Cray CTO: Linux clusters don't play in HPC

jagger writes "Linux clustering was touted as the next big thing by many vendors last week at ClusterWorld Conference & Expo 2004. But supercomputer vendor Cray Inc. scoffed at the notion of putting Linux clusters in the high-performance computing (HPC) category. "Despite assertions made by Linux vendors, a Linux cluster is not a high performance computer," said Dr. Paul Terry, CTO of Cray Canada."

Yeah, but imagine...

[Anonymous Coward]

...a Beowulf... cluster... thingy... doesn't that count?

Seymour Cray

[JargonScott]

A quote I've seen before:

"If you were plowing a field, which would you rather use? Two strong oxen or 1024 chickens?"

Maybe he meant penguins?

Todays headlines...

[stevens]

Company officer claims competitor isn't as good as his product. Film at 11.

Flame Bait?

[Natchswing]

This is news? This is the equivalent of posting, "My AMD processor is better than your Intel processor!" It's a quote designed to ignite a fact-less argument on who has bigger ones.

Now, if the CTO of Cray Canada started talking about your mother than I think you're morally entitled and required to respond.

Re:Seymour Cray

[theatre_freak]

Would that be a kilochicken?

Re:Sure...

[boisepunk]

"Windows(TM) has a lower TCO than Linux"

-Microsoft ad campaign

(mods: don't hurt me. I mean nothing but to contribute to good discussion.)

Re:Seymour Cray

[lukewarmfusion]

Chickens, for the same reasons that you would use 1024 Linux boxen instead of his Cray.

And when you're done plowing, you can fry 'em up all tasty.

Re:Seymour Cray

[turgid]

"If you were plowing a field, which would you rather use? Two strong oxen or 1024 chickens?"

Personally, I'd prefer a John Deere 6003 Series [deere.com].

the list

[hakr89]

well i guess now we'll have to add them to the list...after SCO and Microsoft of course

Linux has failed you

[Meor]

Where's your God now hippies? Where's your God now?

Re:Marketing

[Total_Wimp]

"At best, clusters are a loose collection of unmanaged, individual, microprocessor-based computers."

I'm sure Paul Terry is nothing more han a loose collection fo unmanaged, individual human cells too. But I'm sure, with hard work and love, he can become a _real_ boy! Lets all have a hug.

Re:Seymour Cray

[kitzilla]

"If you were plowing a field, which would you rather use? Two strong oxen or 1024 chickens?" How big are the chickens?

Re:Business or science?

[Billy the Mountain]

Even though the chickens might be 80% more efficient, there are other considerations: Can you imagine the ridicule you'd get when you went into town?

"Here he comes, get ready boys! Cluck cluck cluck cluck cluck, here chickey chikcey, Haw Haw Haw!", etc.

BTM

Says who?

[dagnabit]

Who is this guy and what does a company like Cray know about... oh... never mind.

Re:Seymour Cray

[Skjellifetti]

Depends. Does HPC stand for High Performance Cow or High Performance Chicken?

Re:Seymour Cray

[turgid]

No silly, it's High Performance Cow, Highly Parallel Chicken

Re:Seymour Cray

[Anonymous Coward]

2 Oxen sized Chicken cabinets with 512 Chickens each, or a cluster of 1024 chickens.

Re:Yeah, but imagine...

[operagost]

It would be ironic if someone were to port Linux to a Cray - then build a cluster. I wonder what he would say about that.

Re:Seymour Cray

[Anonymous Coward]

No, a kilo of chicken would be approximately 2.2 pounds.

Re:Seymour Cray

[Waffle Iron]

"If you were plowing a field, which would you rather use? Two strong oxen or 1024 chickens?"

When Seymour Cray made that statement, he was probably pointing out the difference between his he-man vector processors vs. clusters of the wimpy microprocessors of old.

After reading the article, it seems that this new Cray is powered by a bunch of the exact same AMD microprocessors that a cluster of Linux boxes would use. So what they have now is more like an ox-shaped sack stuffed with chickens.

Obligatory

[Rhesus Piece]

"No, a Kilochicken is a 1000 chickens. You're thinking of a kibichicken. Check it out at http://www.nist.gov" Somebody had to, right? Right?

Re:Where's Grammar Nazi?

[strictnein]

My goodness, it is you who need the nazi.

Error!

It is you who needs the nazi.

This is fun. Now someone correct me.

doesn't this CTO of cray remind u of someone?

[MoFoQ]

doesn't this CTO of cray remind you of someone?
"There IS no Linux in high-performance clusters."

"There IS no Americans in Iraq."

OMG! It's the former Iraqi mis-Informed-ation minister!

Especially when 2004 has been dubbed the year of the penguin, it's wreckless to claim that Linux can't be used in HPC's.
Hell, just look at the current top500 list [top500.org]. There's no Cray in the top 10 but there are two Linux based clusters there (and one based on OSX [FreeBSB based]).

Here's a few:
NCSA's IA32 Linux cluster [uiuc.edu]
NCSA's IA32 Linux cluster [uiuc.edu]
Space Simulator Clust at Los Alamos [lanl.gov] (SS51G based; makes me proud as I have a SS51G too)
Beowulf - used in many Linux clustering projects [beowulf.org]
Linux clusters at Los Alamos [llnl.gov] (they seem to have more than one)
Virginia Tech's Supercomputer X [vt.edu]

Re:Seymour Cray

[epiphani]

wow. I've never seen someone fail so miserably when trying to start a flamewar over why kind of Tractor is better. Man, I thought they woulda been all over that here on slashdot.

Re:Seymour Cray

[krlynch]

But only if they're GNU/Chickens....

Re:Obligatory

[fatphil]

Nope, a kilochicken in such a setup does require 1024 chickens. Only 1000 are active nodes, but 24 are available as hot-swappable replacements.

Re:Yeah, but imagine...

[Anonymous Coward]

And yet gnome 2.6 still makes it feel less responsive than a Sun3 running OpenWindows.