Subject: C443 JGSI Review
Resent-Date: Mon, 11 Oct 1999 08:24:23 -0400
Resent-From: Geoffrey Fox <gcf@npac.syr.edu>
Resent-To: p_gcf@npac.syr.edu
Date: Sun, 10 Oct 1999 17:10:38 -0400
From: Tomasz Haupt <haupt@npac.syr.edu>
To: gcf@npac.syr.edu

a) publish

b) this paper describes an improved version of the Javelin system, which
provides a Java-based infrastructure for global computing. The
impovements include replacing low level TCP-based communication by Java
RMI, replacing host applets with host applications (a host is a CPU
provider), and finally introducing distributed brokers supporting at
least two distinct scheduling algorithms.
Going for a highier level communication protocol is definitely the right
thing to do, while abandoning applets seems to me controversial. Indeed,
it simplifies implementation at the cost of software installation and
the idea of running the jevelin host as a screen server is cool.
However, I am not convinced by the author arguments that the jevelin
host cannot be run as an applet. This would require implementation of
proxies for distributed brokers, as some other project do. For enabling
access to the local resources, for example, a signed applet can be used.
By the way, the paper does not describe the security aspects of the
system. An interesting issue here is how to build trust between the host
and the client, with a chain of brokers serving as the
medeworkers.Finally, the idea of distributed workers is a good begining
for a scalable, and fault tolerant system.

The paper is nicely written, clearly describing the architecure of the
system, its APIs, and scheduling mechanism, and is well illustarted with
an example application and performance analysis.

c)  Is it possible that they never heard about WebFlow?