Apple thinks differently in high-end computing

Circuit EC / New Delhi

Apple Computer has launched a slew of products, including Mac OS X Server version 10.3 ‘Panther’, the Xserve G5 and Xserve RAID Storage System, a 3U high-availability, rack storage system capable of delivering 3.5 terabytes of storage capacity.

The Mac OS X Server version 10.3 ‘Panther’ with over 150 new features will ship alongside the Panther server, which integrates leading open-source and open standards software with easy-to-use management tools that make it easier to deploy solutions for Mac, Windows and Linux clients. Terming it the biggest X Server release ever in Apple’s history, Phillip Schiller, senior vice president, Worldwide Product Marketing, Apple said that Panther combines the most popular solutions from the open source world. Panther will be available in Indian markets from April onwards at a retail price of Rs 23,800 for a 10-client edition and Rs 47,600 for an unlimited client edition. It is designed to work with Apple’s Xserve rack-mount server hardware and is designed to run on Power Mac G5, G4 and G3 computers with a minimum of 128 MB RAM, 4 GB of available disk space and built-in USB.

On the other hand, Xserve G5 will deliver 30 gigaflops of processing power per system, about 60 percent more that the PowerPC G5, 64-bit processor used in Virginia Tech’s cluster of Power Mac G5s—the world’s third fastest supercomputer. It includes a new system controller with up to 8 GB of PC3200 error correcting code (ECC) memory, three hot-plug Serial ATA drive modules, optional internal hardware RAID, dual PCI-X slots, supporting 133 Mhz PCI-X cards and dual onboard Gigabit Ethernet for high performance networking. It has new capabilities that make server set-up and remote management easier. There are three different configurations ranging from Rs 2,53,600 to Rs 3,17,200 and will be available in the Indian market immediately.