Distributed ProcessingThis project will contribute to a major modification of the computing environment for instruction in computer science at this institution. The new equipment will replace a lab of terminals connected to an IBM 4381 mainframe by a distributed processing, resource sharing network of computer workstations. Networking has fundamentally changed the structure of computational environments. The client/server model is critical to understanding current day hardware and software issues. A shift in operating systems from MUSIC to UNIX will provide a real world computing environment with research and teaching software tools not previously available. Providing individual workstations will allow the students to experiment and investigate hardware and software issues not allowed on a multiuser mainframe system. This equipment will serve as a model for computing environments for the entire state of Arkansas.
