Where did you hear / read about GIMPS for the first time ?

Daffy · 2003-06-25, 04:23

After reading one post in the Paypal thread, I thought about starting this one.

I read about GIMPS for the first time 18 month ago in Computoredge free magazine in San Diego. It covered several distributed projects and I thought this one was too cool not to try it. I've been crushing numbers since then...

delta_t · 2003-06-25, 05:37

I heard it from a friend back in March 1998.

Euler1973 · 2003-06-25, 06:46

I heard about it around about early 2000 but at the time I was crunching Work Units for seti@home ; decided that it was probably a waste of time and chose to transfer my efforts to this DC project about a year ago.
Dave

Kevin · 2003-06-25, 07:02

*sigh* I'm sad to say, that out of boredom in October in 2001, I did a search for "world's largest prime number"

ops: . I'll admit my geekiness and leave this thread in shame.

;)

lycorn · 2003-06-25, 08:55

In November 2001, when M39 was discovered.
I read an article about the discovery on a portuguese daily newspaper. GIMPS was obviously mentioned, together with the link to its home page. I had a look at it, found the project to be interesting and ... here I am, "crunching in earnest" 8) . Things got even more interesting when Xyzzy started this forum, which I think is a great way of getting more people to adhere to the common effort.

apocalypse · 2003-06-25, 11:19

From the non-extant 'Geek Site of the Day' in the fall of 1996 or so.

ET_ · 2003-06-25, 13:00

In an Italian compuer magazine in May 1996, and joined in November

Luigi

QuintLeo · 2003-06-25, 13:58

For the first time? I really don't remember - but it was back when manual exponent checkin/out was the only way, I'd guess 1998/1999 timeframe. I vaguely remember looking at it as a RC5 alternative when I was still in Indy and deciding it was too much work.

Took another look after RC5-64 was completed, and the rest is ... history?

9-)

dswanson · 2003-06-25, 14:26

1998, local newspaper, right after the discovery of M37. Joined in November of that year, after switching from a Mac to a PC.

nomadicus · 2003-06-25, 14:37

Sometime in 2000/2001, I read an article in Scientific American about primes. So I did my own thing for my favorite primes: palindromic primes. I computed these primes out to 2^64 and found a couple of interesting properties that weren't on the net at that time (maybe they still aren't and I should submit something?).

Anyway, during the year and a half that was crunching, I researched primes in general and stumbled across the GIMPS web page. So in March of 2002 I fired up prime95.

btw - if anyone is interested in palindromic primes from 11 to 99,999,999,299,999,999 -- feel free to PM me.
john

mephisto · 2003-06-25, 16:48

Article in Nature online, I think (or Scientific American, or ...) some time early 2002, listing various distributed computing projects.

2003-06-25, 04:23	#1
Daffy Aug 2002 31 Posts	Where did you hear / read about GIMPS for the first time ? After reading one post in the Paypal thread, I thought about starting this one. I read about GIMPS for the first time 18 month ago in Computoredge free magazine in San Diego. It covered several distributed projects and I thought this one was too cool not to try it. I've been crushing numbers since then...

2003-06-25, 14:37	#10
nomadicus Jan 2003 North Carolina 2·3·41 Posts	palindromic primes led me to GIMPS. Sometime in 2000/2001, I read an article in Scientific American about primes. So I did my own thing for my favorite primes: palindromic primes. I computed these primes out to 2^64 and found a couple of interesting properties that weren't on the net at that time (maybe they still aren't and I should submit something?). Anyway, during the year and a half that was crunching, I researched primes in general and stumbled across the GIMPS web page. So in March of 2002 I fired up prime95. btw - if anyone is interested in palindromic primes from 11 to 99,999,999,299,999,999 -- feel free to PM me. john

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2003-06-25, 05:37	#2
delta_t Nov 2002 Anchorage, AK 357₁₀ Posts	I heard it from a friend back in March 1998.

2003-06-25, 06:46	#3
Euler1973 Mar 2003 3 Posts	I heard about it around about early 2000 but at the time I was crunching Work Units for seti@home ; decided that it was probably a waste of time and chose to transfer my efforts to this DC project about a year ago. Dave

2003-06-25, 07:02	#4
Kevin Aug 2002 Ann Arbor, MI 661₈ Posts	sigh I'm sad to say, that out of boredom in October in 2001, I did a search for "world's largest prime number" ops: . I'll admit my geekiness and leave this thread in shame. ;)

2003-06-25, 08:55	#5
lycorn "GIMFS" Sep 2002 Oeiras, Portugal 2×7×113 Posts	In November 2001, when M39 was discovered. I read an article about the discovery on a portuguese daily newspaper. GIMPS was obviously mentioned, together with the link to its home page. I had a look at it, found the project to be interesting and ... here I am, "crunching in earnest" 8) . Things got even more interesting when Xyzzy started this forum, which I think is a great way of getting more people to adhere to the common effort.

2003-06-25, 11:19	#6
apocalypse Feb 2003 2×3×29 Posts	From the non-extant 'Geek Site of the Day' in the fall of 1996 or so.

2003-06-25, 13:00	#7
ET_ Banned "Luigi" Aug 2002 Team Italia 5×7×139 Posts	In an Italian compuer magazine in May 1996, and joined in November Luigi

2003-06-25, 13:58	#8
QuintLeo Oct 2002 Lost in the hills of Iowa 1C0₁₆ Posts	For the first time? I really don't remember - but it was back when manual exponent checkin/out was the only way, I'd guess 1998/1999 timeframe. I vaguely remember looking at it as a RC5 alternative when I was still in Indy and deciding it was too much work. Took another look after RC5-64 was completed, and the rest is ... history? 9-)

2003-06-25, 14:26	#9
dswanson Aug 2002 2³·5² Posts	1998, local newspaper, right after the discovery of M37. Joined in November of that year, after switching from a Mac to a PC.

2003-06-25, 16:48	#11
mephisto Feb 2003 Norway 2³×7 Posts	Article in Nature online, I think (or Scientific American, or ...) some time early 2002, listing various distributed computing projects.