> Just a dumb question, as i'm totally out of this business, it is easier to > write an emulator than translate the applications to plan9 c ? (for example) > or to write (or port) the C++ and Fortran compilers and related tools?
it is easier (in both cases), but it's also not the point. applications typically aren't compiled on blue gene, and it's closer to an embedded environment from that point of view. although it is possible to compile code on an iphone, it's typically silly. you don't "port" the variants of the compilers that people used; they weren't written to be "portable" in the sense required for plan 9 (even gcc). trying to write new ones (eg, for Fortran) is one of those things that's certainly possible in principle but in practice probably a complete waste of money (and probably time), certainly in the context of the current project.
