Rumor Mill: Microsoft to Take Part in Rosetta@home?

Gizmodo reported today on recent developments that point to Microsoft taking part in the Rosetta@Home project, specifically this post by developer David Baker.  This would counterpoint the recent announcement that Sony’s Playstation 3 would be participating in the Folding@Home project.

If you’re not familiar with these projects, they are research software that runs on your console (or home PC) using the processor cycles that are not being used by your normal programs. These cycles calculate the folding of proteins to help scientists better understand how this building block of life works. Folding@Home is focusing on Alzheimer’s Disease while Rosetta@Home is looking at HIV. They are noble goals.

The PS3 Folding client apparently runs exceedingly well when it uses data packets designed with its architecture in mind. While having Microsoft’s console running a similar project is well and good, I think the fans would love to see the consoles go head to head in the same project. Even if the Cell processor can outperform the 360, the install base of the Microsoft console should surely be able to surpass the PS3.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft has already explored running Folding@Home, and found that they would look poorly in this head-to-head matchup and thus are moving to a similar but separate project.

This leads to another point. Rosetta@Home uses the BOINC infrastructure, the framework that many projects of this type use.. including the infamous SETI@Home. With the BOINC infrastructure in place, it is not out of the question that SETI@Home or ClimatePrediction.net cores could be written for the 360. Time will tell.