Deployable Visualization and Cloud Infrastructure for K-12, Research, and Collaboration

The increase in high performance and cloud computing has caused an increased amount of data that needs to be analyzed. Typical ways of viewing this data include images and graphs. When working with large data sets, standard display technologies are restrictive. This thesis will discuss the different display technologies used and developed at the University of Maine, as well as the improvements made to the existing systems.The first display is an entire system, called Dynamic Wall, that uses a server machine to create a large, high-resolution virtual desktop. Then multiple clients connect to the desktop and display a particular portion. By using existing hardware, the cost of the display is kept low. The focus will be on the improvements made to the system in order to increase the performance.The second display is a new tiled LCD wall going into the Norman Smith Hall. This new display incorporates lessons learned from the development machine at the Foster Center for Student Innovation. Changes made when planning the new display include both software and hardware.Finally, an open source cloud computing platform will be discussed. The benefits of using this system, as well as the role it can play in scientific research and collaboration will be shown.