What ever happened to Tandem and NonStop OS 2107

ASCI-Q (the 8,192 processor Alpha system) is an HP SC-45. Most of the top computers on the www.top500.org list are built by the companies that make the chip; I don't recall DEC doing anything in that vein, but the (mega)multi-processor fad(?) didn't really start 'til '97 or '98ish. Before that it was mostly Cray with occasional one-offs by Big Blue.

So... what's a "supercomputer" ?

(IMHO) Boewulf clusters (cluster of cheap motherboards bound by Ethernet) don't count; for some non-critical applications they may be cheaper per processing unit but IMHO maintenance costs and downtime make them unsuitable for anything outside a CS lab or enthusiast's garage. (Right off the bat if you've gotta rely on interconnection why aren't you using TokenRing instead of Ethernet?)

A supercomputer is one that consists of at least one high-end industrial-strength processor combined with top-of-line supporting technologies, initial-price-be-damned. So performance will overlap for some applications with non-supercomputers at the low end.

I'm not sure that was *all* Fiorina's doing; remember DEC's stuff is gonna cross swords with HP's in-house at some points. It wasn't even a merger.

rpl