Intel iPSC
Encyclopedia
The Intel iPSC is a parallel computer. It was superseded by the Intel iPSC/2
. iPSC also more generally refers to the particular line of Intel parallel computers, which includes the iPSC/2 and the iPSC/860
. Acronym "iPSC" means "Intel Personal SuperComputer".
The iPSC/1 was introduced by Intel in 1985, and consisted of 32 to 128 nodes arranged in an ethernet
-connected hypercube. Each node had a 80286 CPU with 80287 math coprocessor, 512K of RAM
, and eight ethernet ports (seven for the hypercube
, and one to talk to the cube manager). The system was hosted by a PC
running Xenix
, the "cube manager".
The basic models were the iPSC/d5 (five-dimension hypercube, 32 nodes), iPSC/d6 (6d, 64 nodes), and iPSC/d7 (7d, 128 nodes). Extra memory (iPSC-MX) and vector processor
(iPSC-VX) models were also available, in the three sizes.
iPSC/1 was the first commercial parallel computer.
Intel iPSC/2
The Intel iPSC/2 is a parallel processor computer produced in 1987. It was the successor of the Intel iPSC and was superseded by the Intel iPSC/860....
. iPSC also more generally refers to the particular line of Intel parallel computers, which includes the iPSC/2 and the iPSC/860
Intel iPSC/860
The Intel iPSC/860 was a massively parallel supercomputer launched by Intel in 1990. It followed the Intel iPSC/2 and was superseded by the Intel Paragon. The iPSC/860 consisted of up to 128 processing elements connected in a hypercube topology, each element consisting of an Intel i860 or Intel 386...
. Acronym "iPSC" means "Intel Personal SuperComputer".
The iPSC/1 was introduced by Intel in 1985, and consisted of 32 to 128 nodes arranged in an ethernet
Ethernet
Ethernet is a family of computer networking technologies for local area networks commercially introduced in 1980. Standardized in IEEE 802.3, Ethernet has largely replaced competing wired LAN technologies....
-connected hypercube. Each node had a 80286 CPU with 80287 math coprocessor, 512K of RAM
Ram
-Animals:*Ram, an uncastrated male sheep*Ram cichlid, a species of freshwater fish endemic to Colombia and Venezuela-Military:*Battering ram*Ramming, a military tactic in which one vehicle runs into another...
, and eight ethernet ports (seven for the hypercube
Hypercube
In geometry, a hypercube is an n-dimensional analogue of a square and a cube . It is a closed, compact, convex figure whose 1-skeleton consists of groups of opposite parallel line segments aligned in each of the space's dimensions, perpendicular to each other and of the same length.An...
, and one to talk to the cube manager). The system was hosted by a PC
Personal computer
A personal computer is any general-purpose computer whose size, capabilities, and original sales price make it useful for individuals, and which is intended to be operated directly by an end-user with no intervening computer operator...
running Xenix
Xenix
Xenix is a version of the Unix operating system, licensed to Microsoft from AT&T in the late 1970s. The Santa Cruz Operation later acquired exclusive rights to the software, and eventually superseded it with SCO UNIX ....
, the "cube manager".
The basic models were the iPSC/d5 (five-dimension hypercube, 32 nodes), iPSC/d6 (6d, 64 nodes), and iPSC/d7 (7d, 128 nodes). Extra memory (iPSC-MX) and vector processor
Vector processor
A vector processor, or array processor, is a central processing unit that implements an instruction set containing instructions that operate on one-dimensional arrays of data called vectors. This is in contrast to a scalar processor, whose instructions operate on single data items...
(iPSC-VX) models were also available, in the three sizes.
iPSC/1 was the first commercial parallel computer.
Characteristics
- Dimensions (overall): 127 cm x 41 cm x 43 cm
- Speed: 2 MFLOPSFLOPSIn computing, FLOPS is a measure of a computer's performance, especially in fields of scientific calculations that make heavy use of floating-point calculations, similar to the older, simpler, instructions per second...
- Memory Width: 16-bit