving huge matrix with plenty of elements. It is also quite useful in trial and error type of calculation. I have read about testing of mathematical hypothesis using distributed computing and many researches from the biology field also need help from computers recruited this way. One drawback of distributed computing is that there are no ways to test the validity of the output from the every client. If one client fakes the results, the whole project would be screwed up as there is no good way of pinpointing the black sheep. It also poses a security threat to the computer involved by introducing software which penetrates the firewall and listen to the Internet all the time.

[sxyloverboy 0]

so xJedix your using your computer to help hack a code that isnt even for something valuable and its probably gonna take over 1400 days and you might have a very tiny tiny change of winning 1000 dollars?

[mozart 0]

Yes this true

[unicornrose 0]

I have heard of this and at one time I did precipitate in something like this. My computer was at that time a very outdated for the time model so it kind slowed it down. The current computer I have now has a lot of problems and needs a upgrade badly. I think that if and when update my computer I would not mind participating. I would of course do some research on the company first before I commit to anything. It always pays to know more about a company and see if there are any complaints on it. Sometiimes what sounds really good may actually be a load of bull. Plus well if someone has a problem with the company its good to find out what that problem is just in case its security or privacy issue. Especially if it makes your computer vulnerble. Anyway thats my two cents.

[stlgoalie 0]

Apple has Xgrid intergrated into OS 10.4 that makes setting up such systems simple. If you have all macs. Distributed computeing is extremely useful for rendering projects. I friend of mine that I play hockey with is trying to get a system set up for the OpenSource program Blender to using Xgrid. His site is http://forums.xisto.com/no_longer_exists/. (he's also the one that told me about this site to greate a goalie page so we don't have 6 goalies show up for 4 spots during drop-in)

From what he told me, though, it doesn't look like there are any takers yet. He bought an extra Mac Mini and was going to through OS 10.4-Server on it and use it as the controller. He found a boxed copy of OS 10.4 Server still in the wrapping for like $500 on Ebay.

Anyway, Xgrid makes it easy for us Mac users.

[LeAnn Rimes My Angel 0]

I would have simply said distrubuted computing is a form of networked computers all working together among office professionals and home communities.

[Aurelius 0]

I would have simply said distrubuted computing is a form of networked computers all working together among office professionals and home communities.

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Im lookingforward in getting hosting.

[amhso 0]

D2OL is very productive project on distributed computing.

[unicornrose 0]

I would have simply said distrubuted computing is a form of networked computers all working together among office professionals and home communities.

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Yes that is a good explaination but its not entirely true. The computers are not necessarily networked. Yes many times when doing this its on a network among networked computers. However it can and has been done on non-networked computers. They just both or more simply need to be on the internet at the same time. Not sharing a connection just online at the same time. The other computer is unable to read what your computer has on it but it just uses your unused resources. After all computers this day and age actually do exchange information all the time. Its not that hard to believe that its possible. With all the people doing all the things they do online its surprising that more people are not looking for ways to get more out of their computers.

[lodd 0]

(quote)You don't seem to get the point at all. Prehaps Psyhic didn't explain it in the right way. Some US Goverment authorities have programs set up where you "Fold". Folding is where you run a program in the background of your computer and you have a set topic and a set little bit of calculating to do. You have about 300 bits of these little calculating to do in a topic and once you have done each little bit, it gets uploaded to a server. So your using computers across the world to become a computer more powerful than a supercomputer ever. The point is we can use this to research difficult things that require alot of computing power and the goverment doesn't give them the funding/they don't get enough donations to rent/buy a supercomputer. An example is Folding@Home. Google it.It won't make your computer super slow either, as in options you usually only set it to start computing and processing after you've been idle for five minutes or such.(/quote)The amazing thing about distributed computing is that it uses the spare power of all the millions of personal (yes, that's right personal) computers that are usually not doing anything. I know so many of my friends that leave their computer on while going off to lectures and others who leave them on to download stuff. DOn't worry, they just download anime, it's perfectly legal.Andrew Northall is perfectly right in that it wont slow your computer down. It'll only run in the background or when you're not using the computer. I.e. it uses the parts of the computer that you don't use. The information that's usually processed by distributed computing consists of raw data that only needs to be processed through some simple steps. However, because of such a huge collection of data, it's hard for a few computers to process no matter how fast they are. So instead of consistently repeating these simple steps a billion or so times, they give out tiny programs (yes, tiny) that everyday people like us can use. Our computers than happily go through these tiny steps.Why would we do this? I saw a lotta people ask this just now. Well, for one, you have a chance of being part of something big. If the problem gets solved and your computer was the one who processed the data, your name will be up there in the stars! Imagine if it was YOUR computer that processed data that showed that intelligent life existed somewhere in the deep bowels of space? Cool, eh? Otherwise, you can still at least brag about having helped mathematically hack into a system. Your friends will definitely go o.OSecond, it doesn't cost much. It won't take up much from you to install it and leave it running apart from a few volts of cheap electricity. Heck, look at the lottery. For a small chance of winning, people actually PAY good money to get in. Relatively, this is pretty cheap to be a part of.That said, im not into it myself. I dont personally see the worth of frying my chips (yeah, im exaggerating) just to get to know a few aliens. Heck, I barely know one percent of the people on my OWN planet.Neway, Ciao

[Inspiron 0]

A few other distributed computing projects and processing powers which you can donate, and similar threads:

https://www.google.com/intl/de/toolbar/ie/index.html

http://forums.xisto.com/topic/32887-donate-idle-cpu-time-to-google-for-research-donate-without-spending-a-cent/=

http://seticlassic.ssl.berkeley.edu/windows.html