Bite: The Machine that knows Everything [April 1985]
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$2.95
Vol. 9 No. 4 April 1985 |
| Hardware | Software | Reviews | The Fifth Generation | Letters |
The Machine That Knows Everything
TT(M)O unveils the CrAI IntelliCluster — a room-sized oracle that files away every encyclopaedia ever printed and answers back in plain English.
The CrAI IntelliCluster in a customer machine room: paired CrAI Supercomputers flanked by See-Dee-See storage drives and the operator’s green-screen console.
The Hardware
TT(M)O’s CrAI IntelliCluster is a complete state-of-the-art solution that allows you to discover everything known to man. It consists of a cluster of our very powerful CrAI Supercomputers.
Each Supercomputer comes with loads of ultra-high-speed primary memory SRAM coupled with DRAM memory that offers drastically higher density and smaller physical footprints. This combination of memory ensures that each supercomputer can fit in an area the size of a large room rather than requiring warehouse-size storage requirements.
These supercomputer networks are connected to Eye-Bee-Ehm 0833 high-capacity hard disk arrays and See-Dee-See Storage Module Drives, giving you out-of-this-world space to hold all of the knowledge in millions of Encyclopaedias — all accessible online without the need to load tapes.
Fast round-robin algorithms make it possible for all this technology to be used by tens of people at the same time. We have systems that can handle hundreds of console operators at the same time.
The Solution
Operators interact with all this knowledge through Deck 11-DPD Front End Processors. Sitting at their desk, they can type questions into the console. When they press the return key, the text they type is processed on the FEPs and is converted into a language the solution understands. It is not the 1’s and 0’s of the computer, but an advanced language called tokens.
Each console uses memory from the FEP to retain the exchange with the operator. This history makes it possible for the solution to understand how a topic has developed as the exchange progresses.
For example, if the operator starts a conversation about wanting information on the Chevrolet Caprice and later asks about Digital Gauge Clusters, the system knows the question is about the Caprice. It is possible to save the exchange of a conversation and revisit it days and weeks later by reloading it into FEP memory. Impressive!
In order to perform the miracles this system can do, the solution makes use of a database. We call this the database of knowledge. This database comes ready-made with the system. It was created by giving it access to all the texts that are available, converting them into our token internal language, and then filing them. It is a statistical and engineering work of art.
One optional extension — a modem unit together with primary and secondary storage units — would allow the internal database to be extended to external sources such as the ARPANET, CompuServe, Minitel, Prestel, and others. Long-distance phone charges may apply to foreign access points. These services provide data that supplements what is in our internal database, as well as information that came after we stopped the database training.
Another optional upgrade to the CrAI IntelliCluster allows you to load your data. With this module you can have the system read in your stuff and let you explore it and find mistakes and inconsistencies at the speed of electricity. We support out of the box Wang, Lanier, and IBM word-processing documents, as well as files created from Lotus 1-2-3, WordPerfect, WordStar, and dBase III. For the Apple Macintosh we read MacWrite, Microsoft Word, and Multiplan documents. We also support Electronic Mail. The list is constantly expanding, and we will soon have programs that can import files from the hundreds of IBM PC and Apple Macintosh microcomputer programs coming out every year.
The Cost
TT(M)O’s CrAI IntelliCluster is value for money right out of the box, and national and international organisations can use it to discover new ways to do business, get insight into processes that take place within their organisation, and so much more. The management of the company will be impressed and will be able to see into the future of their business. Above all, the CrAI IntelliCluster is your surest way to beat the competition and make people redundant.
It can grow with the business and can be expanded to meet growing needs. A subscription ensures that customers receive an updated database of knowledge an astonishing 6 times a year.
The smallest CrAI IntelliCluster solution can operate in 1,000 square metres of floor space and requires around 5 MW of power to run. Methane- and Diesel-powered generators are two popular options for those companies wishing to be self-sufficient, although organisations housing the solution close to a power station can come to an agreement with the company to divert power from the existing households to the new computer facility.
Access to water is another requirement. This is used to cool the computer systems. Positioning the computer facility near a water source is the ideal solution; otherwise arrangements need to be made with the water company or bore into the water table.
Occasionally locals will claim that they are negatively impacted because of the burning of fossil fuel, power consumption, noise pollution, and the occasional displacement of tenants off their land. TT(M)O can assist with dealing with local government and managing the complaints of people through all acceptable ways of aligning local government officials with the project.
A bright new dawn for knowledge: dignitaries gather for the grand opening of a CrAI IntelliCluster facility.
How to Go About It
Anyone interested should call TT(M)O and book an appointment. After a requirements analysis, the client will receive an analysis specifying the requirements to house a CrAI IntelliCluster solution.
Call TT(M)O — The Total (Machine) Organisation. Book your requirements analysis today. Long-distance and foreign access-point charges may apply. Local government liaison services available on request.
| BITE • April 1985 | Advertisement | Pages 88–89 |
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