Microsoft Corporation is known for its high performance and compliance with the demands of contemporary consumers. In this light, Microsoft has recently created a subsidiary company, Microsoft Open Technologies, which is called to develop and improve the software with the open-source code. Among other responsibilities of newly-created company, Microsoft Open Technologies is entitled with the liability to track and manage all the corporate investments directed to the open-source software sphere.



It should be stated that software with the open source code is a quite promising sphere in IT field. This is explained by the fact that such soft allows developing, changing, replenishing, and polishing the programs and applications by different users at once. This becomes possible due to the open source code available for several users simultaneously. Microsoft Open Technologies will serve also the unifying factor for the multiple companies and communities that long for cooperation with …

ASRock is going to officially introduce its two budgetary motherboards (compatible with Intel Haswell processors) in early June. Codenamed ASRock Z87 Extreme 4 and ASRock Z87 Pro 3, these products will cost around $170 and $100 correspondingly. Such attractive price makes them one of the most affordable solutions involving high-efficient CPUs of the next generation.



The more costly motherboard, Z87 Extreme 4, is known to feature only high-quality layout components, including PCB with dual copper layers, chokes with ferrite hub, and durable solid-state capacitors. This model supports DDR3 memory modules of up to 2600 MHz frequency and up to 32 GB capacity. Expansion slots consist of two PCI connectors, two PCI Express 3.0 x1 connectors, and three PCI Express 3.0 x16 connectors.


The connection of internal drives becomes possible due to the availability of eight SATA III sockets. Audio subsystem is realized with the help of 8.1-channel Creative Sound Blaster codec. External …

The most effective supercomputer is launched in China today. The system, called Sunway TaihuLight, operates locally developed processors. The ultimate Sunway TaihuLight productivity is 125 petaflops. In 2020 China plans to generate the first system in the world with a capacity overcoming one exaflops. At present the USA stays behind, however American supercomputers’ energy performance is significantly higher.



The US Department of Energy has established a $258 million grant for cost effective exaflop supermachines construction. Six American companies (IBM, Intel, AMD, Cray, HPE and NVIDIA) won it. Now they are to create an architecture, able to consume 25–30 MW at one exaflop productiveness. Such a system’s deployment is to take place in 2021. Apart from funds committed, each member company of the Exascale Computing Project program will put up its own means, constituting around 40% of DOE’s funds. Thus, the project cost will increase to $430 mln. In return, developers …