GPU = The Next Great Cruncher

[Nflight]

While a lot of us are reading news articles of what really is pushing this new envelope of crunching down a new path most are not sure of what GPU crunchers really are.

GPUs are Video Adapters that can crunch data independently of the normal cpu's. Thus freeing up normal everyday working space and computing power while your unused Video Processor is crunching on data for the AMD Users Team benefit.

There are two main companies involved in this arena Nvidia and ATI.
Alas the Video Card: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_card

Currently these are the main contenders in the GPU crunching arena using a form factor called CUDA: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CUDA
Please note CUDA is only available on Nvidia cards.

Supported GPUs

A table of devices officially supporting CUDA (Note that many applications require at least 256 MB of dedicated VRAM).[9]
See the Comparison of Nvidia graphics processing units for more information.


Todays new news for upcoming CES show in Las Vegas is this:

http://www.dailytech.com/NVIDIA+GeFo...ticle13726.htm

[Brucifer]

It's a good thing that they make flexible covered keyboards cause I've been looking at the latest Nvida GeForce entries, the 285 and the 295, and about the only thing I managed to do was slobber all over the keyboard. That was until I noticed the power consumption specially on the GTX295. If the price of a BFG Tech GTX295 at $499 at Newegg isn't enough to send shudders through your wallet, by the time you buy that 1100watt P/S to go with it, your wallet should definitely be in pain... and I'd imagine that would be followed by that months' following electrical bill. And they say they run hot, which I sure wouldn't doubt one bit. But I just bet it would be pure heaven to sit and watch one of those chewing up the RC5 (or whatever) work units!!! But I'll bet it won't be long and all the uber geek Big Boy's will have a couple of those in their crunch box....

Sigh.............

[Beerknurd]

I just now got my first quad core... Sheesh... I am behind the times... lol

[Bender10]

Not really Beer...With your quad and an 8800GT (or even a lower end GPU), you would be able to do quite well.

A lot of people are running low end gpu's on Folding and RC5, and doing just fine. But as Brucifer mentions, the cost of (hi performance) GPU ownership comes at a price...

[liuqyn]

one of our teammates is running a GTX295 on GPUGrid, putting out some serious credits, too.

[Brucifer]

one of our teammates is running a GTX295 on GPUGrid, putting out some serious credits, too.

hm.... who might that be??? Who's the rich one around here????

And what's the real power consumption on that puppy?? What kind of PS is feeding it?

edit: And how come when I click on that url above it shows a certain person named Curt with a 260?????

[liuqyn]

must have moved his cards around, I guess

[mitchellds]

I just ordered a EVA GeForce GTX 285 that I'm waiting for the nice UPS woman to deliver.

She always looks so sexy running toward me carrying a NewEgg package under her arms.

[Nflight]

Does she look like this?

[Bender10]

Nope, mine's a brunette.....;)