Why, hello there. I am so happy to meet you!
Allow me to introduce myself. I am the new Worth1000. Is this your first time meeting the new me? We should get reacquainted then. So many things are different about me now. Come and learn more :).
Windows XP users: Please help me beta test plime@home, an integral part of the soon-to-launch Plime.com. Here's a faq which details exactly what plime@home is:
What is plime@home?
Plime@home is a distributed computing project similar to folding@home and SETI@home, only much less noble in scope. :) Essentially, it's a tool used to categorize and map news on the internet.
Plime@home enables anyone with a computer and some spare CPU usage to visit links submitted to us by our visitors, validate that they exist, compute and categorize them correctly and make them viewable to other visitors to plime (when it launches).
Why do you need visitors to do this?
When plime was first created we had one server handling all of the link validation. Because of the sheer volume of submitted links to us, it's simply not possible for us to validate the links ourselves anymore without thousands of decentralized computers.
Why validate links? Why not just display what is submitted to you?
The integrity of our system depends on the quality and the accuracy of our categorization methods. We have found other sites that offer similar automed services to be innacurate to the point of being useless. Because there's no cost to the users of this system (both financially and CPU usage wise), we thought it could only help the overall availability and accuracy of information on the web by doing this.
Do I gain anything by doing this?
If you have a plime account and wish to be credited, you will be credited for all links from RSS feeds that your computer has validated (this is optional) and your system level will increase accordingly. If you don't (yet) have a plime account, you will help bring plime that much closer to launch by participating (and can obviously get an account when plime does launch).
How does the program work?
We create packets of unvalidated submitted links on our central server. When plime@home begins running on your computer it checks our central server to see if there are any unvalidated packets available. If there are, then your computer will download one and begin validating it's links by visiting the link, analyzing the content and sorting it into the proper category. When the program is done validating it's packet, it will go to sleep for a few minutes.
Does this take up CPU or memory from my computer?
Not while you're working on the computer (unless you want it to). The program detects when your computer is idle (i.e. no other programs are running) and only runs then. If you turn any programs on, the program will automatically go to sleep. You can change the plime@home settings (on the settings screen) to make plime@home a low priority program on your computer (which means anything else that is running will always get priority). You should therefore never experience any performance deterioration from running this program. You can also easily pause, disable it or uninstall it at any time.
How will I know if the program is running?
It resides in your computer's system tray (i.e. near where the time appears). You can also enable monitor mode, which will display a list of visitable URLs which your computer is currently working on.
Is this program available for Mac or Linux?
Not at this time (unless you are running a Windows emulator).
What are the minimum specifications needed to run this program?
Windows 2000, XP or greater, 128mb RAM, 1mb HD space (30mb if you don't currently have the Microsoft .NET framework installed) and a persistent internet connection (i.e. not dial-up). Generally if your Windows computer is 5 years old (or less) and you are using a broadband connection, you should be fine.
Does this program contain any spyware, malware or anything else I should know about?
No! What you see is what you get. This program will always be completely clean from malicious embedded software. Additionally, we collect no personally indentifiable information from you other than your plime username (if you enable it).
Where can I download plime@home from?
http://snipurl.com/PlimeAtHome (900k download)
To install plime@home:
- Download the zipped file from the above URL and unzip the contents.
- Run the plime@home.exe file within and complete the steps in the wizard until the program is installed.
- Please send any bug reports, comments or suggestions to plime@worth1000.com, subject "plime@home: whatever".
Thanks for your interest in helping with the plime@home distributed computing project!
