Abstract * Foil Index for this file
See also color IMAGE
Given by Geoffrey C. Fox at Several Presentations on September 95. Foils prepared 15 Sept 1995
Abstract * Foil Index for this file
See also color IMAGE
| This material prepared for the HPDC-95 Tutorial and Presentations on the role of the NII in future manufacturing (ASOP) covers the following issues |
| Expected evolution of Web PC and Workstation technologies |
| High Performance multimedia and Web Servers |
| The concept of the the all-encompassing WebWindows Environment |
| The integration of databases with the Web |
| WebTop Productivity Tools |
| The role of various classes of NII services and technologies in 7 application (National Challenge) areas |
This table of Contents
Abstract
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| Geoffrey Fox |
| NPAC |
| Syracuse University |
| 111 College Place |
| Syracuse NY 13244-4100 |
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| This material prepared for the HPDC-95 Tutorial and Presentations on the role of the NII in future manufacturing (ASOP) covers the following issues |
| Expected evolution of Web PC and Workstation technologies |
| High Performance multimedia and Web Servers |
| The concept of the the all-encompassing WebWindows Environment |
| The integration of databases with the Web |
| WebTop Productivity Tools |
| The role of various classes of NII services and technologies in 7 application (National Challenge) areas |
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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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| 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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| 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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| Each of three components (network connections, clients, servers) has capital value of order $10 to $100 Billion |
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InfoVision is ultimate "client-server" application
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Democracy on the NII (Gore)
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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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| 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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All the News and Sports Archives of Reuters correspond to about 25,000 hours of information
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Estimate similar storage needs for:
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| Total storage about 100 terabytes today |
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| Geoffrey Fox explaining InfoVision to Mrs Clinton |
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There is a larger Better Quality Image available |
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| Dr. Smith of SUNY Health Science Center demonstrates Telemedicine over ATM in area of pediatric cardiology |
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There is a larger Better Quality Image available |
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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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| Web browser becomes now a 'hot' desktop application. Software vendors are working on embedded Web support within conventional desktop applications. |
| WebWindows is an opposite idea. |
| WebWindows is an idea that the Web itself will evolve towards the leading computing paradigm integrating desktop computing and Internet services. |
| Evolving Web browsers, cooperating with evolving Web servers will gradually take over the role and functionality of many other desktop applications. |
| A "Virtual Microsoft", i.e. the Internet Hackers' community will collectively develop WebWindows as an open, public and modular distributed operating system for the Internet. |
| These COLLECTIVE efforts will lead to phase transition taking passive Mosaic/HTTP to full blown OS of immense power |
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| Technically, WebWindows has some aspects similar to X Windows (client-server) and NeWS/Display PostScript (interpreted). However, the Web model is higher level than X and simpler/more open than NeWS/DPS. |
| Clients interprets MIME, servers interpret HTTP. Both protocols are currently very simple and extensible -- MIME via new types, HTTP via new methods. These extensions is a slow process, under control of Internet RFC and STD documents. |
Additionally, both clients and servers functionality is extensible via CCI (Common Client Interface) and CGI (Common Gateway Interface) mechanisms. These extensions are MUCH easier and safer than changing existing conventional operating systems and so useful for prototyping and experimenting with new ideas.
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| CCI is still platform-dependent and not a finished design. CGI is rather stable (although only ~1 year old!) and the base of most current dynamic extensions (including NPAC work on WebTools). |
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| We refer to X Windows, NeWS and Display PostScript as to the first generation distributed interpretative client-server models. |
| We view the current WWW as the second generation technology -- it is client-multiserver and based on very simple telescripting (HTTP/MIME scripted or interpreted communication). |
| With dynamic Web extensions, we are now starting the third generation systems which will be multiclient-multiserver (collaboratory), will include agents (such as Telescript, Safe-Tcl) and will evolve towards increased interactivity and televirtuality. |
| In fact, the most attractive current MIME extension effort -- VRML (Virtual Reality Markup Language) develops 3D extension of HTML in terms of some ~40 new data structures (VRML Nodes) that will offer soon (mid '95) "3D clickable imagemaps" composed of distributed objects that are downloaded/telescripted and locally rendered in the real-time. |
| WebWindows will allow integrated support of National and Grand Challenges and so give HPCC large pervasive opportunities. |
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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. |
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| 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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| Implements the "Viable Base" Enterprise Model of HPCC Software identified in Pasadena2 workshop |
| This will allow good programming tools to be developed and mnaintained as larger enough base to support software industry |
| Implements a powerful software engineering framework for parallel computing by integrating parallel programming with the World Wide Web Productivity Tools |
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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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| 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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| 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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| Latest results prepared for HPDC95 Tutorial August 1,1995 |
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| A sample VRML page produced by Black Hole Simulation group at NCSA and displayed by SGI WebSpace, cooperating with Netscape Navigator. |
| A set of 3D spaces related to gravity research is represented as Netscape icons and linked to the corresponding VRML worlds. |
| WebSpace window displays one of these spaces -- a space-time diagram for two black hole collision ('Pair of Pants' diagram) |
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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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| 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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| NPAC WebTools is a CGI-extended Web server that offers a HyperWorld based metaphor for organized content authoring and navigation, currently implemented in terms of the following tools: HyperWorld Manager, HyperWorld Navigator, On-Line HTML Editor, WebMail and CASE tools for HySource Worlds authoring. |
HyperWorld Manager offers database management support for the server document tree, integrated with browser GUI tools for remote file/document and directory/folder handling (create, destroy, copy etc.). The model assures concurrency control, atomicity and integrity of the document datatbase.
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HyperWorld Navigator offers a consistent navigation metaphor.
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| On-Line HTML Editor offers remote authoring support for documents, created by the HyperWorld Manager. |
WebMail offers the Web interface to the MH mailing system and initial support for collaborative forums.
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CASE tools offer disciplined WebTools software development environment, integrated with the HyperWorld database.
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| Latest results prepared for HPDC95 Tutorial August 1,1995 |
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| Latest results prepared for HPDC95 Tutorial August 1,1995 |
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From foilset WebTools (Spring '95) |
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Associated Foil can be found |
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Postscript also Available |
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From foilset WebTools (Spring '95) |
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Associated Foil can be found |
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Postscript also Available |
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From foilset WebTools (Spring '95) |
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Associated Foil can be found |
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Postscript also Available |
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| NPAC WebTools can be viewed as an instance of Web Productivity Tools (navigators, editors, databases), developed collectively by the Internet/Web community. |
| We view these emergent open tools as central to develop and maintain Web based World-Wide Metacomputing. |
| Software exchange and integration tools are urgently needed. Without it, 'pervasive Web' will become soon too complex to maintain and will be dominated by closed corporate products. |
| One such attempt is made by the HySource CASE package in NPAC WebTools. So far, we developed HyPerl World (Screen 3) of the WebTools source code and we now integrate it with Java (Screen 4) in the form of HyJava World (Screen 5) |
| These tools will evolve towardsVirtual Software Laboratory -- a collective distributed CASE framework for virtual corporation of WebWork developers. |
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| HyPerl World page, generated automatically by the WebTools CASE package, and integrating documentation with the source. |
| More generally, we call by HySource the hypertext documentation with navigable source code included. |
| Function calls and external variable references are 'blue' and point to the corresponding HySource pages. |
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Java documentation shares some common aspects with HySource,
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| Java and VRML CASE support will be included as next steps in WebTools CASE package. |
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| Latest results prepared for HPDC95 Tutorial August 1,1995 |
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| static, browser-oriented client |
| data (information in a narrow sense) repository |
| tedious to manage and update (HTML) files on the server side |
| difficult to keep most updated data automatically --- modifies usually done by a human using word processor or editing tools |
A plain UNIX file system only supports primitive functions such as open,read/write and close.
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| a non-universal, non-portable remote networking access to database server |
| plain-text oriented, no multimedia |
| nonstandard front-end browser (most are line-based) |
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| a powerful backend text searching engine supporting complex queries |
| an efficient, reliable and sophisticated data management system supporting representation and organization of logical relationships among information entities |
| a dynamic data processing engine, provided with opportunity for optimized searching performance in large information systems |
| a time-dimension added HTML programming engine (see case study examples later) |
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| a transparent networking interface for remote database server access |
| a universal GUI-based search interface for hypertext-added data retrieval |
| a truly globally-shared data system for maximum information dissemination |
| an integrated multi-media information system |
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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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| WebWindows is an interactive multiclient-multiserver technology. When several clients connect to a single CGI extended dynamic Web server, they can share this server resources, thereby creating the notion of a virtual collaboratory space -- we call it WebSpace. |
| Dynamic CGI extensions by a collection of Perl packages as in current WebTools is not convenient for collaboratory environments. We plan instead to combine these packages to form another server -- here we call it simply CGI server. |
| CGI server maintains session internals, manages users and their databases, and interacts via the CGI protocol with the Web server. |
| In a multiserver environment, WebSpace itself is distributed which raises the issue of scalable collaboratory technologies. |
| We plan to address it in terms of scalable family of CGI servers, conceptually linked via the Hyperworld navigation metaphor and technically interacting via suitable agent protocols. |
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| We recently proposed a WebSpace to cooperate with and provide universal access Web interfaces to Argonne's LabSpace -- a high-end hypermedia collaboratory environment for advanced science research. |
| In this project, we plan to explore sequential and parallel CGI servers and E-Mail+MIME agents as a base computation and communication platform for scalable virtual communities. |
| Eventually, each NII user/desktop will run a dynamic Web+CGI server. Next, there will be group servers, project servers, institution servers, community network servers and so on. Designing appropriate scalable agents protocols for such hierarchies is a challenging and non-trivial task. We plan to address a restricted problem of scalable WebMail support for interactive forums, ranging from individuals to domains to the LabSpace size. |
| NPAC will contribute two new user domains to the scientific community of the LabSpace: education via the Living textbook project and small business via the InfoMall project. |
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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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| 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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| More generally, this Middleware Layer 2 will be rather complex and populated by a spectrum of proprietary (e.g. Telescript, ScriptX, CORBA) and public (e.g. Perl, Tcl, Harvest, Java, VRML) scripted languages, brokers, agents, wrappers, mediators etc. see Screens |
| In WebWork, we refer collectively by WebScript to the whole ensable of these models. |
| At the current stage, it isn't clear if WebScript as a common intermediate language is a practical concept. An alternative is to live in the multi-language Web medium and emply interoperability agents to translate between various protocols. |
| Practical initial implementation platfrom for this dual approch is provided in WebWork by an integrated collection of WebTools CASE tools based HySource Worlds for various languages. |
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Application Specific NII Specific Services for
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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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