Research Associates: S. Markus, M. Gaitatzes
Sponsors: NSF, ARPA
Web //ELLPACK is a World Wide Web server that provides a sophisticated problem solving environment for partial differential equations (PDEs). It incorporates over 100 solvers of various types which cover all the common PDE applications in 2 and 3 dimensions. Web //ELLPACK is a subset of Parallel ELLPACK in that not all the solvers are included and it is an extension of Parallel ELLPACK in that it allows for web based use. Parallel ELLPACK is an existing problem solving environment that is now in alpha testing. A prototype of Web //ELLPACK is now operational but its network performance is not yet satisfactory and its software generality is too limited (it now requires the user to have an X server).
A user on the net accesses Web //ELLPACK and the user interface is exported back. This interface is implemented in a net infrastructure code (e.g., Java from Sun) so it can run on an Internet connected machine. This interface is large but still a tiny fraction of the entire Web //ELLPACK system. The user formulates the PDE application using the interface and then it is solved at the server site. The server, in turn, accesses other servers (e.g., parallel machines) on the net during the solution process. The results are then returned to the user.
