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Technology Stocks : Concurrent Computer (CCUR) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Goodboy who wrote (3672)	5/7/1998 9:37:00 PM
From: Nimbus	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 21143

Questions on the Residential MediaHawk system Can anyone here help answer these technical questions. The CCUR website does little to answer these fundamental questions. Perhaps someone here has looked into one or more of these issues. I have not been able to find any information on these, and CCUR investor relations will not provide this information to us: 1. The MediaHawk is advertised to use an Interactive Video Module (IVM) with one 100baseT Ethernet port that can "pump" 50 Mpeg2 streams at 3 Megabits/sec (150 Mbits/sec). How is this possible when it's common knowledge that 100baseT tends to saturate at 42Mbps w/TCP and 70 Mbps w/ UDP, putting the real stream performance at 14 to 21 per IVM best case ? 2. Considering (#1) and the 4 IVMs/cabinet advertised, it would take between 12-18 MH CPU cabinets for each 1000 streams, not including storage. DIVAs system can do 250 identical Mpeg2 streams per "module" and one of their cabinets can house 12 modules equaling 3000 streams/cabinet. With floorspace at the head-end being precious, how is the significantly larger CCUR "footprint" of 36-56 Media Hawk cabinets being perceived vs DIVA's for a typical 3000 stream service ? 3. What mechanism does CCUR use to coordinate the activity of multiple CPU cabinets, say up to the potential 56 cabinets configuration discussed in #2 ? 4. The MediaHawk residential system is advertised to use FC-AL. If we assume it is the 1 Gigabit/sec FC-AL (the best available today), tests show the best actual throughput is 640 megabits/sec which is best case just 213 Mpeg2 streams. Does this imply MOVIE CONTENT has to be replicated for every 213 streams since each user "thread" is managed by a assigned IVM and an assigned Ethernet port number ? If not, how is it done? 5. CCUR advertises no single point failures in the MediaHawk. Has anyone seen an answer to what happens if the FC-AL fails, if an IVM ethernet port fails, if a disk fails, or if a whole cabinet fails in a larger server cluster ? 6. Does the MediaHawk use TCP or UDP ? 7. Since a switched ethernet configuration is advertised, a system like a Cisco Catalyst 5000 series routers are necessary between the banks of the MediaHawks and the HFC. A 3000 stream service would require a router system with up to 224 Fast Ethernet ports (4 to each of the 56 MH cabinets) and 9 gigabit guarenteed capability. DIVA's system pumps streams directly to the HFC modulator and does the routing as an inherent step in stream set-up (Video dial-tone) within their 12 gigabit output bus structure. Ethernet is not used. Can anyone estimate the cost to establish a 9Gigabit/225 fast-ethernet port router connection to HFC, and what might be the challenges ? 8. What specific certified mass storage is being offered with the MediHawk and from which vendors ? 9. What are the certified back-up or HSM storage options/vendors and how does these processes affect RT IVoD operation ? Please help in answering these if you can. Thanks in advance.