The Ultimate Playstation 3 Project: NC State University Associate Professor Creates World's First Academic Computing Cluster Using PS3s

Along with the recent surge in gaming technology, manufacturers have produced top-of-the-line gaming consoles with enhanced strategic game-play and ground-breaking visuals. The Nintendo console of the 1990s appears extremely primitive when compared to its newest descendant, the Nintendo Wii. Likewise, Sony currently markets its third console in its popular Playstation family. However, as science and technology continue to play vital roles in everyday life, these gaming consoles have grown to feature DVD players, Blu-Ray disc players, Ethernet networking ports, and even hard drives comparable to many desktop personal computers.

The premium version of the Playstation 3 console packs much more than the gaming technology of just a few years ago. With a 60GB upgradeable hard drive, Blu-Ray drive, HDMI port, Bluetooth controller, Ethernet networking card, chrome trim, built-in Wi-Fi, USB ports, and flash card readers, the console seems to be latest luxury sports-car of the gaming industry! With a suggested retail price at $599 per unit, many videogame fanatics can barely imagine owning one or two of the consoles. But imagine purchasing eight Playstation 3 consoles and constructing the motherload of computing systems!

In Raleigh, North Carolina, North Carolina State University associate professor of computer science Dr. Frank Mueller harnessed the power of the Playstation 3 console to construct the first computing cluster made with PS3 consoles designed for academic purposes. This supercomputing cluster of Playstation consoles not only costs less than some modern desktops on the market at around $5,000, but it also allows for very efficient performance when crunching numbers for academic research.

According to Dr. Mueller, "Clusters are not new to the computing world... Places like Google, the stock market, automotive design companies and scientists use clusters, but this is the first academic computing cluster built from Playstation 3s."

After spending hours shopping for the eight gaming consoles, Mueller assumed his role as a "Computing Frankenstein" to turn the eight individual units into one potent cluster of powerful computing capabilities. Officially born on January 3, 2007, the Playstation 3 cluster still fails to rank among the world's top 500 fastest computers with its restrictions, including networking limits, memory, and single-precision potential. Even so, the Linux operating system can be installed on the system, along with an IBM-generated programming environment to allow for programming the Cell processor of the console. Containing six operational cores per PS3 unit, the total cluster of eight machines pack a powerful punch with 64 logical processors.

Used for academic research and other educational and informational purposes, the Playstation 3 cluster currently assists NCSU computer science faculty and staff with teaching operating systems courses, and Mueller projects courses in parallel systems, compilers, and, yes, even gaming will likely be added to the cluster's academic repertoire. The Playstation 3 cluster engineered at North Carolina State University exemplifies the daily power and influence of harnessing consumer technology in the 21^st century.