1. NSF Middleware Initiative Purpose To design, develop, deploy and support a set of reusable, expandable set of middleware functions and services that benefit applications in a networked environment

2. NMI Organization GRIDS Center – ISI, NCSA, U Chicago, UCSD & U Wisconsin EDIT Team (Enterprise and Desktop Integration Technologies) –EDUCAUSE, Internet2 & SURA Core NMI Team Grants for R & D Year 1 -- 9 grants Year 2 -- 9 grants

3. To allow scientists and engineers the ability to transparently use and share distributed resources, such as computers, data, and instruments To develop effective collaboration and communications tools such as Grid technologies, desktop video, and other advanced services to expedite research and education, and To develop a working architecture and approach which can be extended to Internet users around the world. Middleware is the stuff that makes “transparently use” happen, providing persistency, consistency, security, privacy and capability A Vision for Middleware

4. a) facilitate scientific productivity, b) increase research collaboration through shared data, computing, code, facilities and applications, c) support the education enterprise, d) encourage the participation of industry, government labs and agencies for more extensive development and wider adoption and deployment, e) establish a level of persistence and availability so that other applicationsdevelopers and disciplines can take advantage of the middleware, f) encourage and support the development of standards and open source approaches and, g) enable scaling and sustainability to support the larger research and education communities. NMI Goals

5. Experimental Software & research applications Middleware deployment Consensus - disciplines - communities - industries Early Implementations - GRID services, directories, authentication, etc MiddlewareTestbeds - experimental, Beta, scaling & “hardening” Early Adopters Dissemination & Support Research & Education NMI Process

6. 3rd Year Program of NMI March 6, 2003 Proposal deadline $7M available for FY’03 78 Proposals received - highly competitive Panel reviews completed (March 31 - April 3)