News

Siggraph: Pixar animation software to get boost on Windows supercomputers

Movie studio says new RenderMan release will support HPC Server 2008, 64-bit Vista

By Eric Lai

August 13, 2008 12:00 PM ET

Computerworld - The rendering software behind such hit animated movies as The Incredibles, Ratatouille and Monsters Inc. should become even more powerful when it becomes available on Microsoft Corp.'s most advanced operating systems later this year.

At the Siggraph 2008 computer graphics conference in Los Angeles this week, Pixar Animation Studios Inc. said that a new RenderMan Pro Server 14.0 release will be the first version of the software that runs on Windows HPC Server 2008, the upcoming release of Microsoft's operating system for high-performance computing clusters and supercomputers. RenderMan 14.0 will also support the 64-bit version of Windows Vista, according to Pixar's announcement.

Pixar, which is now a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Co., was founded and long run by Apple Inc. CEO Steve Jobs. But previous versions of the 20-year-old RenderMan software have long run on Windows, going back at least to Windows NT and Windows 2000. The software also runs on Mac OS X and Linux.

RenderMan 14.0 will be able to take advantage of the larger and faster hardware supported by 64-bit Vista and HPC Server 2008, according to a blog post by Todd Needham, a senior product manager for high-performance computing at Microsoft.

"Let's put it this way, your graphics pros, your render wranglers, they just got their headroom doubled," Needham wrote.

RenderMan 14.0 is scheduled to ship in the fall, said Pixar, which sells the software to other companies in addition to using it internally. Pricing for the new release wasn't announced.

Related Blog:

Eric Lai: Pixar's rendering software — big on Linux servers, not Mac

Why didn't I note whether or not RenderMan already ran on Mac and Linux server clusters? [read more]

Windows HPC Server 2008 is in beta and is expected to ship by year's end. Known as Windows Compute Cluster Server 2003 in its previous incarnation, the operating system is designed to compete with Linux in the research and scientific computing markets.

According to Microsoft, HPC Server 2008 can support systems that scale to thousands of processor cores, and it includes faster networking capabilities and more powerful cluster management tools than prior versions offered.

Read more about Windows in Computerworld's Windows Topic Center.

Comments ()

Additional Resources

WHITE PAPER

Forrester Consulting - Optimizing Users and Applications in a Mobile World

Solving application issues over the WAN requires careful consideration. Based on their independent research, Forrester Consulting offers recommendations on how to tackle application performance issues, insufficient bandwidth and the inability to quickly restore users in a disaster.

Read now.

WHITE PAPER

Enter the Security KnowledgeVault

Security is not an option. This KnowledgeVault Series offers professional advice how to be proactive in the fight against cybercrimes and multi-layered security threats; how to adopt a holistic approach to protecting and managing data; and how to hire a qualified security assessor. Make security your Number 1 priority.

Read now.

WHITE PAPER

Cut Communications Costs Once and for All

New IP-based communications systems are being deployed by small and midsized businesses at a rapid rate. Learn how these organizations are enabling faster responsiveness, creating better customer experiences, speeding office or mobile interactions, and dramatically reducing existing communications costs.

Read now.

Top Stories

Free Insider Guide

Excel 2010 Cheat Sheet: Register for this Computerworld Insider Cheat Sheet and gain access to hundreds of premium content articles, guides, product reviews and more.

Windows White Papers

VMware View Optimization Guide for Windows 7: This document provides guidelines for configuring a standard Windows 7 image to be used within a VMware View™ environment, providing administrators with the...
Microsoft Volume Licensing Comparison - Small/Med. Business: This quick-reference document lets small and medium organizations (i.e. those with five or more devices) to easily compare the available Microsoft Volume Licensing...
Microsoft Volume Licensing Comparison - Enterprise: With this quick-reference document, you can easily compare the available Microsoft Volume Licensing programs for enterprise organizations with 250+ devices, and tailor a...
Microsoft Open Value Program Guide: In this overview, see how Microsoft Open Value provides a flexible, affordable way for small to midsize organizations (i.e. those with five or...
HP Software Licensing & Management Solutions for Microsoft: See how HP Software Licensing & Management Solutions (SLMS) can help you identify the best Microsoft licensing program for your needs, get the...

Windows Webcasts

Optimizing Networks for the Cloud: Join guest speaker, Rohit Mehra, IDC Director of Enterprise Communications Infrastructure, to explore current trends, discuss best practices for optimizing Data Center and...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 2: Designing and Deploying SQL Server on VMware vSphere: Download this webcast to learn about the design considerations for virtualizing SQL workloads, performance and scalability information and high-availability options, as well as...
Apps QuickStart Series Part 1: Designing and Deploying Exchange 2010 on VMware vSphere: Download this webcast to learn the virtual hardware design considerations for Exchange 2010, deployment using the building block approach, options for high-availability and...
Customer Spotlight: How IPC The Hospitalist Company Implemented Oracle on VMware: Have you been looking to hear about customer's experiences with the new VMware vCenter Site Recovery Manager product? View this webcast to learn...
Virtualize Business-Critical Applications with Confidence: Virtualizing business-critical applications has become a key focus for organizations as they move along their virtualization journey. With the launch of VMware vSphere®...