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Training Courses

SAPAC provides training courses in the use of e-Research facilities and services to South Australian researchers. This includes some APAC training courses. Training courses are available to all current or prospective SAPAC users.

Courses are scheduled regularly at each of SAPAC's partner Universities. However, it is possible to arrange courses for other times and places. Please contact SAPAC's training co-ordinator for more details.

NOTE: Only those courses listed under "Training schedule for XXX" are available for booking. The entries under "Course descriptions" are descriptions only, and do not indicate current availability of those courses.
Please reload this page frequently from the web-site, as the Training Schedule is subject to change. The Schedule is valid only for the dates given therein.

 

Training schedule for September 2007

Introduction to Scientific Data Visualization with AVS/Express

Course description: AVS/Express is a leading-edge object-oriented, visual development tool that enables one to rapidly create 3-D stereo-capable visualizations of large scientific data sets.
This seminar will provide an overview of AVS/express capabilities, highlighting a variety of data sets and standard 3-D visualization techniques including ortho-slice, isosurface, surface, volume and vector-field rendering as examples. Image capture and animation creation will also be highlighted.
AVS/Express provides hundreds of predefined application components (objects) that process, display, and manipulate data. They are combined in the Network Editor; a visual development environment that is used to connect, define, assemble, and manipulate objects through mouse-driven operations. The objects and application components that you connect and assemble in the Network Editor control how data is processed and how it is displayed.
For more information on AVS/Express, visit the AVS website
Intended audience: Researchers and Directors interested in learning the capabilities of leading-edge visualization software.
Prerequisites: None
Method: Presentation, demonstrations
Date: Wednesday 26 September 2007
Time: 10:00am till 11:00am
Venue: The South Australian Virtual Reality Centre (SAVRC), Ground Floor, Santos Building, University of Adelaide
(Approx D13 on the map here)

Please note that places are limited and early registration is encouraged.

To register, please complete the registration form
Alternatively, reply to training@sapac.edu.au with the following information:


Introduction to Scientific Data Visualization with AVS/Express
Date:
Name:
Username (if applicable):
Department:
Institution:
Position:
Email:
Phone:
Other requests:

Your registration will be confirmed soon after.

Workshop on Scientific Data Visualization with AVS Express

Course description: AVS/Express is a leading-edge object-oriented, visual development tool that enables one to rapidly create 3-D stereo-capable visualizations of large scientific data sets.
This workshop is composed of a one hour seminar followed by a two-hour, hands-on tutorial in which participants will create their own scientific data visualizations. (Note: this seminar is NOT the same as the Introduction to Scientific Data Visualization).
The seminar will outline project creation via the network editor with specific emphasis on AVS-fields and their creation from data files.
AVS/Express provides hundreds of predefined application components (objects) that process, display, and manipulate data. As such, a few tricks that will help you find the object you are looking for will be presented. Similarly, sample networks will be made available to facilitate rapid development of the first application.
Participants are encouraged to bring their own data to visualize in AVS/Express. ASCII text files (on USB or CD) with four or more columns of data providing x, y, and z coordinates and one or more data values are particularly easy to interface with AVS.
For more information on AVS/Express, visit the AVS website
Intended audience: Researchers interested in developing scientific data visualization applications in AVS/Express.
Prerequisites: Introduction to Scientific Data Visualization with AVS Express
Duration: 3 hours
Method: Demonstration, tutorial, hands-on workshop
Date: Wednesday 26 September 2007
Time: 11:30am till 12:30pm (seminar), 2:00pm till 4:00pm (workshop)
Venue: Seminar The South Australian Virtual Reality Centre (SAVRC), Ground Floor, Santos Building, University of Adelaide
(Approx D13 on the map here)
Venue: Workshop SAPAC AG Room, Level 1, Physics Building, University of Adelaide
(Approx H5 on the map here)

Please note that places are limited and early registration is encouraged.

To register, please complete the registration form
Alternatively, reply to training@sapac.edu.au with the following information:


AVS Workshop
Date:
Name:
Username (if applicable):
Department:
Institution:
Position:
Email:
Phone:
Other requests:

Your registration will be confirmed soon after.

Introduction to Programming with MPI

The Australian National Facility in conjunction with SAPAC is offering a one-day introductory course on MPI parallel programming on 25 September.
The course is available and FREE to all researchers, staff or students, at Flinders University, the University of Adelaide and the University of South Australia. Note that numbers are strictly limited and registration is required for attendance. If there is sufficient demand, SAPAC will consider repeating the course on the following day).
MPI is a standardized message passing library for writing parallel programs for a wide range parallel computers from networks of PCs to high-end supercomputers. It requires no special hardware or commercial software.
The course will provide an introduction to, and hands-on exercises in, the use of the MPI library for developing new (or parallelizing existing) codes.
Pre-Requisites: The course is open to all researchers or potential users of SAPAC or the APAC National Facility. A working knowledge of Fortran or C, UNIX and a UNIX editor (vi or emacs) will be assumed. It will be advantageous but not essential if attendees have used the SAPAC facilities or the APAC National Facility or have completed a SAPAC Induction Course.
Outline of "Programming with MPI":

  • Introduction and overview of message passing and MPI
  • MPI program structure
  • Messages
  • Point-to-point communication
  • Non-blocking communication
  • Collective communication
  • Miscellaneous (derived datatypes, MPI IO, topologies, MPI2, ...)
  • Debugging and Profiling

Dates: Tuesday, 25 September 2007
Time: 9:30am till 5:00pm
Venue: Physics computer suite, Level 1, Physics Building, University of Adelaide
(Approx H5 on the map here)

To register, please complete the registration form
Alternatively, reply to training@sapac.edu.au with the following information:


Introduction to MPI programming
Date:
Name:
Username (if applicable):
Department:
Institution:
Position:
Email:
Phone:
Other requests:

Your registration will be confirmed soon after.

 

Course Descriptions

SAPAC e-Research Induction

Course description

  • Overview of SAPAC and SAPAC e-Research services and facilities
  • Introduction to high performance computing
    • Overview of SAPAC HPC services: machines, helpdesk
    • Software available on SAPAC systems
    • Connecting to SAPAC - particularly from Windows machines.
  • Necessary software
    • Introduction to PBS queuing software - overview, queue structures
    • Submitting jobs to SAPAC machines
    • Commercial software: MATLAB, FLUENT etc
  • Research data storage
    • Accessing SAPAC research data storage (SASR)
  • Overview of visualisation facilities and services
    • Visualisation facilities
    • Visualisation software and tools
    • Haptics
  • Access Grid
  • Other SAPAC services and resources
  • Training
  • Getting help and more information
  • Where now? Applying for SAPAC membership

Pre-requisites: None
Trainer/coordinator: Various
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 3.5 hours
Method: Face-to-face
Cost (Uni - research): $0
Cost (Uni - non-research, non-Uni): $100
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form

SAPAC Induction course, General section (PDF, 570kB)

SAPAC Induction course, HPC section (PDF, 382kB)


Introduction to Linux for SAPAC users

Course description: Basic Linux for SAPAC users: Linux structure, Linux file system, basic Linux directory structure; Linux tools, text editors; common and useful commands; system management; Linux security; GUIs.
Intended audience: Researchers without a working knowledge of Linux. This course focuses on using SAPAC facilities and is not a general Linux course.
Prerequisites: None
Trainer/coordinator: Patrick Fitzhenry
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 4 hours
Method: Face-to-face
Cost: (Uni - research): $0
Cost (Uni - non research, non-Uni): $100
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form

PDF file to accompany Linux Introduction course (144kB)


Introduction to FLUENT

Course description: This is an introductory workshop that takes place over 3 half days. It takes the form of a set of guided tutorials and gives some familiarity with one of the most widely used commercial CFD packages in industry.
Introduction to the FLUENT User Interface. Develop facility in the core functionality of the FLUENT package. Using the solvers from the GUI. Using the solvers in batch mode from a command file.
Intended audience: Current or prospective FLUENT users; researchers using CFD tools
Prerequisites: Knowledge of fluid dynamics
Trainer/coordinator: Patrick Fitzhenry
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 3 days, 3 hours each day
Method: Mediated on-line, face-to-face
Cost: (Uni - research): By negotiation
Cost (Uni - non research, non-Uni): By negotiation
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form


Introduction to Gaussian

Course description: TBA
Intended audience: Current or prospective Gaussian users; computational chemists, materials scientists
Prerequisites: Knowledge of chemistry
Trainer/coordinator: Patrick Fitzhenry
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 1 day
Method: Mediated self-paced
Cost: (Uni - research): By negotiation
Cost (Uni - non research, non-Uni): By negotiation
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form


Introduction to MPI

Course description: Introduction and overview of message parsing and MPI; MPI program structure; Messages; Point-to-point communications; Non-blocking communication; Collective communication; Miscellaneous issues (derived data types, MPI I/O, topologies; MPI2,...); Debugging and Profiling
Intended audience: Advanced SAPAC users
Prerequisites: SAPAC Induction
Trainer/coordinator: to be announced
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 1 day
Method: face-to-face
Cost: (Uni - research): $0
Cost (Uni - non research, non-Uni): $500
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form

MPI Applications and Optimisation

Course description: MPI is a standardized message passing library for writing parallel
programs for a wide range parallel computers from networks of PCs to
high-end supercomputers. The course will address performance issues
related to parallelising applications particularly using message passing
and the MPI library.
Pre-Requisites: The course is open to all researchers or potential users of SAPAC or the
APAC National Facility.  A working knowledge of Fortran or C, UNIX and a
UNIX editor (vi or emacs) will be assumed. Completion of the
Introduction to MPI programming course will also be assumed. It will also be
advantageous but not essential if attendees have used the SAPAC
facilities or the APAC National Facility and have completed a SAPAC
Induction Course.
Outline of "MPI Applications and Optimisation":
    *  Basic performance concepts
    *  MPI performance issues
    *  Tools
    *  Parallel Decomposition
    *  Example Applications
Trainer/coordinator: Patrick Fitzhenry
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 1 day
Method: face-to-face
Cost: (Uni - research): $0
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form

Introduction to Visualisation

Course description: Introduction to scientific visualisation ideas and methods;use and benefits of stereoscopic display; overview of scientific and technical visualisation software (including OpenDX, AVS, POV-Ray) and techniques; SAPAC visualisation facilities and services.
Intended audience: Researchers or research students without significant experience in the area
Prerequisites: None
Trainer/coordinator: Padric McGee
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 2.5 hours total (10:30-11:30 and 12-1)
Method: Face-to-face
Cost: (Uni - research): $0
Cost (Uni - non research, non-Uni): $250
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form

Introduction to Scientific Data Visualisation with AVS/Express

Course description: AVS/Express is a leading-edge object-oriented, visual development tool that enables one to rapidly create 3-D stereo-capable visualisations of large scientific data sets.
This seminar will provide an overview of AVS/express capabilities, highlighting a variety of data sets and standard 3-D visualisation techniques including ortho-slice, isosurface, surface, volume and vector-field rendering as examples. Image capture and animation creation will also be highlighted.
AVS/Express provides hundreds of predefined application components (objects) that process, display, and manipulate data. They are combined in the Network Editor; a visual development environment that is used to connect, define, assemble, and manipulate objects through mouse-driven operations. The objects and application components that you connect and assemble in the Network Editor control how data are processed and how they are displayed.
For more information on AVS/Express, visit the AVS web-site.
Intended audience: Researchers and Directors interested in learning the capabilities of leading-edge visualisation software.
Prerequisites: None
Presenter: Derek Leinweber
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 1 hour
Method: Presentation, demonstrations
Cost: (Uni - research): $0
Cost (Uni - non research, non-Uni): $0
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form

Workshop on Scientific Data Visualisation with AVS Express

Course description: AVS/Express is a leading-edge object-oriented, visual development tool that enables one to rapidly create 3-D stereo-capable visualisations of large scientific data sets.
This workshop is composed of a one-hour seminar followed by a two-hour, hands-on tutorial in which participants will create their own scientific data visualisations. (Note: this seminar is NOT the same as the Introduction to Scientific Data Visualisation).
The seminar will outline project creation via the network editor with specific emphasis on AVS-fields and their creation from data files. AVS/Express provides hundreds of predefined application components (objects) that process, display, and manipulate data. As such, a few tricks that will help you find the object you are looking for will be presented. Similarly, sample networks will be made available to facilitate rapid development of the first application.
Participants are encouraged to bring their own data to visualise in AVS/Express. ASCII text files (on USB or CD) with four or more columns of data providing x, y, and z coordinates and one or more data values are particularly easy to interface with AVS.
For more information on AVS/Express, visit http://www.avs.com
Intended audience:Researchers and Directors interested in learning the
capabilities of leading-edge visualisation software.
Prerequisites: None
Trainer/coordinator: Derek Leinweber
Contact details: training co-ordinator
Duration: 3 hours total (1hour +2 hours, with lunch break)
Method: Demonstration, tutorial, hands-on workshop
Cost: (Uni - research): $0
Cost (Uni - non research, non-Uni): By negotiation
Registration of interest, enrolment: Registration form

Useful training links

Education & training information available at other APAC partner sites.

Computational Science and Parallel Processing Training and Educational Materials Archive

 
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