A state-of-the-art fiber backbone network linking
programs and exhibitors within the conference
to the global computer graphics community.
GraphicsNet was the SIGGRAPH 98 conference intranet.
It served as the link among the many conference
programs and events, and as the gateway to the
global graphics community. Once again, GraphicsNet
included two different optical fiber backbones:
- A production backbone based on Fast Ethernet
(100 Mbps) linked the Exhibition; the Internet
Access Centers; the 18 presentation rooms for
Papers, Panels, Courses, Sketches, and the
Educators Program; Hall C; information kiosks;
and the Creative Applications Lab (CAL). The
production backbone was built with products
from Cisco Systems, 3COM, Fluke, and others.
It was connected to the Internet through a "burstable"
T3 circuit on the Orlando Telephone Company
optical fiber Synchronous Optical Network
(SONET) ring that serves the Orange County
Convention Center and metropolitan Orlando.
A guaranteed bit rate of 25 Mbps to UUNET's
Internet Services and their multiple Internet
backbone providers was obtained for SIGGRAPH 98.
- The other GraphicsNet backbone was based on
ATM (155 Mbps, OC-3) and was designed primarily
to serve as the high-performance video network
for SIGGRAPH TV. It connected all the information
kiosk locations with video and with SIGGRAPH TV
Master Control. The ATM network used switches and
video encoding and decoding products from FORE Systems.
GraphicsNet also included several dedicated optical
fiber and copper connections that were used by
exhibitors and contributors to distribute digital
video and for other applications.
The primary network management workstations and
servers used in the Network Operations Center
(NOC) were supplied by Sun Microsystems, Inc.
GraphicsNet Committees
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