[BioDarwin] Re: [Bioclusters] Any issues porting applications to OS X?

Fri Mar 5 12:53:28 EST 2004

Chris,

I would have to agree with Chris Dagdigian's comment that if the source  
is available, Mac OS X generally makes things very easy easy to bring  
to the platform.

The is a lot of good information about the Darwin layer of the OS and  
How to bring UNIX apps to Mac OS X at the following URL:
http://developer.apple.com/documentation/Porting/Conceptual/ 
PortingUnix/index.html

More general information about Mac OS X'x UNIX layer can be found at:
http://developer.apple.com/unix/

Since you are interested in performance, you'll probably find the CHUD  
tools that Apple provides for profiling and optimization are pretty  
astounding. http://developer.apple.com/tools/performance/

There is also general performance information available at:  
http://developer.apple.com/performance/

One additional note:
Apple has been regularly hosting performance optimization kitchens  
about every month. These are limited to about 15-20 coders who spend 3  
days working with Apple engineers at the code level to squeeze as much  
performance as possible out of their code on G5. Many have walked away  
from these workshops with their apps running 6-10x faster after a few  
days work. The events are free (Apple even provides breakfast and  
lunch).

The next one on schedule was recently announced to all Apple Developer  
Connection Members for March 17th 19th in Cupertino.

You must be an ADC member to participate, but ADC online membership is  
free and highly recommended at http://developer.apple.com/membership/.  
The invite sent out is below:

> Dear Developer,
>
> The Apple Developer Connection is pleased to invite you to an
> Optimizing applications for Mac OS X and the PowerPC G5
> architecture workshop, March 17 through March 19 at the Apple
> campus in Cupertino, CA.
>
> During this workshop you will learn how to implement optimization
> techniques to improve performance in your application and utilize
> Apple's performance profiling tools. This workshop will also cover
> migrating to Xcode, Apple's integrated development environment.
> Xcode provides developers with a revolutionary approach to developer
> productivity, making it the fastest way to develop applications on
> Mac OS X.
>
> ---------------------------------
> WORKSHOP STRUCTURE AND CONTENT
> ---------------------------------
>
> This workshop is a mix of technical presentations and hands-on
> coding, giving you three days to work on your code with help from
> Apple engineers and Technology Evangelists.
>
> This workshop will be organized around the following topics:
>
> Understanding the PowerPC G5 Architecture and how to optimize your
> code using compiler flags and profiling tools:
>
> This topic will cover the architectural differences between the
> PowerPC G4 and G5 processors and explain how you can tune your
> code to take advantage of the increased memory bandwidth. PCI
> driver developers will also learn how to make changes to driver
> memory calls to handle the 64-bit addressing of the PowerPC G5
> architecture.
>
> Migrating your project to Xcode:
>
> You will learn how to use the latest features of the Xcode IDE,
> Interface Builder, and the performance tools that ship with Mac
> OS X Panther.
>
> Optimizing software for Mac OS X Panther and the Power Mac G5:
>
> Through a step-by-step tutorial project you will learn more about
> Apple's performance tools, from Shark to Spin Control, and will
> receive tips on optimizing for the PowerPC G5. We'll also show
> you how to implement multithreading in your C/C++ application.
>
> ---------------------------------
> ADVANCED PREPARATION
> ---------------------------------
> The following are required to attend this workshop:
>
> 1. Bring your source code and development tools on a FireWire drive
> or portable computer (plus any necessary cables).
>
> 2. Identify three areas in your application where you would like to
> see performance improvements
>
> 3. List the technical issues you will work on during the week, and
> any other goals you may have for this workshop.
>
> 4. You must be an ADC member to attend this workshop.
>
> Apple will provide a desktop computer for your use during the
> workshop, but you are encouraged to bring your own portable computer
> for email and other tasks. Please note that no outbound mail servers
> will be available for your use.
>
> ---------------------------------
> REGISTRATION INFORMATION
> ---------------------------------
>
> There is no enrollment fee for this workshop. Apple will provide
> lunch, and other refreshments during the day. You will assume your
> own travel and hotel expenses.
>
> Seating is limited and registration is taken on a first-come,
> first-served basis. We expect this workshop to be very popular,
> so we encourage you to reserve your space immediately by filling
> out the registration information at
> <http://adckitchen.apple.com/?Event=OptG5Cupertino_031704WS>
>
> Upon receipt of your reservation request, if space is available you
> will be sent a confirmation email with further details and lodging
> options. You are not guaranteed a place without this confirmation.
> If you have any questions, please contact us at
> <wwdrkitchens at apple.com.>
>
> We look forward to seeing you.
>
> Best regards,

---
Robert Kehrer
Science Partnership Manager
WWDR, Apple Computer
408 974 7969 (v)

On Mar 5, 2004, at 9:01 AM, biodarwin-request at bioinformatics.org wrote:

> When replying, PLEASE edit your Subject line so it is more specific
> than "Re: BioDarwin digest, Vol..."  And, PLEASE delete any unrelated
> text from the body.
>
>
> Today's Topics:
>
>    1. Any issues porting applications to OS X? (Christopher Porter)
>    2. Re: [Bioclusters] Any issues porting applications to OS X?  
> (Chris Dagdigian)
>
> --__--__--
>
> Message: 1
> To: bioclusters at bioinformatics.org, biodarwin at bioinformatics.org
> From: Christopher Porter <cporter at ohri.ca>
> Date: Fri, 5 Mar 2004 10:32:07 -0500
> Subject: [BioDarwin] Any issues porting applications to OS X?
> Reply-To: biodarwin at bioinformatics.org
>
>
> We're in the market for a cluster; most of our options are Xeon/Linux,
> but one is a cluster of XServe G5s running OS X. We're going to run
> some benchmarks to see how the performance compares, but some in of our
> group have expressed concern that 'the vast majority bioinformatics
> software is developed on Linux', and 'there may be a long time lag
> before new software is available on OS X'.
>
> I have never had problems getting software I need to run on OS X, but I
> wondered if anyone can provide me with examples of applications that
> won't run on OS X, or are Linux only (only binaries released & no
> source available).
>
> This is only one of the criteria we're judging on, and the performance
> comparison will be interesting. Any insights on this issue would be
> extremely useful, though.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Chris
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