Remote Calculations
Like most people who use the Web, you probably use it largely for the passive retrieval of information-images, text or video. But the Web also can easily be used to gain access to computers halfway around the world and to exploit those machines to do your own data manipulation. Now, researchers at the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) have developed software that makes it easier to do just that.
NIST’s “WebSubmit” software permits users to run programs seamlessly off remote, high-performance computers. In itself, that’s nothing new. Slightly esoteric technologies such as telnet have been offering that capability for years. But the NIST software allows a user to utilize the remote machine without ever leaving the familiar graphical interface of the Web.
The user connects to the target machine through a WebSubmit server and sees the same Web browser, regardless of the operating system of the remote machine. As a result, the user can hop from system to system without having to learn the operating procedures of each high-performance computer.
Hackers shouldn’t get their hopes up too high, though. As in other systems, the user will have to be cleared for access to the remote machine.
WebSubmit is scheduled to be available to the public from NIST by year’s end.
Keep Reading
Most Popular

Why China is still obsessed with disinfecting everything
Most public health bodies dealing with covid have long since moved on from the idea of surface transmission. China’s didn’t—and that helps it control the narrative about the disease’s origins and danger.

These materials were meant to revolutionize the solar industry. Why hasn’t it happened?
Perovskites are promising, but real-world conditions have held them back.

Anti-aging drugs are being tested as a way to treat covid
Drugs that rejuvenate our immune systems and make us biologically younger could help protect us from the disease’s worst effects.

A quick guide to the most important AI law you’ve never heard of
The European Union is planning new legislation aimed at curbing the worst harms associated with artificial intelligence.
Stay connected

Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.