Journal #6365 by Tito

Notewell

Commented 14 years ago2010-01-31 22:02:51 UTC Comment #59803

And why do they want to use PS3s instead of a real supercomputer?
It's not like they actually care about the enviroment.

Soup Miner

Commented 14 years ago2010-01-31 22:06:29 UTC Comment #59794

PS3s have become popular as servers. I guess they're pretty cost effective.

Alabastor_Twob

Commented 14 years ago2010-01-31 22:26:32 UTC Comment #59798

I don't see how that's a problem. It's cheaper than a proper supercomputer, and the experiment probably isn't important enough to use a real supercomputer that might be needed for something else. Plus, the technology that they're researching could have quite a lot of applications.

Tito

Commented 14 years ago2010-01-31 22:28:04 UTC Comment #59801

My guess is, they must have gone directly to Sony so they can get a sweet volume discount on their wholesale purchase. But then again, knowing how it is with the federal government and big business, I won't be surprised if Sony charged the U.S. Air Force over $1,000 for each PS3.

You know, this reminds me of a story from several years ago about some university in the U.S. that hooked up in the same way several hundred of the top of the line Macs of that time, to create a "Super Mac".

hlife_hotdog

Commented 14 years ago2010-02-01 01:50:02 UTC Comment #59797

Hehe...Super PS3...I want one =D

Tito

Commented 14 years ago2010-02-01 02:38:44 UTC Comment #59802

With what hlife_hotdog said in mind, let's do some math here:

Let's assume the PS3's in question are the 120GB models that retail for about $300, okay? Now, the article says they will start with 1,700 PS3 units, but will eventually number well over 2,000 PS3's. So, since we don't know the exact final number of PS3's to be used, let's just then stick to the nice round middle number of 2,000 PS3's.

2,000 X $300 = $600,000

So my question is, does anybody here have over a quarter of a million dollars to spare?

And another thing.......can you imagine the awesome frame rate that could be achieved on any game regardless the number of players on screen? It gives me goosebumps just by thinking of it.