Worlds fastest computer

[Mulreay]

The world’s fastest supercomputer according to TOP500 supercomputer list of 2009 is Cray XT5, also known as Jaguar. Jaguar bagged the No. 1 spot, beating IBM’s Roadrunner, who held the top crown from 2008 to 2009. It can perform more than 1 quadrillion calculations per second.

Other stuff here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cray_XT5

But is it?

Where in the world can you crunch over 8 quadrillion calculations per second? Find 672 computer racks linking an astonishing 68,544 CPUs, each of which harbors eight cores? Where the computing output is roughly equivalent to the power of 28,160 PlayStation 3s? *

On Japan's "K" computer, that's where. The supercomputer was built by Fujitsu Co. and thrusts Japan back into the rarefied top 10 list of the world's most powerful supercomputers—the topmost spot, in fact, where it's just wrestled the lead away from the Chinese National University of Defense Technology. The list is maintain by Top500, and it's based on how fast each computer can crunch a benchmark app called Linpack, which calculates a computer's floating point prowess.

Read more: http://techland.time.com/2011/06/20/worlds-most-powerful-supercomputer-is-faster-than-28000-ps3s/#ixzz1aUb5Xesz


It's hard to judge.

[Doug Vitale]

Here's an excerpt from the Wikipedia entry for Cray XT5 which the Time.com article neglected to mention.

The XT5 family run the Cray Linux Environment, formerly known as UNICOS/lc. This incorporates SUSE Linux Enterprise Server and Cray's Compute Node Linux.

Reminded me of these relevant articles:

http://www.zdnet.com/blog/open-source/where-linux-crushes-windows-like-a-bug-supercomputers/9890

http://www.redmondpie.com/windows-based-supercomputer-passes-petaflop-barrier-but-still-falls-short-of-linux/

[kpac]

I think, every year from now on, we'll have a new fastest supercomputer. That's if Moore's Law is anything to go by.

[BC_Programmer]

Reminded me of these relevant articles:

Yep, you can always count on Linux Zealots to bring that up anytime you point out issues with their OS. This, despite the fact that their precious supercomputers run a heavily modified, often internally altered and thus proprietary, kernel, that for all intents and purposes is not Linux anymore.

The reason they don't typically run windows is simple- Windows isn't a SuperComputer OS. Linux isn't either, that's why they have to make modifications to it. Though I sorta wonder why they use Linux rather than a BSD, though.

[Salmon Trout]

I should start creating copy-and-paste threads: World's Slowest Computer, World's Nerdiest Nerd, World's Cheapest Computer, World's Ugliest Computer*, World's Worst Forum (That's Digg IMHO)

* My nomination: anything by Alienware