An introduction to network computers

Abstract

Low cost, compactness, and surprising compute power combine to make microprocessor computing elements attractive as building blocks for large parallel computers. Many applications ranging from brain simulation to real-time traffic control can be solved by using inherently parallel techniques executing on loosely-coupled ensembles of microcomputers known as network computers. However, network computer technology is still in its infancy. The main technical problems that remain to be solved relate to software control in distributed operating systems. The MICRONET network computer at SUNY/Stony Brook is being built as a testbed laboratory to experiment with decentralized control techniques, distributed programming languages, and distributed real-time monitoring.