Thoughts and opinions...need advice!

[digital_exhaust]

Hola! Saludo!! Whatever!!!

Well... got a question. Need some opinions. Hey! Maybe I'll even see if I can figure out how to make a poll!! Never in all of my 6,000 something posts have I tried... might be fun.

Anyhooo.. My borg consists of nothing but the classic client. At home, I have the option of setting up around 4 or 5 headless boxens running the classic client. Now, here's the thing...

Is it even worth it anymore? I have, for a very long time, been a pretty big supporter of the classic client, figuring that if there are still wu's being sent out, they probably needed to be completed. But with the HUGE amounts of work the GPU clients are doing, I have started to wonder.

See, I have never folded for the points, it's always been about the results... so that's not the issue. It's just I don't see the point in crunching units that aren't really going to do any good...

What do ya'll think??

 

[Axdrenalin]

I have one machine that I still run the classic client on. It's a P4 at 3Ghz, but it seems to take forever to complete a WU, and by forever I mean 48 hours worth 119 points maybe. That being said, I don't really think it's worth messing with them anymore, because my Linux VM run SMP worth 1800 or so and complete in 18.5 hours, and I'm getting GPU units that complete in 70 minutes and are worth 353 points...

So, go figure. I think if the classic WU's are still needed then they need to rework the points system to make them more valuable to the people burning their equipment and electricity. Right now there is no way they're really worth messing with.

 

[alan2308]

I'm of the opposite view point. After the whole GPU1 fiasco, I will always have that nagging question in the back of my mind as to the scientific value of the SMP, GPU2 or PS3 work. And scientifically speaking, the CPU client is still the bread and butter of F@H.

The only question really is how much do you want to pay a month for electricity to run your boxen. If you can handle the electric bill, then run them. Otherwise, give them to friends/family with a preinstalled F@H client and let them run it.

 

[Pocatello]

Hola! Saludo!! Whatever!!!

Thoughts and opinions...need advice!

What do ya'll think??

You want my advice?

More beer and tamales!

And some popcorn!

 

[Tigerbiten]

The classic client has a place.
Work borgs.
That is, Borgs where you cannot risk anything going wrong.
But why look after over 100 borgs when you can get the same PpD from 1 multi SMP+GPU folder.

So its now been over a year since I last used it.

Luck ............

 

[metallicafan]

I dont think its real useful for any one person to have a army of computers running the classic client, but I think if people have one or two that is still helping the cause. I would agree with your original comment digi - If they are still sending out WUs then they still need to be completed.

Wasnt there an article or post or something from the admins that stated that they used the classic client to double check some results that they had gotten from a batch of GPU2 projects?

Still useful for science just not the best bang for buck as far as points go.

 

[capreppy]

I gotta believe it is still worth running if WU are still being put out for it. When the WUs dry up, then it will obviously no longer be worth running.

I don't have any older CPUs (they have all been given away to family as most were significant heat generators and I live in TX and don't need the help). My oldest CPU as of right now is a Q6600 that is in my study lab.

 

[Kowan]

Some don't have the luxury of running anything but the classic client. They still are completing wu's and adding what they can to help find a cure.

I'm not running any but they still have value. I know my PS3 isn't adding much points, but it still folds 24/7.

 

[jcretask]

They are not worth leaving a computer on just to fold. However like others have said, if theres a computer on and it can only run clasic then it is worth it. Or if its not on all the time so SMP or GPU clients can meet their deadlines is another good place for the clasic.

 

[jws2346]

They are not worth leaving a computer on just to fold. However like others have said, if theres a computer on and it can only run clasic then it is worth it. Or if its not on all the time so SMP or GPU clients can meet their deadlines is another good place for the clasic.

Thanks jcretask I think you said it all in a "nut shell" (or something like that )

DCing for the CURE

 

[Zero82z]

The classic client is the only one reliable enough for a "set it and forget it" situation, which makes it really the only client suitable for borgs. So it's definitely still useful. I've got it running on my single borged machine.

And I'll always have a soft spot for the classic client considering I used it exclusively for nearly four years before I bought my current rig.

 

[AParsh335i]

Tricky question.

 

[digital_exhaust]

You want my advice?

More beer and tamales!

And some popcorn!

Well duh.....

As far as reliability is concerned, tell me about it. I haven't seen my borged boxen for about five months and all of them are still crunching away... pretty much every point I've turned in over the last six months...

Right now, power isn't an issue, so I suppose I'll throw a couple headless clients on for the CC and we'll see how things go... should be interesting.

Thanks for the advice so far, keep it up!!

Beers and Tamales... and Fold On!!

 

[flogge]

My understanding on the value of GPU2 is that it works great for quick results and test simulations of proteins. They have short deadlines because they need results fast so they can see if they are onto something. The frequency that we see new types of WUs for GPU2 seems to support my views. However a GPU shader core is not very complex which makes it harder to utilize for complex problems.

The Windows SMP client is a great workhorse and can handle anything they throw at it whereas the GPU doesn't always jive with a new problem easily. I see SMP type clients overtaking the role of the classic client when it becomes stable enough under windows to be as reliable as the classic client is now. Windows SMP is still a beta client and has been for some time.

The Linux client is a combination uniproc/SMP which will run SMP if you have a 64bit OS. This is the only fully released non-beta high performance CPU client. The stability and performance of this client is what drives many users to use Linux VMs under windows.

The Windows classic client will eventually have an SMP mode integrated into it similar to the way the Linux client works. I'm not a programmer so I have no idea what stands in the way of this evolution.

 

[APOLLO]

I still have a lot of standard clients scattered around my small farm, and now with the return of the bonus WUs, it's a lot more worth running.