Abstract * Foil Index for this file
See also color IMAGE
Given by Geoffrey C. Fox at NASA/MADIC Langley Review on NII Requirements for ASOP on July 26-27 1995 NASA Langley Virginia. Foils prepared July 23,1995
Abstract * Foil Index for this file
See also color IMAGE
| This overview was part of a NASA sponsored workshop at Langley involving MADIC (Multidisciplinary Analysis and Design Industrial Consortium) Team 2, NASA, Georgia Tech, Rice and NPAC. |
| This reported on initial conclusions on requirements for and value of NII technology in ASOP (Affordable Systems Optimization Process) -- a novel approach to Multidisciplinary Optimization for aircraft and other complex system design. |
| ASOP intrinsically involves world wide collaboration between several large aerospace corporations and tens of thousands of suppliers and so the NII can have major value both for supporting collaboration between people and for supporting the thousands of linked optimizations -- each involving several different programs. |
| We stress the rapid evolution of the Web and the ability of Web Technology to be applied to Enterprise Inforemation Systems such as that required to manage ASOP. |
| MADIC companies involved include Rockwell, General Motors, Northrop-Grumman-Vought, Lockheed-Martin and General Electric. |
This table of Contents
Abstract
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| July 26 NASA Langley |
| Geoffrey C. Fox |
| NPAC |
| Syracuse University |
| 111 College Place |
| Syracuse |
| NY 13244-4100 |
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| This overview was part of a NASA sponsored workshop at Langley involving MADIC (Multidisciplinary Analysis and Design Industrial Consortium) Team 2, NASA, Georgia Tech, Rice and NPAC. |
| This reported on initial conclusions on requirements for and value of NII technology in ASOP (Affordable Systems Optimization Process) -- a novel approach to Multidisciplinary Optimization for aircraft and other complex system design. |
| ASOP intrinsically involves world wide collaboration between several large aerospace corporations and tens of thousands of suppliers and so the NII can have major value both for supporting collaboration between people and for supporting the thousands of linked optimizations -- each involving several different programs. |
| We stress the rapid evolution of the Web and the ability of Web Technology to be applied to Enterprise Inforemation Systems such as that required to manage ASOP. |
| MADIC companies involved include Rockwell, General Motors, Northrop-Grumman-Vought, Lockheed-Martin and General Electric. |
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| Clients (such as Mosaic and Netscape) support browsing of hyperlinked documents but have no internal interactive/compute capability |
| Servers read HTTP and deliver requested service to client |
| HTML -- a document format supporting hyperlinks |
| HTTP -- a Transport Protocol defining Interaction between Web servers and Clients |
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| Browsers have SAME interface on ALL Computers |
| CGI Programs are typically written in PERL but can be essentially ANY UNIX Process and so do simulation, database access, advanced document processing etc. |
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Application Specific NII Specific Services for
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| MIME -- a data format allowing agent-like (extended email) communication |
| CGI -- a standard interface allowing sophisticated server extensions |
| PERL -- a rapid prototyping language(script) aimed at text and file manipulation |
| Web Search engines such as YAHOO, HARVEST, WAIS -- early distributed database access technology supporting search and indexing |
| net.Thread, WebTools, RealAudio are early Web Interactive services |
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| Relational databases -- Oracle,DB2 have Web Interfaces |
| Collaboration from Console Units (PIctureTel, CLI), Desktop (SGI Inperson) to MOOs |
| Compression from MPEG and Wavelet to host of proprietary solutions -- a faction of 20 to 200 saving in space and bandwidth |
| Geographical Information Systems |
| Security will enable commerce on the Internet -- essential for Defence as well |
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| ATM, ISDN, Wireless, Satellite will be hybrid physical implementation of NII |
| CORBA, Opendoc, OLE, SGML, Hytime are critical file and document standards |
| High Performance Multimedia servers to enable digital information delivery on demand |
| Data transport from MPI/MSGWAY/PVM to AAL to CBR/VBR |
| Windows95/NT -- the last of the the non social(Web) operating systems -- will follow dinosaurs(IBM mainframes) into extinction |
| Personal Digital Assistants -- WebNewtons done right -- Telescript (agent based communication) and Magic Cap operating system |
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| High Performance (Parallel) Computers on High Speed (ATM) Networks linked to clients at a network performance that supporting realtime Video at a resolution between VHS,HDTV . |
MPP's as Internet/Web/NII/GII Servers
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Dual-Use Philosophy must be extended to Multi-Use
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Standards must be used
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| One must provide real time video to some 100 million NII off ramps and there are many choices such as: |
Optical Fibre Trunk System (ATM)
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| Satellites for Trunk System |
Local Cable Delivery (Optical --> Cable Switch) - several megabits/sec
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| ISDN (0.1 megabits/sec) down twisted pair |
| ADLS (several megabits/sec) down twisted pair |
| Full Optical Fibre Link |
| Mobile Computing |
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"Every" Business Office, Every doctor's Office, "Every" school desk, "Every" home(potential patient) (approximately any home on cable) will have a two-way high speed link to the NII
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What does this factor of 1000 increase in performance do for the home?
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These consumer developments will drive MPP use
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InfoVision is ultimate "client-server" application
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Democracy on the NII (Gore)
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| Each of three components (network connections, clients, servers) has capital value of order $10 to $100 Billion |
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| Information Video Imagery and Simulation on Demand |
| The different application areas such as business, defence, government, education and healthcare can leverage off the infrastructure and services motivated by home use. |
| Clearly each areas needs somewhat different functionality and trade-offs in services |
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| Web Servers use "Web Technology" to service World Wide Web and other forms of networked multimedia information |
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| WebWindows -- the open nonproprietary operating system of future supplanting UNIX, Windows95/NT, Apple etc. -- manages with a single interface all machines either individually or collectively on the NII |
| WebWork -- Implements Computing for both Simulation and Information underneath WebWindows -- the correct implementation of HPCC ideas such as HPF,MPI with pervasive technologies |
| Personal Servers -- Newton was correct but too early. The Web is a server - server technology |
| Televirtuality -- All Web Users are linked into a single virtual world |
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| Like UNIX or MS-DOS or Windows 3.1(NT,95), WebWindows is an operating system for a "computer" |
| The "computer" is a metacomputer consisting of the 20,000 Webservers (currently--eventually hundreds of millions) on Internet for the World Wide Web |
WebWindows can also be used for the metacomputer (collection of heterogeneous networked computers) which is a business enterprise system
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WebWindows is a multi-client multi-server technology
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| World wide multimedia File access and dissemination -- current Mosaic Service |
| Initial agent technology such as World Wide Web Worm, Harvest etc. |
| WebTools is initial NPAC Project to develop WebWindows |
| File management (create,delete etc.) -- Implented in WebTools |
| Hyperspace Navigation -- Preliminary Prototype in WebTools |
| Ultimate Navigation built around agents, knowledge stored in caches (databases) and powerful search capabilities |
| HTML editor -- simple version in WebTools (best with client extensions) |
| Electronic Mail -- Webtools version very high functionality |
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Project Management and Decision Support
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| Personal Digital Assistant -- Merging of Web and Telescript(Magic Cap) |
Collaboration -- multiple video streams of participants, whiteboards, forums, MOO etc.
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Computation -- harness the world wide web as a distributed computer -- WebWork project at NPAC, Boston University, Cooperating Systems Corp.
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| This implies that we look at both Grand Challenges and National Challenges but we suggest this is not enough: |
| WebWork Builds HPCC technologies on a broad not niche base starting at bottom (Web,PC's) |
| not top (MPP's, Supercomputers) of computing pyramid |
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Implements the "Viable Base" Enterprise Model of HPCC Software identified in Pasadena2 workshop
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| Implements a powerful software engineering framework for parallel computing by integrating parallel programming with the World Wide Web Productivity Tools |
| WebTools is a prototype developed at NPAC which is a base on which to build the Compute and Software Engineering Capabilities of WebWork |
| An early development will be WebFlow -- a AVS/Khoros like system built on the Web which can be used for BOTH Computing (modules are executable software) and for management of Software Development task (modules are source code and people) |
| Later can develop the full WebHPL -- a hybrid compiled/Interpreted environment implenting HPF/HPC++ etc system with Web infrastructure and front end |
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| PCRC embodies the Parallel Computing Synchronization and collective parallel algorithms and runtime that will enable efficient Web-based computing |
| Replace user interface of HPF or HPC++ with the Web(work) and use pervasive Web Technologies in infrastructure (World Wide Virtual Machine -- WWVM) |
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| WebWork is an open, world-wide distributed computing environment based on computationally extended Web Technologies |
| The backend computation and information infrastructure is provided by the World-Wide Virtual Machine -- a mesh of computationally extended Web Servers (called Compute Servers) |
| These servers manage (via CGI mechanisms) a collection of standardized computational units called WebWork Modules. |
| Geographically distributed and Web-published WebWork modules interact by HTTP/MIME based message/object passing and form distributed computing surfaces called Compute-Webs |
| The front-end user/client interfaces are provided by evolving Web browsers with increasing support for two-way interactivity (e.g. Java, VRML) that facilitates client side control and authoring. |
| A natural user-level metaphor -- WebFlow -- is supported in terms of visual interactive compute-web authoring tools. |
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| Java -- an interpreted C++ like language (script) allowing fully interactive clients which execute applets. Has full set of classes to make clients such as HOTJava. Licensed by Netscape |
| VRML -- a 3 dimensional HTML allowing universal description of physical objects and allowing interchange of virtual worlds, commercial product designs etc. |
| PERL5 -- an extension of PERL4 with full object oriented characteristics and extended pointer(array) constructs -- allows construction of Web Software obeying good software engineering practices |
| Multithreaded WebServers integrating current Web, Compute and digital multimedia delivery services -- future Enterprise Systems |
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| WebTools -- Early NPAC Prototype of WebWindows Equivalent to Program Manager with Navigation, File manipulation, Mail |
| WebDeskTop Publishing -- an early killer application under WebWindows supplanting Word, Wordperfect, LOTUS123 , Persuasion etc. Java allows clear powerful implementation. |
| WebRDBMS -- Integration of Relational and Distributed databases with both agent based heuristics, formal indices and free text search |
| Metadata -- Common attributes to allow integration and search of heterogeneous databases |
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| Produced by Gang Cheng April 1995 |
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There is a larger Better Quality Image available |
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| Produced by Gang Cheng April 1995 |
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There is a larger Better Quality Image available |
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| WebSpace -- Televirtual implementation of full 3D MOO like environment building on LabSpace at Argonne for the virtual scientific laboratory |
| WebFlow -- NPAC prototype of Web based extended Khoros/AVS supporting dataflow linkage of computers for simulation and people and data for workflow management |
| WebScript -- the evolving Middleware of scripted languages including extended PERL5, Java, Telescript, MOVIE(NPAC compute oriented script) etc. |
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Three Dimensions of Multimedia Extensions for Interactive Services
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User-level WebWork metaphor is given by WebFlow -- a distributed dataflow model built in terms of WebWork modules and MIME object/document communication channels.
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| WebWork users will build and control distributed computing applications (compute-webs) using Web browsers based visual interactive editors and monitors. |
| We are currently prototyping such WebFlow front-ends at NPAC using Java/HotJava model. WebWork modules are represented by Java threads (Screen 6) and visualized as interactive interconnected icons (Screen 7) |
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| An example of HotJava applet that makes essential use of Java multithreading. |
| Three different sorting algorithms are visualized on a single HotJava page. |
| Each algorithm can be started independently or they can all run concurrently. |
| Concurrent mode allows for real-time visual comparison of various algorithms and their performance. |
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| Early prototype of AVS or Khoros like visual compute-web editor. |
Two interactive modes are supported:
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| In mode a), each click in the active editor window places a new module box there. |
| In mode b), each click on module port generates links with all other modules. |
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| One current WebWork/WebFlow application, prototyped at NPAC, is Software Project Manager (Screen 8). Each software developer runs his/her WebTools server and uses HySource CASE tools. These servers are WWVM-connected to agent and manager servers. Agent server receives automatic notifications from developers servers on each software volume update, and uses customizable thresholds to decide when to fire a report to the manager or a deadline reminder to a developer. |
| Software Project Manager tools contains a simple agent server that mediates between client/consumer ( here manager) and servers/producers (here developers). |
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| A front-end for the software project manager tool. |
Three types of modules are supported:
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| Developer modules are linked to the agent module and report automatically all changes in the software volume (handled by WebTools CASE toolkit integrated with WebTools editor). |
| The agent module integrates the results and uses customizable threshold to decide when to fire a report to the manager or a deadline reminder to a developer. |
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Application Specific NII Specific Services for
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| A Set of Application domains and each with its own natural (interpreted) language manipulating domain-specific data structures. WebScript links the domains together |
Examples are:
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Desktop Publishing and Productivity Tools in WebWindows (WebTop Productivity/Publishing)
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InfoVision: Delivery on Demand of Information from:
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| Commerce -- digital Cash and signatures with appropriate authentication and security. Enables both Web Commerce (shopping) and use of Web for proprietary information |
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Interactive and "batch" Collaboration
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Metacomputing -- the collection of world wide computers as a coordinated (in subgroups of computers) computational engine (for simulation or information processing)
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| This is distributed databases for supporting cost effective healthcare with less fraud, better use of existing information for establishing care-plans etc |
| This is collaboration, remote instrument control for telemedicine |
| Could be full televirtuality for virtual-reality controlled remote surgery in battlefield or accident scenarios |
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| This is basis of Virtual University and NII can be expected to be much more succesful than videosystems because interactive, collaborative, explorative and full multimedia information at student and teachers fingertips |
Base of Distance Education is InfoVision for full interactive curricula
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| Rich Collaboration environments including televirtual MOO's for student-student and student-teacher interactions |
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| InfoVision is "successor" to TV with any multimedia information delivered on demand( choice from infinite number of channels) |
| Community Networks will define local societies and will have significant impact on local government |
| Shopping on the Web will include multimedia digital yellow pages , Commerce, online catalogs (which is InfoVision again) as well as perhaps powerful VR interfaces where you can try out new clothes and cars |
| Collaboration (gossip as in computer forums) could be an important and dominant use but perhaps not initial major one |
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OLTP (Online Transaction Processing) such as approving and recording credit card transactions. This is a type of InfoVision and Commerce which is operational today
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| Decision Support varies from fraud detection, inventory planning and market segmentation for optimizing shopping by mail |
| Decision support can vary from search of a single giant relational database to galaxy-wide search of heterogeneous distributed database |
| Workflow Support as in LOTUS Notes integrates Collaboration, Project Management and Distributed Databases. This supports ongoing distributed enterprise -- this is also essential in collaboratory |
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| Critical feature is realtime, "come as you are" adaptive linked computers and people |
| Judgement support extends decision support into an "exploratorium" scenario as crises tend to be unexpected |
| Major need to search community and government databases for immediate information on resource location and availability etc. Metadata(summaries) essential |
| Collaboration between commander in field , specialized anchor desks (domain experts) and those in field. |
| User Interface essential as user will be tired and searching unfamiliar data |
| Geographical Information Systems and browsing multiple video sources (InfoVision again) will be critical as judgements will depend critically on spatial data. |
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| This is future model for (inter)national distributed research |
| Rich Collaboration environment essential as collaborative research requires nontrivial person to person interactions |
| Searching distributed databases basis of much scholarly work (infoVision and Digital Library) |
| Metacomputing for multidisciplinary, multi-institutional simulations and for control and data storage and analysis from remote instruments whether satellites, telescopes, accelerators etc. |
| Distributed (people) Software Engineering support for production of distributed computing software |
| Needs workflow support as distributed enterprise |
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| Critical feature is closely integrated collaboration of very many people and computers requiring |
| Metacomputing Simulation and distributed database support as in Collaboratory |
| Workflow support including configuration management and central CAD databases |
| Rich collaboration environment to support distributed design decisions |
| Standards and Security to allow interlinking of people and software from different organizations |
| Key special requirement is distributed coordination |
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| A set of manufacturing companies -- Rockwell International, Northrop Grumman, McDonnell Douglas, General Electric and General Motors is studying the NII implications for a particular MAD system "Affordable Systems Optimization Process" (ASOP) |
Interesting parameters are that next major aircraft to be built could involve:
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In spite of the large and very succesful national activity, simulation will not be a large "real world" sales opportunity for MPP's
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However some areas of national endeavor will be customers for MPP's used for simulation
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Some areas which may adopt HPCC for simulation in relatively near future
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The role of HPCC in Manufacturing is quite clear and will be critical to
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On the other hand for
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Return on Investment Unclear:
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| The Industry is in a very competitive situation and focussed on short term needs |
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In March 1994 Arpa Meeting in Washington, Boeing(Neves) endorsed parallel databases and not parallel simulation
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Aerospace Engineers are just like University Faculty
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There is perhaps some general decline of Supercomputer Industry
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| ASOPnet -- physical network infrastructure -- presumably constructed from linking existing infrastructure from government and commercial sources |
Needed general capabilities (WebWindows) of NII and
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| including some such as metacomputing and configuration control where ASOP has driving requirements |
| ASOP Information Infrastructure (AII) which are NII services tailored and presented for ASOP |
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Link Collaboraters by communication system ASOPnet -- a microcosm of the NII
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| Use COTS (World wide Web) Software and Systems where-ever possible and so physical network should not have special features not supported by "Open NII" |
| Security (proprietary data) needs to be determined |
| Parts should have performance (ATM ) needed by high speed distributed applications |
| Appropriate database/storage and compute servers needed on ASOPnet |
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| Evaluate, Install, Maintain, Enhance as necessary WebWindows and base NII Services |
| Security -- special needs of large data transfer of proprietary information |
| Object and Database services including access, search, dissemination and especially configuration control |
| Collaboration services including linking of people, computation and databases in configuration controlled systems engineering environment |
| Metacomputing services linking many thousands of programs (with wrappers/agents to allow re-use of existing code) in distributed groups as needed for specific multi-disciplinary optimizations |
