CadetWorld Folding Teams - Join Now!

[Lt(N) Deck]

Due to the interest of numerous members, CadetWorld has joined the Folding at Home Distributed Computing project.

If you do not know anything about Folding @ Home, read this post first to understand what it is, or watch this Flash video to learn more.

To make this fun and competive, we have set up three teams here at CW:



Cadet-World Team Sea (Team # 49211)

Team Captain: Juice




Cadet-World Team Army (Team # 49193)

Team Captain: JGoguen




Cadet-World Team Air (Team # 49194)

Team Captain: Pyro




How To Join A Folding Team


(These instructions assume you use Windows NT/2000/XP and choose the console client, installed as a service. Most options will be the same for other installations.)

1 - Download the version of the Folding @ Home Program you wish to use. There are versions for different Operating Systems. There are also choices of a "graphical" client which runs in your system tray and lets you click on it to view the folding simulations or a "console" client which runs in the background, with no direct interface, and also allows installation as a "Service", which means it always run even if no one is actually logged in. The " Windows NT/2000/XP "No nonsense" text-only console (with built-in Windows-service-install option)" is the best choice for most users. Click here to download that directly.

2 - Create a folder on your hard drive, call it Folding, or FAH, etc. Put it right on the C drive, or in the Programs Folder. Place the downloaded installer into there.

3 - Run the installer.

4 - Enter your desired username. You cannot use spaces, so must use underscores " _ " if you wish to have more than one word. You also cannot use these characters: # ^ ~ |. You may use your username from here at CW if you wish. Bear in mind that if you ever change your username, your old points will not transfer to the new name! If you anticipate getting promoted at some time in the future, do not use your rank in the Folding username. Use something like "intial_surname" or a nickname, etc. (I will be folding under the nickname "Dexter.")

5 - Enter your desired Team # from the list above.

6 - Other options:

a - Launch automatically at machine startup, installing this as a service? If you want Folding to run all the time in the background, choose yes. If not, choose no, and it will only run when you are logged in to the computer.

b - Ask before fetching/sending work? If you are on high-speed internet, choose no. If you are on dialup, choose yes.

c - Use Internet Explorer settings? Normally choose no, unless you need to specify certain settings which are set up in IE.

d - Use Proxy? Normally choose no, unless you have a specific proxy connection you need to connect through.

e - Allow receipt of work assignments and return of work results greater than
5MB in size (such work units may have large memory demands)? Normally choose no. If you have lots of RAM and don't mind it being used, choose yes. These work units will return higher point values when completed.

f - Change advanced options (yes/no)? If you want change them, yes. Read on to see why you might want to do this.

g - Core Priority (idle/low)? Default is idle, which means that if you launch programs such as games or word processors, they will get higher priority and folding will use less of the CPU. The "low" setting bumps the folding priority up a bit, still lower than most applications, but it means that Folding will reserve a bit more of the CPU power for itself, which may slow down other programs. Used mainly if you want to build a dedicated folding system.

h - CPU usage requested (5-100)? Specifies how much of the CPU will be used in total by all active processes. If you set this for 100, your CPU will always run at 100%, with Folding always taking all the available CPU cycles. I personally always cap CPU usage at 95%, leaving about 5% "headroom" to allow for unexpected problems in other programs.

i - Disable highly optimized assembly code (no/yes)? Leave at default of no. Changing this will result in lower-point work units, or slower processing of work units.

j - Pause if battery power is being used (useful for laptops) (no/yes)? If you are folding on a laptop, set this to Yes.

k - Interval, in minutes, between checkpoints (3-30)?
Leave at default.

l - Memory, in MB, to indicate (XXX available)? Maximum amount of RAM you want Folding to be able to use. It will show you the total available. I usually cap mine at about 75 to 80 % of that total to allow for unexpected problems in other programs.

m - Request work units without deadlines? Units with deadlines are ones that Stanford wants sooner, so they are worth more points. If you have a very slow computer you may want to set this to yes.

n - Set -advmethods flag always, requesting new advanced
scientific cores and/or work units if available (no/yes) ? Advanced cores / advanced work units = higher points. If you have a fast computer and want more points, set this to yes. Otherwise, leave at no.

o - Ignore any deadline information (mainly useful if
system clock frequently has errors) (no/yes)? If your computer's clock is wonky, set to yes, otherwise leave at no.

p - Machine ID (1-8) Some firewalls require that each computer behind it have a different ID number to keep the data sorted out. Also, if you have a hyperthreading processor, you can run 2 instances of folding on your system, but must machine ID each instance separately. Otherwise, leave this set to 1.


7 - Folding @ Home then sets up, contacts the Stanford server, downloads a core if necessary, then downloads your work unit. Once you see the work unit begin, you can close the console interface. Reboot the PC for it to start as a service.

That's it, you're folding!

If you have already installed and are running folding, and want to change your team number or any of the options, you need to stop the folding process (CTRL-ALT-DEL to bring up task manager, click on processes, right click on the FAH Console process, and End Process Tree.) Then locate your Folding At Home folder. Find the file "client.cfg" and delete it. Then re-install the client following the steps above, making your new option choices.

Look for some Sticky Threads to appear in Stand Easy soon with discussion related to folding, team and member accomplishments, challenges, etc.

Fold On!

KD

[Lt(N) Deck]

Recruiting Members

Feel free to recruit new members to fold for your team. They do not need to be members here at CW to fold for your team. But, if they are Cadets, former Cadets or staff, why not get them to join CW as well?


Folding on Multiple Computers

You can fold on as many computers as you are able to. Just enter your same folding name and team number when you install. But...Remember one of the cardinal rules of the Folding At Home project:

Please only run Folding@Home on machines you either own or on which you have the permission of the owner to run our software. Any other use of Folding@Home violates our license agreement (and just isn't a good idea in general).

Stealth installs on family or friends' computers, or on school / business computers is frowned upon and brings a bad reputation to this good cause. Please do not fold on a computer unless you have asked the owner for permission.

KD

[Lt(N) Deck]

Joined Folding? Tell everyone!

Change your signature to say what team you are folding for. Link to this page, and include the link to the generic Folding video to spread the word, and recruit more members to fold for your team!

KD