ASC PET Project

ASC-CY4-IC--6

Institution Name: Syracuse University

Project Identifier: ASC-CY4-IC--6

Project Title: TangoInteractive in Gateway and Scientific Research

POC: Bernholdt, David E

Email: bernhold@npac.syr.edu

Phone: 315 443 3857

Fax: 315 443 1973

CTA: IC

Project Description: Integrates Gateway distributed computing infrastructure with Tango
distributed collaboration infrastructure to provide a means for
applications built upon the Gateway architecture to easily be made
collaborative.

Project Objectives: We have often observed that TangoInteractive can be used to support
collaborative computing as well as its initial focus on education and
training. In this regard we have developed various initial tools including
shared visualization (NCSA and NPAC), shared telnet and shared editing with
emacs. However we have not been able to clearly identify a good model for
this. Gateway provides an important organizing principle that will allow us
to properly develop TangoInteractive as a tool in scientific and
engineering research. This is the essence of this proposal.

To understand technical approach, remember that Gateway is defined in terms
of services that are specified through XML used to specify both resources
and access to resources. These correspond to XML used either as a
serialized database or as as a web template language. Collaboration will
also be represented as a set of XML tags in Gateway. Simplest -- given
current state of Tango Interactive, are capabilities that do not interact
directly with Gateway services. Here XML tags will invoke audio-video
conferencing, chatrooms etc. This is still non trivial as it involves a
different TangoInteractive interface. However more interesting and harder
are those capabilities where Tango Interactive interacts with Gateway.
Examples include security, visualization, shared job submittal, shared
results and files (both basic web pages and those dynamically created by
job). In this regard, we propose to interact with core Gateway group to
establish requirements for these coupled interfaces (which will of course
also be specified by XML). We will interact with project visualization
teams including the NCSA and DICE groups. This will build on existing
collaborative visualization work by NCSA and NPAC. Finally we will address
CTA specific collaboration by working with CTA teams starting with CCM to
establish special capabilities of value.

This requirement activity with come up with an initial design, which we
will implement, test and evaluate in an ongoing fashion. We will ensure
that there will be an interesting demonstration capability for SC99

Deliverables: o Initial design with Gateway Core group of Tango Integration into
Gateway with examination of basic capabilities, visualization and one
or more CTA's (July 99)
o Prototype and demonstration of Tango Interactive with Gateway but
only a subset of capabilities(SC '99)
o Full integration of TangoInteractive into Gateway with operational
support for visualization, two CTA's and core collaboration (May '00)

Customers/End Users: Users of the Gateway architecture (PET initially, MSRC users eventually)

Benefit to Warfighter: This project will expand the kind of productivity enhancements that
will be possible through the use of the Gateway system.

Project Dependencies: This project requires interaction with the Gateway PSE teams and
SciVis support.

A related project just begun at CEWES involves direct
collaboratization of HPC applications. Because of their similarity,
these two projects should be strongly synergistic as CEWES activity will provide case studies outside Gateway that we can generalize. In a similar way, lessons from the LMS web interface effort at CEWES developed ideas now being used in Gateway.

Risk Element: While the risks of actually completing the proposed work are minimal,
it is a novel idea, and w.r.t. the details of the Tango/Gateway
integration should be considered a learning oportunity rather than a
final implementation.

Year X Funding:
Year X+1 Funding:
Year X+2 Funding:

Institution Name:	Syracuse University
Project Identifier:	ASC-CY4-IC--6
Project Title:	TangoInteractive in Gateway and Scientific Research
POC:	Bernholdt, David E
Email:	bernhold@npac.syr.edu
Phone:	315 443 3857
Fax:	315 443 1973
CTA:	IC
Project Description:	Integrates Gateway distributed computing infrastructure with Tango distributed collaboration infrastructure to provide a means for applications built upon the Gateway architecture to easily be made collaborative.
Project Objectives:	We have often observed that TangoInteractive can be used to support collaborative computing as well as its initial focus on education and training. In this regard we have developed various initial tools including shared visualization (NCSA and NPAC), shared telnet and shared editing with emacs. However we have not been able to clearly identify a good model for this. Gateway provides an important organizing principle that will allow us to properly develop TangoInteractive as a tool in scientific and engineering research. This is the essence of this proposal. To understand technical approach, remember that Gateway is defined in terms of services that are specified through XML used to specify both resources and access to resources. These correspond to XML used either as a serialized database or as as a web template language. Collaboration will also be represented as a set of XML tags in Gateway. Simplest -- given current state of Tango Interactive, are capabilities that do not interact directly with Gateway services. Here XML tags will invoke audio-video conferencing, chatrooms etc. This is still non trivial as it involves a different TangoInteractive interface. However more interesting and harder are those capabilities where Tango Interactive interacts with Gateway. Examples include security, visualization, shared job submittal, shared results and files (both basic web pages and those dynamically created by job). In this regard, we propose to interact with core Gateway group to establish requirements for these coupled interfaces (which will of course also be specified by XML). We will interact with project visualization teams including the NCSA and DICE groups. This will build on existing collaborative visualization work by NCSA and NPAC. Finally we will address CTA specific collaboration by working with CTA teams starting with CCM to establish special capabilities of value. This requirement activity with come up with an initial design, which we will implement, test and evaluate in an ongoing fashion. We will ensure that there will be an interesting demonstration capability for SC99
Deliverables:	o Initial design with Gateway Core group of Tango Integration into Gateway with examination of basic capabilities, visualization and one or more CTA's (July 99) o Prototype and demonstration of Tango Interactive with Gateway but only a subset of capabilities(SC '99) o Full integration of TangoInteractive into Gateway with operational support for visualization, two CTA's and core collaboration (May '00)
Customers/End Users:	Users of the Gateway architecture (PET initially, MSRC users eventually)
Benefit to Warfighter:	This project will expand the kind of productivity enhancements that will be possible through the use of the Gateway system.
Project Dependencies:	This project requires interaction with the Gateway PSE teams and SciVis support. A related project just begun at CEWES involves direct collaboratization of HPC applications. Because of their similarity, these two projects should be strongly synergistic as CEWES activity will provide case studies outside Gateway that we can generalize. In a similar way, lessons from the LMS web interface effort at CEWES developed ideas now being used in Gateway.
Risk Element:	While the risks of actually completing the proposed work are minimal, it is a novel idea, and w.r.t. the details of the Tango/Gateway integration should be considered a learning oportunity rather than a final implementation.
Year X Funding: Year X+1 Funding: Year X+2 Funding: