app#42
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> QUESTIONS
>
> 1. Each ImmersaDesk will have at least 100 Mb/s individually switched IP
>    connectivity to NCSA's core network, and from there to the vBNS and the
>    outside world. Multicast will also be provided to other vBNS sites.
>
>    Is this sufficient for your application's networking needs?
>    If not, please explain.

	Yes.

>    Will one network connection be sufficient?
>    If not, how many will be needed?

	No, we will need at least two network connections and possibly three.
	In addition to the machine  driving the IDESK, we need one machine
	as a sound server and possibly another for telephony.

>    If your application will do point-to-point communication, what other
>    sites will you need connectivity to?

	We will need to connect to BU and NCSA. All connections are
	point-to-point.

>    If your application requires multicast, what other sites will you
>    need connectivity to?

> 2. If your application is an ImmersaDesk application, what will the
>    frame rate be on the following hardware:
>
>    Octane
>      Irix 6.4, dual R10K cpus, MXi graphics, 256 MB RAM
>
>    Onyx
>      Irix 6.2, four R4400 CPUs, 256 MB RAM,
>      RE2 graphics (with two RM5s of texture memory)
>
>    Onyx
>      Irix 6.2, four R10K cpus, 256 MB RAM,
>      IR graphics (DG4-2 with two RM64s of texture memory)
>
>    Onyx2
>      Irix 6.4, two R10K cpus, 256 MB RAM,
>      IR graphics (DG4-2 with two RM64s of texture memory)

	Since we don't have most of the machines listed, it is hard to say. We
	are barely getting acceptable frame rates (10-15 fps) on our 2
	processor, R8000-based Onyx with an RE-2. We can effectively use 4-6
	processors, so our machine of choice from the list avove is the 4
	R10K processor Onyx/IR. 256MB of memory is awfully slim for us.
	We would certainly prefer 1GB.

> 3. Beyond a standard SGI (as listed above) running an ImmersaDesk, does your
>    application require any other type of machine/OS. such as a SUN, PC,
>    or Macintosh?
>
>    If so, what machine/OS is needed? Can you supply it if needed?

	No.

> 4. An ImmersaDesk will be available as a large-format, passive display
>    device capable of displaying output from both SGIs and PCs.
>
>    If applicable, does your application require any other type of display
>    device? If so, please describe.
>

	As mention above we need 1 or 2 additional workstations, an Indy to
	run the sound-server and possibly one other SGI workstation (either
	an O2 or Indy).

> 5. Does your application require more than 500 MB of local disk space?
>    If so, how much local disk space does it need?

	Our current estimate is 1GB.

> 6. Does your application require a telephone on the demo show floor?
>    Will it require more than one telephone line? If so, how many?

	One telephone line would be exceedingly useful.

> 7. Each ImmersaDesk machine will have the following software installed:
>
>    C/C++   (7.1 or 7.2)
>    F77/90  (7.1 or 7.2)
>
>    CAVE, pfCAVE Libs  (2.6)
>    CAVERN
>    MPI
>    NEXUS/GLOBUS
>    NCSA vss and sound lib
>
>    CaseVision
>    CosmoPlayer  (1.0.2)
>    CosmoWorlds
>    Java Development environment (SGI's JDK)
>    Inventor
>    Performer  (2.1 or 2.2)
>
>    GNU tools (gmake, gzip, emacs/xemacs)
>    Habanero
>    Multicast tools (sdr, vic, vat)
>    Netscape Communicator
>
>    Does your application require any additional software? If so, please list.
>    Can you provide it along with suitable licenses, if needed?

	We would like the option of running the back-compatible tracker
	(track_bc). We are currently running pfCAVE Libs v2.5.6. We are
	hoping to move to 2.6 before the demonstration.

> 8. Beyond a standard SGI (as listed above) running an ImmersaDesk,
>    does your application require any auxiliary computing resources *not*
>    on the show floor (eg. remote servers or supercomputers)?
>
>    If so, what resources do you need?
>    Have you made the necessary arrangements for them?

	We will be using O2000 servers at BU and/or NCSA. I have an account
	at NCSA which I have been using for testing and can use for the demos,
	assuming the standard NCSA machines (Modi4, in particular) will be
	available to us during the demos.

> 9. Beyond a standard ImmersaDesk configuration, does your application
>    require any additional input/output devices?
>
>    If so, what are they? Can you provide them?
>    What is needed to connect them to an ImmersaDesk?

	No.

10. Does your application use the NCSA 'vss' sound server?

>     Does your application require the use of a dedicated Indy as a
>     sound server?

	Yes.

>     Does your application do ImmersaDesk-to-ImmersaDesk communication
>     and require a corresponding audio connection?

	Yes. We will do this either on the Indy sound server or on a separate
	workstation in the room. The audio out needs to feed into our audio
	gear (see below).

>     If your application is a non-VR presentation, does it need amplification?
>     What other audio requirements do you have?

	We need some specialized sound equipment which we will supply. This
	will include 4-8 speakers on stands, MIDI synthesizer, MIDI mixer
	etc. We will need some time to get this all set-up. We need the
	audio and MIDI outputs on the Indy to connect to our audio gear.

> 11. Does your application use the standard ImmersaDesk VR tracker daemon?
>     If not, which tracker daemon does it use?

	We would like the option of using track_bc.