| What will I gain from this? Hands-on experience in coding for the Cell processor with experts from IBM, Mercury, and RapidMind at your side. No question is too dumb, no challenge too great. Bring an application or three, optimism, and enthusiasm. In addition, all attendees will receive a "Hack-a-thon 2007" T-shirt and Yellow Dog Linux coffee mug. |
Who is attending? Individuals attending from Argonne National Lab, Los Alamos National Lab, Georgia Southern University, UC Boulder, Colorado State, Indiana University, Purdue, UCLA, UCAR/NCAR, Boeing-SVS, Terra Soft Solutions, IBM Research Labs, Mercury Computer Systems, and RapidMind. |
| What is the working environment? Hosted in the new Sony HPC cluster room at Terra Soft's Loveland, Colorado headquarters, the hack-a-thon will be maintained in a very casual combination of classroom and family living room where individuals are encouraged to find a cozy corner, snuggle up with their own laptop and loaned PS3, and get to work. Lunch is served every day. Not just any lunch, but a fully home cooked catered experience including home baked breads and desserts. Juice, coffee, and cider will be served all day, every day, along side healthy snacks. Terra Soft promises an exceptional, memorable experience. |
All work and no play? NO WAY! Terra Soft is supplying a rotation of PS3 games, Foosball, warm beverages and juice, a home-cooked lunch each day, skiing, sledding, indoor rock climbing, and a closing dinner Thursday evening. Skiing is as close at 2 hours, rock climbing indoors or out, and Rocky Mountain National Park just 29 miles from the Terra Soft front door. |
| What is provided? What do I need to bring? Terra Soft will provide direct access to Sony, Mercury, and IBM Cell systems. We will do our best to provide a PS3 for each participant who desires to work on a Sony product, and no more than 3-4 persons per Cell blade (as this higher performance system can handle a heavier load). Participants should bring their own laptop with both wireless card and ethernet jack. |
What is the cost? 100% free, made possible by Terra Soft, IBM, Mercury, RapidMind, and Sony Computer Entertainment. You need only cover your travel, hotel, and local transportation. Participants may elect to purchase and take with them the same PS3 used for the course of the event for $650.00. |
Winter on the Front Range! As you may have heard, we are experiencing an unusual and very beautiful winter full of snow, cool days and cold nights. The way winter used to be. The daytime high can fluctuate between 20F and 40F. Nighttime lows are often in the teens. Bring warm socks and comfortable shoes for the hack-a-thon as the concrete floor of our HPC facility is a bit chilly. Bring a sweater or two and a warm cap and gloves if you are to be outdoors. Weekend adventurers should be prepared for whatever activity is desired.
